Aer Lingus 'Schedule Change' refund eligibility

zihni12

I booked on to a return flight LHR to DUB EI153 departing on 07/05/2020. On 29/04/2020 I was notified of a 'Schedule Change' where my departure time changed from 8:50 to 9:50, additionally the flight number changed from 153 to 155. On the Aer Lingus website flight EI153 no longer exists.

I've spoken to several people at Aer Lingus and received different messages ranging from 'your original flight is cancelled to and you can get a refund' to 'we rescheduled you within 1 hour, you cannot get a refund'.

I have requested a refund using their form but expect I won't hear back for a long time.

Looking at EU261's definition of cancellation: '"cancellation" means the non-operation of a flight which was previously planned and on which at least one place was reserved.' I believe I should be entitled to a refund as EI153 is no longer operating.

My questions are:
Am I correct in thinking this, and what is my course of action if Aer Lingus reject my refund claim?
I do not intend to travel on the re-booked EI155 flight, will this affect my refund request as it appears I will not have turned up for my flight?

zihni12

Realised this is in the wrong thread and should probably be deleted, but not sure how?
Apologies