Airlines will sometimes have schedule changes, whereby the schedule for a flight will be changed at some point before departure. As a traveler, you can often make these work to your advantage, since you can typically make a (reasonable) change without incurring a fare difference.
However, the policies do vary by airline, and it seems like EasyJet may have a particularly “unfriendly” policy in this regard, as shared by an OMAAT reader. I guess that’s not too surprising for a European budget carrier that largely makes its money on fees, but still…
In this post:
EasyJet’s unreasonable schedule change policy
OMAAT reader Mike booked a flight on EasyJet for next June from Lisbon (LIS) to Bordeaux (BOD), which was scheduled to depart at 1:05PM. Separately, he had booked a TAP Air Portugal flight to Lisbon out of New York (JFK), scheduled to land at 10:15AM.
So while it required two separate tickets, this was the most convenient routing for getting from New York to Bordeaux, and he figured with a 2hr50min layover, that would be plenty of time to collect bags, and once again check them in for the second flight, and make the connection.
Recently, Mike received a schedule change notice from EasyJet, informing him that his Lisbon to Bordeaux flight was moved by 1hr5min, from 1:05PM to 12:00PM. With just 1hr45min to make his connection, he’s understandably more concerned.
Fortunately EasyJet also has a flight in the market at 3PM, so Mike figured he could be moved to that flight at no extra cost, given that it’s EasyJet that made the schedule change. When he contacted EasyJet, he was informed that he’d have to pay around €50 to move flights, as the airline reportedly only waives change fees for schedule changes of three hours or more.
When he asked them to show proof of where this policy is written, he was informed this is an internal policy, and there’s no public documentation of this. Mike concludes the following:
This seems very unreasonable — to enforce a policy that was: 1) not disclosed at booking; and 2) not available for reference anywhere (even after booking). I’m considering disputing the charge on my credit card — but I hate to resort to that if it’s avoidable. It seems like they should take accountability for their schedule change, and simply move me to the other flight on the same day? I know this is what a US carrier would do (as I’ve done it several times), especially since I’m NOT looking for a refund.
For what it’s worth, below is part of Mike’s chat with the EasyJet customer service representative.
Is EasyJet’s policy even remotely reasonable?
There’s a lot going on with EasyJet’s schedule change policy. As I see it, the biggest problem here is how the company doesn’t clearly publish its rules. I’ve looked through EasyJet’s contract of carriage, and (unless I’m missing something) nowhere does the airline state what its policy actually is.
That’s a problem, and a little bit of transparency shouldn’t be too much to ask for. Airline contracts of carriage are one-sided under the best of circumstances, let alone when you see stuff like this.
While the European Union has strong air passenger consumer protections (in the form of EC261), that doesn’t really address situations like this, where a schedule change is published many months in advance. So it’s up to each airline to set their policy (though again, the issue here isn’t even the policy, but instead, the lack of publishing the policy).
Now, of course I should add the obvious caveat that there’s always a risk when you’re booking flights on separate itineraries. Also, the further out you book, the better the odds that there will be a schedule change. So I can’t say that I’m shocked to see a schedule change like this, and I think a potential €50 fee might just be the “cost” of this kind of an arrangement, when confirming travel far in advance, and hoping for things to work out.
Of course watch him pay a €50 fee, only to then have that afternoon flight have a schedule change as well. So I’m not sure I have any great advice here, though at least let this act as a warning to other travelers. With many airlines, a schedule change is essentially carte blanche to pick the flight you want. With EasyJet, it’s an opportunity to pay another fee.
Bottom line
While most airlines are pretty generous when it comes to how they handle schedule changes, EasyJet isn’t. The company’s policy seems to be that if they change the schedule for less than three hours, you’re stuck with the same flight, and have to pay a fee to change to a more convenient flight.
I think that policy is a little aggressive, but worst of all, it doesn’t even seem to be clearly published. So if you do book an EasyJet flight, let this act as a warning…
What do you make of EasyJet’s schedule change policy?
