Money blog: The £202 plane ticket refund you probably never knew about | Money News

Hidden in the price of your plane ticket is a sum worth up to £202 (soon to be £224) that you can claim back even if you miss your flight or cancel a non-refundable ticket.

It’s called air passenger duty (APD), a tax on airlines flying from UK airports which they pass onto passengers.

You may have heard Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary complaining recently about Rachel Reeves putting it up from April, making air travel more expensive.

The purpose of the duty is to raise revenue for the government, with the Office for Budget Responsibility estimating it will bring in £2.4bn in 2024-25.

But it isn’t collected by HMRC until after your flight, meaning if you don’t board, you shouldn’t have to pay.

There is no legal obligation for the airline to refund APD, but most say they will in their terms and conditions.

Be warned – some charge an administration fee that can exceed the amount being claimed.

How much money are we talking about?

It all depends on how far you’re flying and what class of seat you bought – and, as we said above, it’s going up in April.

More than 90% of flights taken each year involve travel with the reduced rate, according to the OBR. 

Those flying from Northern Ireland or the Scottish Highlands and Islands region cannot claim because they are not charged APD in the first place.

What do the airlines say?

Here are the policies of some of the biggest airlines flying out of the UK.

British Airways: When cancelling ahead of flying, APD refunds can be claimed via their Manage My Booking page online and incur a £15 administration fee. After the flight, refund claims must be requested via 0344 493 0787 and incur a £30 fee.

Easyjet: There are no fees and claims can be submitted via customers services.

Jet 2: No fees here either, and you can claim online or by writing to Jet2.com & Jet2holidays, Holiday House, Ingram Street, Leeds, LS11 9AW.

Ryanair: The company charges a £20 admin fee and only flies reduced rate seats under 2000 miles (£13 APD), meaning there is no point in claiming.