A mother says Ryanair refuses to refund cancelled flights after her teenage son dies shortly before the scheduled departure. Tina McDermont, due to fly from Newcastle to Alicante with her husband on 30 August, was told she was not eligible for compensation after her son Billy McDermont, 18, died on 19 August.
The dispute centers on Ryanair’s bereavement terms. According to the airline’s policy, claims for travel credit apply only when a passenger or an immediate family member dies within 10 days of the flight date. The outlets report that McDermont’s son died 11 days before departure, meaning the airline treated the death as outside the cut-off. She says she provided a death certificate when contacting customer support and that she had planned to use any refunded money toward funeral costs.
The Independent and Metro describe McDermont’s reaction as anger and disbelief, with her calling the policy “disgusting” and “inhuman” and Metro quoting her criticism of its “principle” and timing. Ryanair’s position is that the policy was applied correctly and that alternative routes, such as using travel insurance, were available.