My friends and I have recently experienced inconsistent Easyjet customer service. This was regarding a schedule change of 6 hours and 40 mins. This brought a flight forward to 6 am which is unacceptable to my party. There is nothing in the terms and conditions to specifically state that due to severe disruption a refund is due. However, my fellow travellers ( on one booking) were given a refund, whilst I have been advised I...
My friends and I have recently experienced inconsistent Easyjet customer service. This was regarding a schedule change of 6 hours and 40 mins. This brought a flight forward to 6 am which is unacceptable to my party. There is nothing in the terms and conditions to specifically state that due to severe disruption a refund is due. However, my fellow travellers ( on one booking) were given a refund, whilst I have been advised I can only cancel and receive taxes back or swap to different flights at a cost of £60. They refuse to give any explanation of why we are being treated differently.
Typical idiocy and entitlement.
While not helpful to this situation, I know that people want to "lock in" their trips well in advance, but I think the moral of the story is to book the easiest and most flexible parts closer in. I see no advantage to booking an LCC that many months in advance.
I'm not sure what the outright cancellation policy is, but cancelling the flight and rebooking later could be cheaper in the long run.
The elephant in the room is thinking that he would be safe to transfer between flights (with a luggage to dispatch) at LIS.
If the immigration lines are full (which happens during certain hours of the day) he would be in one hell of an adventure lol
3 points
1 - this was a very tight connection to book with two tickets, esp involvlving Easyjet
2 - Easyjet should do a better job of publishing rules - I think 5 hours is their threshold for allowing a free change/refund for an invol time change if the customer is informed well in advance
3 - I don't think EU 261 applies here, due to the timeframe
CSR claims it applies to changes of over one hour, is told the change was 1:05, and only then claims three hours are needed based on an "internal policy" with no documentation?
I'm torn between a regulatory complaint and just going to a chargeback after the flight and citing the original claim of one hour with no customer-facing documentation (ergo no contract was made as the airline obscured terms and conditions).
But I'm also not an EU lawyer.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading everyone’s comments about EU/UK261. Wish we had an equivalent air passenger rights legislation in the US. Currently, over here, the ‘free market’ decides that we get screwed, and there’s limited recourse for us. We deserve better.
Like, seriously, when the adults are back in-charge, in addition to cleaning up all the other messes, we need to pass actual legislation. Look to Europe, even Canada’s APPR for a blue print. Wish passengers had actual ‘lobbyists,’ like the airlines do (A4A), because they just bribe politicians to not do anything about this.
The impression that I have is that pretty much all the adults (even the ones that are not in charge right now) have company interests before people / consumer.
United Corporations of America.
But the propaganda citizens are fed pretty much clouds this.
They do not have to publish a rule. Schedules are not part of the contract of transport. The EU261/2004 will kick in if there is a change of more than 3 hours and only the rights under EU directive have to be disclosed.
I only ever book self connections with a protection add on. This situation would not have happened if he booked at waya.travel it even offers the exact routing tap to easy.
3 hours is a common rule in Europe.
The reasonable thing to do is to completely ignore shit airlines like Ryanair and Easyjet.
They will nickel and dime you for the air you breathe.
I haven't found Easyjet's policy regarding schedule changes but their published policy for voluntary changes made online more than 60 days out is 30 pounds which isn't the approximately 50 euros supposedly stated by the agent.
Furthermore I've found numerous postings on Flyertalk and Facebook that while not indicating policy passengers have been given a no fee change when a schedule changed by an hour. However that may have been in spite not because...
I haven't found Easyjet's policy regarding schedule changes but their published policy for voluntary changes made online more than 60 days out is 30 pounds which isn't the approximately 50 euros supposedly stated by the agent.
Furthermore I've found numerous postings on Flyertalk and Facebook that while not indicating policy passengers have been given a no fee change when a schedule changed by an hour. However that may have been in spite not because it's the airline's policy.
