Virgin Atlantic sorry for ‘inconvenient’ delay to £2,000 refund | Money

The day before we were due to fly to Barbados on our honeymoon, Virgin Atlantic notified us that our flight had been cancelled due to an impending hurricane. We chose the option of a refund and received confirmation that the £1,932 would be paid in full. Nothing happened.

After more than three weeks, I called and was told that it had not been actioned due to an error. Five days later I was told that my request had been closed a month earlier. On my fourth call I found we’d been wrongly registered as “no shows” which was why the refund had not been processed. More promises ensued, but still no money.

GM, London

The insouciance of multinationals when a small error causes a big impact never ceases to enrage me. The best part of £2,000 is a significant sum, even more so because it represented your honeymoon. Worse, you say it has put a strain on your relationship. It’s even more frustrating that Virgin managed to dig into its wallet for the refund within hours of my contact and add a “gesture of goodwill”.

The corporate definition of “inconvenience” always strikes me. It’s a catch-all for every consumer agony from a trashed credit rating to a flooded home. “We sincerely apologise for the inconvenience caused by the delay,” Virgin Atlantic says.

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