Monarch Airlines Collapse News Updates: How Can Customers Get Refunds?
The collapse of Monarch Airlines, Britain's longest-serving airline, was as sudden as it was unexpected, leaving hundreds of thousands of customers holding tickets for flights that will never take off. Getting a refund will not be that easy, as well, following this unprecedented shutdown.
As Monarch Airlines tries to look after its former customers after the carrier brand imploded, flyers who have left the United Kingdom for vacation have little choice but to take one of the chartered flights being sent out to bring them home.
Those who were about to fly out when the news hit have it a little bit easier. This is due to the fact that an estimated 750,000 bookings have been scrapped, and the refund queues are expected to take a massive toll on the already flattened airline.
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Monarch ticket holders are entitled to get a full refund for their booking only if their ticket is covered by the Air Travel Organiser's License (ATOL), a flight insurance that adds about £2.50 to the price, according to the Evening Standard.
This insurance comes in handy now for Monarch customers, but as it turns out, not all the tickets sold by the airline were ATOL protected.
Tickets booked with the Monarch Airlines under First Aviation Ltd, which would be the case before Dec. 14, 2016, fall under the ATOL protection. For these bookings, Monarch will be arranging for a refund "as soon as possible," especially for UK residents, according to the Manchester Evening News.
Holiday packages booked with Monarch Holiday are covered by ATOL as well.
Tickets bought directly from Monarch Airlines from Dec. 15 last year onwards, however, are not covered under the ATOL refund, for some reason. For these cases, customers will have to resort to getting a credit card refund, or perhaps file insurance or PayPal claims.
Monarch Airlines has been struggling for years, and was already on life support by 2014 when a combined impacts of Brexit and the resulting fall of the pound's value dealt the final blow. Falling fares and the uncertain fate of British airlines after the Brexit made a rescue of the airline a huge risk, as well.