The lesson here is to know before you buy what the schedule change policy you are agreeing to is rather than waiting until there's a problem. Alaska Airlines for example is clearly states that any change of an hour or more entitles passengers to a no fee/no additional fare change to any flight with seats in the cabin for which the ticket was purchased either on the day of travel or the day prior or following.
All airlines need to conform with the applicable regulations and statutes. Change policies can but need not be more generous and can vary between carriers. A of each airline's policy would be extremely useful and go a long ways to avoiding the situation we have here.
Checking the European Commission Centre Belgium website the rule regarding compensation for flights brought forward compensation is only due if the flight is brought forward two weeks or less before the departure date (and has two tiers) so that wouldn't apply in this case.
I didn't see anything in the airlines CoC regarding when, if ever, a passenger is entitled to a fee free change. This isn't surprising but I would expect to find the...
Checking the European Commission Centre Belgium website the rule regarding compensation for flights brought forward compensation is only due if the flight is brought forward two weeks or less before the departure date (and has two tiers) so that wouldn't apply in this case.
I didn't see anything in the airlines CoC regarding when, if ever, a passenger is entitled to a fee free change. This isn't surprising but I would expect to find the policy somewhere. That the agent has states in writing that it is not would be the best place to start when contacting the airline.
Fees, reasonable or not, need to be disclosed in order to be enforceable.
Even without the protections of EU261 or other statutes one party, such as an airline can't impose a condition, such as a fee, on the other party that isn't part of their agreement, which in this case is the contract of carriage. That's a well established principle of contract law.
While the airline could incorporate a fee by reference that fee would have to be publicly available so a customer would have complete knowledge...
Even without the protections of EU261 or other statutes one party, such as an airline can't impose a condition, such as a fee, on the other party that isn't part of their agreement, which in this case is the contract of carriage. That's a well established principle of contract law.
While the airline could incorporate a fee by reference that fee would have to be publicly available so a customer would have complete knowledge of what they were agreeing to before making a purchase.
Frankly it's hard for me to believe that any large enterprise, even Easyjet, would screw something like this up so I'd be surprised if the fee isn't in fact disclosed somewhere. As to whether an airline can publish a fee which is contrary to EU261 or another statute that's an interesting questions. My guess would be no but there is nothing to prevent them from doing so until a regulator decides to take action.
Meanwhile assuming what the agent said about fee not being disclosed is true, its clearly not enforceable so the passenger has that as a remedy in addition to any other courses of action.
There's no need for a published easyJet policy as it derives from the regulation. 3 hours is the limit when your rights under EU Regulation 261/2004 kick in and easyJet is applying that. Below 3 hours you're not entitled to anything and easyJet doesn't provide anything.
Wrong wrong wrong, Americans really know nothing about 261.
This is factually inaccurate. 3 hours delay is for compensation. 1 min earlier is treated as a cancellation regardless of when the schedule change is done. It's a clear case of a required refund. Claim EC261 and file a claim with credit card if it's not resolved promptly is my advance
I don't think it's 1 min earlier, I think it's 1 hour earlier.
Regardless of what EU261 says an airline can't enforce a fee that isn't disclosed. That's not permissible under contract law so your assertion is incorrect.
JetBlue is also sticking to this 3 hour change policy, even when flights are being delayed and canceled left and right due to the Airbus software update mess. They should allow for changes without charge when they wildly change the flight times.
AS a UK citizen I have been burn't many a time by both Easyjet and Ryanair and now refuse to fly with either carrier. I refuse to call them airlines!
Most people know and accept exactly what Ryanair are like, but Easyjet like to portray a much more 'professional' set up, which is utter trash. At least you know where you stand with Ryanair.
Easyjet, you should be ashamed of yourselves!
The unhelpful response from the CSO smacks of 'policy' being made up on the run, IMO!
At the very least I would hang up, call again.
Of course, it is altogether possible that further changes will occur before the flight, including the original time being reinstated. I'd hold off taking any action til closer to departure.
@Ben I recently learned about another ridiculous budget airline policy that I thought would be good for people to know about and wanted to share the details with you. What would be the best way to to do that?
By making a comment.
