United States regulators have imposed a nice of US$1.1 million (£877,000) on British Airways, following accusations that the airline failed to supply immediate refunds for passengers on flights to and from the US in the course of the COVID-19 pandemic. The US Transportation Department issued the penalty, which British Airways contests.
According to the division, the airline violated federal regulations by not processing refunds in a timely method for passengers whose flights had been cancelled or considerably modified due to the pandemic. It is alleged that British Airways withheld refunds for thousands of passengers, inflicting financial distress and inconvenience.
In response to the allegations, a spokesperson for British Airways acknowledged, “We are disappointed with the decision, which we believe is unjustified. We have been in regular contact with the Department of Transportation throughout the pandemic to discuss our refund process and we imagine we have been compliant with their necessities.”
The spokesperson additional added, “We have all the time been committed to refunding our customers and have processed more than three million refunds because the start of the pandemic, with only a small fraction of these referring to US clients.”
Free , nevertheless, maintains that the airline failed to adhere to rules, stating, “The Department found that British Airways failed to provide refunds promptly and failed to inform passengers of their rights under US law.”
As the pandemic continues to influence the aviation trade, airways worldwide have faced quite a few challenges, together with the necessity to manage customer refunds amid widespread flight cancellations and disruptions. The fantastic imposed on British Airways serves as a reminder to airways of their obligations to passengers during these unprecedented occasions..