RYANAIR PASSENGERS MISSED OUT ON HONEYMOON AFTER 'SILLY MISTAKE' - BUT AIRLINE INSISTS THEY'RE NOT ENTITLED...
A newly married couple missed their honeymoon after the groom became ill and hadn't taken out travel insurance.
Martyn Altilar, 43, and his wife Melrose, 31, from Leeds had booked a dreamy holiday to Corfu with all of the money gifted to them on their wedding day.
However, the couple made what they admit was a 'silly mistake' that would result in them missing out on their honeymoon.
Martyn was struck down with sepsis just weeks before the trip and became too ill to jet off on September 9, the Mirror reports.
He experienced an aching pain, a high fever and started to vomit before he was hospitalised for ten days in August.
The tattoo artist admitted he thought he 'was going to die' and ended up having two operations. Medics then told the tattoo artist he needed to rest for two weeks.
But because of 'distractions' they hadn't purchased any travel insurance and claim they were not given the option to change their flights.
They had booked a plane from Manchester to Corfu with Ryanair, who argued the travellers were not 'entitled to a refund' but insisted they did offer them the chance to change their dates.
Martyn admitted the loss of the trip has 'added stress' to his recovery and told the Mirror: 'We can't go. It's devastating because we've just paid for the wedding and we paid for this honeymoon with our wedding present money.'
The couple are now looking into rebooking their honeymoon but admit they're 'crawling into debt at this point'.
Overall, Martyn and Melrose claim they have lost around £1,200 after spending £600 on the non-refundable flights and £600 on accommodation they weren't able to use.
He is using his experience to encourage other travellers to make sure they take out travel insurance.
Usually, the Yorkshireman says, the couple take out insurance for their holidays every year.
'I would absolutely urge others to take out holiday insurance,' he added.
'I think it's a given at this point. If I've learned anything it's to check my body when it's letting me know [that something's wrong] and get holiday insurance.'
A Ryanair spokesperson told the Daily Mail they urge travellers to take out insurance.
They said: 'All Ryanair air fares are non-refundable. Therefore, this passenger is not entitled to a refund for their non-refundable Manchester to Corfu return flights (9 Sept).
'This passenger contacted customer service on the 28 Aug to request a refund and was informed that same day that their flight was non-refundable and provided with the option of changing their flight dates, the flight routes or passenger names on the booking, which this passenger did not do.
'As Ryanair tickets are non-refundable, we encourage all passengers to take out travel insurance to cover the unexpected such as illness.'
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