Zing!
EC261 Article 5 and 8 apply here. As the flight was brought forward by more than 1 hour, it has the same law as a cancelled flight. The passenger may make his own arrangements and claim the costs back from the airline.
I learned this year that equipment changes are not considered a legitimate reason for a free change on DL
Come on EJ!! Mike had a perfectly workable 2h50 connection with bags and everything, and a 65-minute slide forward turns it into a 1h45 gamble. Asking to shift to your own 3PM flight that actually fixes the problem should be a no-brainer, not a €50 surprise because of some “internal policy” that only kicks in at three hours and isn’t published anywhere.
Most airlines just move you to a flight that works when they cause...
Come on EJ!! Mike had a perfectly workable 2h50 connection with bags and everything, and a 65-minute slide forward turns it into a 1h45 gamble. Asking to shift to your own 3PM flight that actually fixes the problem should be a no-brainer, not a €50 surprise because of some “internal policy” that only kicks in at three hours and isn’t published anywhere.
Most airlines just move you to a flight that works when they cause the issue. That secret three-hour rule is as legitimate and useful as Vincent’s undescended testicles: completely hidden, totally inconsequential, and never dropping when anyone actually needs them.
A quiet goodwill switch here would cost you almost nothing and would save a customer a world of stress.
Micahel, politely push back, quote EU Regulation 261 (significant schedule change = right to rerouting at no extra cost)
Hope they sort it without the €50 nonsense. Feels like the kind of thing that should just get fixed.
Russ
Eh, you get what you pay for.
It’s illegal to charge a fee in the event of a a schedule change under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 let alone not publish it in their conditions of carriage. However could this be a fare difference? UK/EC261 refers to disruptions over 2-3 hrs.
I would advise the passenger to complete the online form explaining the situation and attaching the booking on the other airline as evidence and demonstrating the concern of misconnecting. This team have a lot more latitude than the hybrid workers on the chat system;
https://www.easyjet.com/en/help-centre/contact/contact-us-form
There is a risk purchasing separate tickets. They will only be concerned about their booking.
Absolutely separate PNR is not a sleazyjet problem but it’s worth escalating to the guys at Luton HQ for a more senior review.
Agreed. I mean, seriously, shifting the flight 65 minutes and then demanding €50 to fix their own mess because of some secret "three-hour" rule nobody can read? That policy is as useful as undescended testicles (hidden, pointless, and never there when you need them).
Russ
Is there any "LCC" who doesn't apply a ridiculous policy?! Never flew one of them and will keep it like that forever.
If the policy is disclosed and not contrary to law then while the policy might strike one as being egregious the customer chose to go ahead with the purchase with full knowledge of what they were agreeing to.
The difference here, assuming the agent is correct, is that the passenger couldn't have known about the policy since it supposedly isn't published. That means there was no meeting of the minds because one party, the customer,...
If the policy is disclosed and not contrary to law then while the policy might strike one as being egregious the customer chose to go ahead with the purchase with full knowledge of what they were agreeing to.
The difference here, assuming the agent is correct, is that the passenger couldn't have known about the policy since it supposedly isn't published. That means there was no meeting of the minds because one party, the customer, wasn't fully informed as to what the deal was.
I used to be a fan of Easyjet (rather than Ryanair) but 2 tactics of theirs I encountered repeatedly have turned me off:
1) Incentivizing me to buy the higher fare at more desirable flight times, and then changing the time of that departure to nearly something as bad as I could've paid less for to begin with
2) Changing the flight times *just enough* to avoid EU compensation requirements, but still being very inconvenient...
I used to be a fan of Easyjet (rather than Ryanair) but 2 tactics of theirs I encountered repeatedly have turned me off:
1) Incentivizing me to buy the higher fare at more desirable flight times, and then changing the time of that departure to nearly something as bad as I could've paid less for to begin with
2) Changing the flight times *just enough* to avoid EU compensation requirements, but still being very inconvenient (and related to above #1).
