Was this just an easyJet ploy to get out of paying a refund?

How many of you were, like me, contacted by easyJet in mid June, stating that, “as government travel restrictions and safety guidelines evolve, you may wish to cancel your upcoming flights”? It offered a voucher with an extra £10 credit as a “thank you” to those who applied before 29 June. I, like many others, felt obliged to accept.

On 1 July, 48 hours after the deadline, easyJet informed me that it had to cancel my flights and I could apply for a full refund. I did so and, three weeks later, I received an email informing me that I was not entitled to a refund as I had been sent the vouchers I had applied for.

The “voucher” turned out to be a baffling email sent on the same day confirming a “refund to credit”. Could it be that easyJet was encouraging passengers to themselves cancel flights that it knew would not be departing so that it would not be liable to refund them?

EasyJet insists not. “When the offer was sent we did not know whether or not the flights would operate,” it says. “We appreciate the frustration, given the timing of the cancellations, and so we have been contacting passengers we know who are in this position to offer a refund as a gesture of goodwill. Our call centre staff have also been briefed to offer a refund should passengers make contact.”

I was certainly not contacted and my attempts to apply for a refund online were in vain. EasyJet offered to return my money after I questioned the misleading offer. Others in this boat should call customer services (a feat in itself) and report back if they are not reimbursed.

If you need help email Anna Tims at your.problems@observer.co.uk. Include an address and phone number. Submission and publication are subject to our terms and conditions