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Passengers Outraged with El Al Airlines’ Refusal to Refund Money for Cancelled Flights

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Edited by: TJVNews.com

 Seems like Israel’s national carrier airline is in some big trouble with passengers, According to a report that emerged on Wednesday, passengers of El Al Airlines who had booked flights to the Jewish State prior to the outbreak of the coronavirus in early 2020 have not received refunds for their flights that were cancelled due to the raging pandemic.

Speaking to the Jewish News web site, passengers have been waiting for their refunds for more than a year. While El Al has experienced grave financial hardships over the last year due to the cessation of tourism to Israel and thusly were forced to conduct massive layoffs of their employees, some feel that this is no excuse to keep the money paid for tickets that were never honored.

Speaking to the Jewish News web site, El Al passengers have expressed their frustration in repeated attempts to get reimbursed for their cancelled tickets. The Jewish News site reported that the airline is offering two options for those that had flights cancelled before September 21st: flight credit worth 125% of the tickets or a cash refund.

Among those affected is Mike Mandelbaum, a charity chief executive who lives near Brighton in the UK.  Jewish News reported that he had booked tickets for four relatives to fly from Luton to Tel Aviv for the Passover holiday.

He said he was owed $920 for the flights, which had been due to fly on April 12th of 2020. Three of the refund requests have been ‘approved’ – but he still hasn’t gotten his money back, according to the Jewish News web site. Mandelbaum said: “I just wish they would be straight with you. If they said it was going to be six months for a refund, then it’d be fine. But if they say they’re going to refund you and don’t, that’s not fine.”

Mandelbaum added that contacting representatives at El Al is practically impossible because a landline in the UK just rings without the benefit of an answering service, according to the Jewish News web site. The site also said that an automated WhatsApp number gives back messages in Hebrew. “You just go around in circles,” Mandelbaum added.

Another person experiencing difficulties with getting his money back from El Al is Nick Conway. Speaking to the Jewish News web site, Conway said that his flight to Tel Aviv with his partner was cancelled by the airline last year and he too has been unsuccessful in getting reimbursed. While El Al confirmed that they owe Conway approximately $1000 and that the refund was confirmed in December, as of yet, he still has not received his money.

“Right now they are offering flights to Tel Aviv but have yet to pay me back. It’s disgusting. They have the money. They are simply taking advantage of their customers,” he told Jewish News. When asked how the airline could improve its customer service, Conway replied: “They could actually have some customer service, that’s how!”

Another passenger who also claimed to have been adversely affected by El Al’s lack of communication on whether he is going to get a refund on a flight he booked last spring that was cancelled told the Jewish News that, “There is no customer service to call.” He said he had since filed a complaint with the US Department of Transportation. “I’m very frustrated,” he added.

According to the El Al web site, they have been deluged with requests for refunds on cancelled flights and that they were gradually trying to handle the load.

“In recent months, EL Al Israel Airlines has been facing the biggest crisis that has ever befallen the aviation industry against the backdrop of the Coronavirus pandemic,” said a website statement, as was reported by the Jewish News web site.

“The directives and travel limitations of the State of Israel and other countries, along with public health concerns, have almost completely halted our activities.”

 

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