Add to that the only time I've ever been aggressively charged for my carryon after years of flying (Easyjet), and I'm ready to swear off of their practices.
In the EU a change made with advance notice is required to be "significant" before the customer gets rights to refund etc. "Significant" is defined by airline – BA is 2hrs, Ryanair is 3hrs, EasyJet is 5hrs, Virgin is 12hrs.
I don't think easyJet did anything wrong here – the same thing would've happened if the affected flight was Virgin etc, this is the risk of the customer took by booking an unprotected connection.
( the internal policy actually seems to have improved compared to the published state that I can find online that a significant change is 5hrs for easyJet!)
This is what I came to say. All airlines in the EU will have similar policies and it needs to be a significant change for a refund or rebooking to apply.
EasyJet is not an outlier here and the change fee is published on their website (and is cheaper than what you’ll find at many other airlines too).
As far as I understand, the flight was moved more than 1h earlier and as such he's entitled to a refund as per EC261. The policy probably applies for vol change and the customer service agent didn't understand that
He isn't asking for a refund though.
Even if an airline has written policy on flight changes on their website, they don't always follow it.
After Air Canada had a schedule change on my flight last winter of just over an hour, I tried to change my flight over the phone. I was told by multiple agents that the change was not sufficient for a fee-less flight change. This contracted policy on their website.
It is unclear why the customer believes a “policy” is required. This is not the United States; European countries tend to be governed by legislation, not improvisation.
This is a one-hour schedule change.
With more than 14 days’ notice, it entitles the passenger to nothing.
With less than 14 days’ notice, it remains reasonable and still entitles the passenger to nothing.
Finally, nearly all travel insurance policies require a minimum four-hour...
It is unclear why the customer believes a “policy” is required. This is not the United States; European countries tend to be governed by legislation, not improvisation.
This is a one-hour schedule change.
With more than 14 days’ notice, it entitles the passenger to nothing.
With less than 14 days’ notice, it remains reasonable and still entitles the passenger to nothing.
Finally, nearly all travel insurance policies require a minimum four-hour layover when flights are booked separately, a fairly standard point that appears to have been overlooked.
"It is unclear why the customer believes a “policy” is required. This is not the United States; European countries tend to be governed by legislation, not improvisation."
Like the EU, the United States does, in fact, have a regulation on schedule changes (14 CFR Part 399); it is not left up to "improvisation" by carriers, though carriers can choose to go above the legally required minimum—which is also true in Europe.
Moreover, in Europe as...
"It is unclear why the customer believes a “policy” is required. This is not the United States; European countries tend to be governed by legislation, not improvisation."
Like the EU, the United States does, in fact, have a regulation on schedule changes (14 CFR Part 399); it is not left up to "improvisation" by carriers, though carriers can choose to go above the legally required minimum—which is also true in Europe.
Moreover, in Europe as in the US, carriers are obligated to follow the policies in their contract of carriage, so the airline's written policy on this, if it exists in the contract of carriage, does matter.
(As it happens, he would not be entitled to a refund in the United States nor a change to another flight, though many US carriers would allow this as a courtesy.)
So we are aligned that the client’s request for a “policy reference” was entirely pointless. :) There is no obligation for the airline to spell this case out in its conditions of carriage. As an aside, corporate "policy” is a distinctly American affectation, not standard English.
My point is why an airline based in Austria (Easyjet Europe) operating between Lisbon and France, should be expected to indulge in American corporate vernacular at all. Projecting American terminology onto a European aviation framework is not only inappropriate but a rather tiresome display of colonial style intellectual overreach.
""corporate "policy” is a distinctly American affectation, not standard English... My point is why an airline based in Austria (Easyjet Europe) operating between Lisbon and France, should be expected to indulge in American corporate vernacular at all."
easyJet's terms (its contract of carriage) refer to policy or policies 26 times, including a Baggage Policy, a biosecurity policy, a Cabin Baggage Policy, a Dangerous Goods Policy and a Seating Policy.
"the client’s request for a “policy...
