Bookings Through Agents Shouldn’t Mean Delayed Refunds, An EU Wake-Up Call

Introduction

If you’ve ever booked a flight via a third-party platform, only to wait weeks or months for a refund because of a cancellation, you’re not alone. Until recently, many travellers in Europe found themselves in limbo: refunded for the ticket only, if at all, while documentation, customer service, and platform policies dragged out the process.

With recent EU moves, major booking sites like Expedia and Lastminute.com have committed to clear the backlog and guarantee refunds within 14 days even when the booking was made through them. But the change exposes how weak many refund policies still are when disruption strikes.

Link to the Article

What’s Changed & Why

Here’s what the new commitments are, and what they fix:

• New Policy: When a flight booked via certain third parties is cancelled by the airline, the platform must refund the customer within 14 days, splitting those 14 days into two halves: up to 7 days for the airline to refund the platform, and another 7 for the agent to repay the customer.
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• Clearer Rights: The platforms also will now explicitly display the relevant rights under EU law (rerouting / refund vs voucher etc.) and make it easier for customers to contact support.
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Implementation Timeline: Some commitments (e.g. Lastminute.com) had started to put these changes in place by July 2025, with full implementation expected by September.

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2. Ancillary Costs Not Covered
   Refunding the ticket doesn’t replace non-ticket losses: hotels, transfers, trains, time off, etc.
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1. Sometimes the notice of cancellation comes too late for people to adjust their travel or make alternative arrangements, especially for multi-leg

or complex trips.

Platform vs Airline Disputes
Even with commitments, sometimes airlines delay or push back, or platforms “pass the buck”, making responsibility unclear.

4. Extraordinary Circumstances Loophole
   Airlines often avoid paying compensation by invoking “extraordinary circumstances” (weather, strikes, etc.). Not all these are genuinely out of their control, but legally many are.
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Real-Life Impact Here are examples / possible consequences:

• Traveller books through Lastminute.com, flight cancelled, waits 3-4 weeks for refund, meanwhile non-refundable hotel costs eaten.
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• Some travellers may accept vouchers rather than refunds, either because they don’t know there’s a choice or because the process seems too hard.
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• Booking platforms that don’t clearly show rights, or whose customer service response times are very slow, suffer reputational damage and loss of trust.

What Good Refund Policies / Practices Should Include

To make sure the system works fairly moving forward, refund / policy design in this space should consider:

• 14-day or similar rapid refund guarantees even for “booked via agent” flights (not just for the ticket but making sure process is easy).
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• Transparency on rights at the point of purchase (not buried in T&Cs).
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• Optional insurance or add-on protections for ancillary costs (where possible) or partnerships with travel insurance providers.
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• Clear escalation paths for unresolved delays or platform/airline disputes.
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• Fall-backs in case the platform or airline is unresponsive, for example, EU regulatory enforcement, passenger rights bodies, etc.

Measurable Benefits For booking platforms, airlines, consumers:

• -  Reduced complaint volumes and negative publicity.
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• -  Greater trust and repeat bookings.
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• -  Possibly regulatory goodwill / less risk of fines.
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• -  Better customer satisfaction / loyalty.

Conclusion & Call to Action

The EU’s 14-day refund rule is progress, but it doesn’t cover extra costs or late disruptions.

Simple Refunds helps organisers, platforms, and travel providers go beyond the basics with refund policies that are fair, flexible, and fraud ready. We protect revenue while giving customers confidence that real disruptions are covered.

If you run events, flights, or booking platforms, now’s the time to review your policies. A modern refund experience isn’t just compliance, it’s a competitive edge.

For travellers, know your rights and choose providers offering modern refund protection like Simple Refunds. Because when plans change, fairness shouldn’t be optional.