Low-cost airline EasyJet lost an appeal in an Italian court in Rome on Feb. 5th, 2025. The appeal was against a €2.8 million fine, charged by the Italian Competition Authority AGCM (L’Autorità Garante della Concorrenza e del Mercato). The charges came on the grounds that easyJet violated consumer protection laws after the travel restrictions due to Covid-19 were lifted.
The easyJet COVID fine
In May 2021, the Italian Competition Authority AGCM imposed a fine on easyJet, Ryanair, and Volotea because the airlines failed to reimburse customers for cancelled flights during the Covid-19 emergency. After June 3, 2020, the travel restrictions due to Covid-19 had been lifted; however, the three airlines did not comply with the due diligence rule. They had multiple cancellations of scheduled flights, using the reason for a health emergency and issued vouchers instead of reimbursing the price of the cancelled tickets.
EasyJet also provided customers with misleading and omissive information about their rights, specifically their entitlement to monetary reimbursement. In a lot of cases, customers were forced to choose or accept vouchers instead of being offered a choice between rescheduling or having a cash refund, as required by law.
easyJet loses appeal against Italian court
EasyJet appealed against the fine, believing that they acted fairly and in compliance with the applicable laws. The airline stated that their customer refunds were processed within seven days in full compliance with the law.
In a statement, easyJet said
easyJet firmly disagrees with the AGCM’s [L’Autorità Garante della Concorrenza e del Mercato] findings, and it considers the final decision absolutely groundless; for these reasons, easyJet will appeal against the decision.
It was reported in the Italian newspapers Corriere della Sera and La Repubblica that the regional court in Rome (Regional Administrative Court of Lazio) rejected easyJet’s appeal in a ruling that was published on Feb. 12, 2025.
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