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The airline offered a voucher instead of cash: can you refuse?

Under UK261 and EU261, refunds and compensation are paid in money. Vouchers need your signed agreement. How to refuse, and what to do if you already accepted one.

By the EU261 Flight Delay editorial team Last reviewed: Reading time: 6 min How we write our guides

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In short: under UK261 and EU261, both delay/cancellation compensation and ticket refunds must be paid in cash, by bank transfer or by cheque. An airline can pay in travel vouchers only with your signed agreement. You can refuse a voucher and insist on money. If you accepted a voucher without being told you were entitled to cash, Article 15 of the regulation lets you go back for the difference. Meal and hotel vouchers handed out at the airport are a different thing – they are part of your right to care and do not replace compensation.

“KLM compensation: voucher or cash”, “easyJet delay voucher”, “British Airways eVoucher refund” – the search data show that many passengers are offered vouchers and are unsure whether to accept. Here are the rules.

What the regulation says

Compensation – Article 7(3): the fixed compensation (£220 / £350 / £520 under UK261, €250 / €400 / €600 under EU261) “shall be paid in cash, by electronic bank transfer, bank orders or bank cheques or, with the signed agreement of the passenger, in travel vouchers and/or other services”.

Refunds – Article 8(1): the reimbursement of your ticket after a cancellation, denied boarding, or a delay of 5 hours or more is paid by the means set out in Article 7(3). So the same rule applies: money, unless you sign up to vouchers.

Waiver – Article 15: the airline’s obligations “may not be limited or waived”, and if a passenger “is not correctly informed of his rights and for that reason has accepted compensation which is inferior” to what the regulation provides, the passenger can still go to the competent courts or bodies “to obtain additional compensation”.

Consumer guides read the rules the same way: MoneySavingExpert’s flight delay guide says you can insist on cash rather than vouchers.

Three kinds of “voucher” – don’t confuse them

Voucher What it is Should you accept?
Meal / refreshment voucher at the airport Part of your right to care (Article 9) Yes – it is owed in addition to compensation
Hotel voucher for an overnight delay Part of your right to care Yes – it does not reduce compensation
Travel voucher / credit / e-voucher instead of a refund or compensation A substitute for money Only if you want it – you can refuse

Care vouchers are covered in meal vouchers and overnight hotel rights.

When a voucher might make sense

A travel voucher is sometimes offered at a higher value than the cash alternative, to encourage you to take it. It can be reasonable if:

  • you fly that airline often and will certainly use it before it expires;
  • the voucher value is clearly higher than the cash amount;
  • it is transferable or usable for other passengers in your party;
  • you have read the terms: expiry date, whether it covers taxes and fees, whether it can be split across bookings, and what happens if the airline fails.

If the airline later goes out of business, a voucher may be worth very little. Money in your account carries no such risk.

How to refuse a voucher

At the airport: if staff offer a voucher instead of a refund after a cancellation, say clearly that you want a refund under Article 8 (or re-routing), and do not sign anything you have not read.

Online: some airline forms default to a voucher or credit. Look for the refund option; if there isn’t one, contact the airline in writing. A short message works:

“I do not agree to receive travel vouchers. Under Article 7(3) and Article 8(1) of Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 [as retained in UK law], please pay the [refund / compensation of £X / €X per passenger] by bank transfer to the account below.”

For a full letter, use our complaint letter generator or template.

Already accepted a voucher?

It depends on how you agreed:

  • You knowingly chose a voucher (for example a bonus voucher after being offered both options): you have agreed, and switching back is a matter of the airline’s goodwill or terms.
  • You were not told you could have cash, or the voucher was issued automatically: rely on Article 15(2). Write to the airline, explain that you were not informed of your right to a refund or compensation in money, and ask for the voucher to be converted, or for the difference to be paid. If it refuses, escalate as for any claim – ADR, the CAA, or a court in the UK; the national enforcement body or a court elsewhere (how to claim).
  • The voucher was for less than the legal amount: Article 15(2) is designed for exactly this – you can claim the difference.

Keep the voucher unused while you dispute it, so the airline cannot argue you have accepted it as settlement.

Vouchers vs refunds after a cancellation

After a cancellation you choose between a refund (within 7 days), re-routing at the earliest opportunity, or re-routing at a later date of your choosing (Article 8). A voucher is none of these unless you agree. Separately, if you were told of the cancellation less than 14 days before departure, you may also be owed compensation (cancelled flight compensation and flight refund rights).

Booked through an agent or a package?

If you booked through an online travel agent, the refund may come back through the agent, and the agent’s own terms may push credit. The airline’s duty under the regulation is the same (booked through a travel agent). For package holidays, refunds of the package follow package travel law – see package holiday flight delays.

Outside Europe

In the United States, the Department of Transportation’s 2024 refund rule requires airlines and ticket agents to tell consumers they are entitled to a refund before offering travel credits or vouchers in its place, where the flight is cancelled or significantly changed. See passenger rights outside Europe.

Sources

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