A grieving widow was reduced to tears after Ryanair demanded that her dead husband personally request a refund for his flight.
Yvonne Shields attempted to cancel her late husband Colin's September trip to Venice and recover the costs for his ticket and those of two essential carers.
The 44-year-old mother from Glasgow provided Ryanair with a death certificate and documentation proving she was the executor of his estate.
But customer service busybodies maintained they could only discuss the £827 booking with the original buyer - even after being told he had died.
Staff then terminated the conversation after declaring they were unable to assist anyone except the account holder.
Colin Shields had lived with tetraplegia since suffering an accident in 2010, just one month before his youngest child was born.
Customer service busybodies maintained they could only discuss the £827 booking with the original buyer
|GETTY
The injury left him paralysed from the chest down and resulted in autonomic dysreflexia, a condition that caused dangerous blood pressure spikes.
He had planned to represent Scotland at a powerchair football competition in Italy this September.
Due to his medical needs, two carers were required to accompany him on the journey, with Colin covering all three tickets.
In April 2025, the wheelchair footballer suffered a fatal brain haemorrhage linked to his condition.
His widow Yvonne, who cares for their two children aged 14 and 17, then began the process of seeking reimbursement from the low-cost carrier.
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Ryanair has since acknowledged multiple failures in handling the case
| PAYvonne was initially promised a partial refund of £258 for Colin's ticket alone, with the airline refusing to reimburse the carers' fares.
Even this reduced amount failed to materialise, forcing her to contact customer service again.
"It's so upsetting and trivial," she said. "I burst into tears because I have quite a lot to deal with right now since Colin passed. It's a lot."
"It's like bashing your head on a brick wall. They're trying to speak to someone that isn't here, it's an unreasonable request," she explained.
Ryanair has since acknowledged multiple failures in handling the case.
A company spokesman said: "Mr Shields was due to travel from Edinburgh to Venice on September 16, 2025, but passed away prior to this flight.
"Mrs Shields attempted to submit a refund request on April 26 and was advised to submit a death certificate and proof of executorship.
"On June 30, Mrs Shields was informed that a refund (£257.58) was issued and was regrettably incorrectly advised by a customer service agent who wrongly believed that the other two passengers on the booking were not entitled to a refund.
"Our Customer Service Department would be happy to further assist this passenger to correct this customer service agent's error and assist this passenger with their refund."