""corporate "policy” is a distinctly American affectation, not standard English... My point is why an airline based in Austria (Easyjet Europe) operating between Lisbon and France, should be expected to indulge in American corporate vernacular at all."
easyJet's terms (its contract of carriage) refer to policy or policies 26 times, including a Baggage Policy, a biosecurity policy, a Cabin Baggage Policy, a Dangerous Goods Policy and a Seating Policy.
"the client’s request for a “policy reference” was entirely pointless"
Numerous policies are incorporated by reference into easyJet's terms. I would have not asked for one, because I would have seen in the terms that easyJet promises nothing beyond the required minima, but the passenger may have expected there to be one, as many airlines do.
I thought 2-3 hour schedule difference was around the norm for free changes. Occasionally I’ve changed flights with smaller schedule adjustments than that but always assumed the airline was doing me a favor (elite status etc)
In my mind it’s fortunate there is even an option for a €50 change. I would expect to forfeit the flight if the change was less than 3 hour adjustment.
Couldn’t he demand a full refund for the ticket since the schedule has been changed, and then choose any suitable carrier and flight he prefers?
Refunds only for changes 3+ hoursas well, the chat agent already clarified this.
I believe that this option doesn't exist anywhere in the world (for a 65 minute schedule change)
Yes it does. Turkish Airlines will refund on anything over 15 minutes change
I feel like most state-backed airlines tend to be more generous with full refunds when schedules change, since they don’t face the same financial pressure to fight an angry customer just to collect small fees—especially when the disruption was caused by the airline itself. Practically every Chinese airline also offers refunds or same-airline changes if the arrival time changes by more than 15 minutes.
There’s a practice known as mile laundering in the Chinese aviation circle. Essentially, some Chinese airlines have mileage expiry dates. However, when you book an award flight and the flight’s departure or arrival time changes, you can request a full refund and have the miles redeposited on the cancellation date at no charge — effectively resetting the expiry date.
In fact, people in these circles often recommend flights that have a high chance of delays...
There’s a practice known as mile laundering in the Chinese aviation circle. Essentially, some Chinese airlines have mileage expiry dates. However, when you book an award flight and the flight’s departure or arrival time changes, you can request a full refund and have the miles redeposited on the cancellation date at no charge — effectively resetting the expiry date.
In fact, people in these circles often recommend flights that have a high chance of delays so others can similarly “wash” their miles. For a period of time, China Southern even allowed free cancellations on certain tickets and completely overlooked the mileage-expiry rule, and some individuals exploited this overnight, laundering hundreds of thousands of miles.
This is covered by EU261.
If a flight is cancelled (any time) the passenger has the right to get a rebooking on a (later) flight of their choice on the same airline or on the next available flight on any airline.
Except the flight wasn't cancelled
According to EU261, if a flight is brought forward by more than 1 hour, it counts as a cancelled flight.
Correct, the Correndon Judgement with Joined Cases C-146/20, C-188/20, C-196/20 and C-270/20
Corendon Airlines v D. Z. and Others
Judgment of 8 July 2021.
It would be good if Mr Schlepping pointed this out; because there is case law and the complainant can rebook FOC.
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=celex:62020CJ0146
84 It is apparent from Article 5(1)(c)(iii) of that regulation that any instance in which a flight has been brought forward by one hour or less may exempt the operating air carrier from its obligation to compensate passengers under Article 7 of that regulation. Accordingly, it must be held that the reference point for determining whether a flight has been brought forward by a significant amount of time or by a negligible amount of...
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=celex:62020CJ0146
84 It is apparent from Article 5(1)(c)(iii) of that regulation that any instance in which a flight has been brought forward by one hour or less may exempt the operating air carrier from its obligation to compensate passengers under Article 7 of that regulation. Accordingly, it must be held that the reference point for determining whether a flight has been brought forward by a significant amount of time or by a negligible amount of time for the purposes of applying Article 5 of that regulation is whether the flight has been brought forward by more than one hour, or whether it has been brought forward by one hour or less.
Never mind about compensation but article EIGHT rights.