You can claim a refund and £100s in compensation if you're wrongly told your passport isn't valid

Former_MSE_James_F

Some EasyJet and Ryanair passengers have wrongly been told at the departure gate that they can't board flights because their passports are invalid. If you've been incorrectly turned away but your passport is fit for travel, here's how to get a full refund and £100s in compensation on top. Plus, we confirm the passport rules for European travel. 

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'Easyjet or Ryanair passenger? You can claim a refund and £100s in compensation if you're wrongly told your passport isn't valid'

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TELLIT01

Good luck in getting anything out of Ryanair.  Even where the refund rules were clear and straightforward they fought for a long, long time to avoid paying back what was owed.  I suspect they will try a defence along the lines of having the right to refuse boarding to passengers if they believe they are disruptive or rude to staff.

TELLIT01

I still haven't seen a definitive answer to one question. 

"The passport must be less than 10 years old on the date of travel" is a simple statement with no ambiguity. 

However the second rule "It must have at least three months left on it after the day you plan to leave that EU country – not your date of entry." is not so clear cut.  Does it mean the date of return must be no more than 9 years and 9 months from the date of issue, or does it mean the return date must be at least 3 months before the expiry date printed in the passport, which may include up to 9 months added by the passport office for early renewal of passport?

Alan_Bowen

If you think about it, it must be the former. If. on the date you plan to travel, it is more than 10 years since the day of issue, you cannot travel at all. Therefore the 3 months required at the end of travel has to be within those 10 years

TELLIT01

Alan_Bowen said:

If you think about it, it must be the former. If. on the date you plan to travel, it is more than 10 years since the day of issue, you cannot travel at all. Therefore the 3 months required at the end of travel has to be within those 10 years

That is certainly the logical assumption, and the date I would assume.  I asked because I have seen people on other sites stating that only 3 months from the expiry date shown on the passport is required.  Personally, I wouldn't risk that interpretation.

lucevdw

Easyjet blocked me from boarding a flight from Gatwick to Rhodes in early April 2016 but I can't find out if this was right. 

They claimed I needed passport validity beyond 3 months from return date in order to enter a Schengen Area country, i.e. Greece.  Were they correct?

Many thanks for your help.  It has been impossible to find this information!

Pollycat

In 2016 we (the UK) were still part of the EU and to enter Greece your passport only needed to be valid for the length of your stay.

onashoestring

lucevdw said:

Easyjet blocked me from boarding a flight from Gatwick to Rhodes in early April 2016 but I can't find out if this was right. 

They claimed I needed passport validity beyond 3 months from return date in order to enter a Schengen Area country, i.e. Greece.  Were they correct?

Many thanks for your help.  It has been impossible to find this information!

lucevdw said:

Easyjet blocked me from boarding a flight from Gatwick to Rhodes in early April 2016 but I can't find out if this was right. 

They claimed I needed passport validity beyond 3 months from return date in order to enter a Schengen Area country, i.e. Greece.  Were they correct?

Many thanks for your help.  It has been impossible to find this information!

Were you travelling with a British passport ?