According to EU regulation 261/2004, passengers have the right to get the ticket price refunded within seven days if their booking is canceled. Vouchers are not provided and the EU Commission has also made it clear that passengers may not be fed with vouchers with which the risk of insolvency is passed on. But Austrian Airlines, Lauda, ​​Wizzair and many other airlines don't really care. Hundreds of thousands across Europe are waiting for the legally required repayment of their ticket money.

“There has been widespread lawlessness in the tourism industry since the Covid 19 pandemic. The passengers try to prevent their money with vouchers or rebooking, at the same time many request state aid and also try to reduce the salaries of the employees, "warns Peter Kolba, chairman of the consumer protection association (VSV). "The VSV has therefore entered into a cooperation with TicketRefund in order to make reclaiming the ticket price as easy and risk-free as possible for passengers."

Behind TicketRefund is the Fairplane portal, which has previously specialized in collecting compensation claims. The aim of the VSV's collection campaign is to help injured passengers to get their money as quickly as possible. But the matter is not completely free of charge, because only if the airline pays out within seven days, there is no commission. “If the payment is made before an individual lawsuit against the airline, the success fee for TicketRefund is 14 percent of the proceeds. If the repayment has to be enforced in court, then the success fee for TicketRefund is 28 percent of the proceeds ”, can be read in the media release on the costs.

“At the moment, travelers are hugely insecure. There is no information and there is not enough information online for a refund either, there is a system behind it. We advise everyone to keep their cool and not rush to accept vouchers. According to current EU law, travelers are entitled to a cash refund. With our TicketRefund service, we offer support from contract lawyers who are well versed in travel law, at no cost risk. Only in the event of success is a commission deducted from the amount paid out. Travelers are currently being misused as banks that give interest-free loans to airlines and tour operators without wanting to, ”explains Fairplane managing director Andreas Sernetz.