It used to be impossible to get a refund if you had to cancel a reservation with a no-frills airline. It still is. Until recently, there was no point in even bothering to inform a carrier if you couldn't fly on a non-refundable ticket, and that meant they were deprived of the opportunity to flog the seat to someone else. Nowadays, more sophisticated booking systems mean that changing a reservation online costs the airline almost nothing at all. They will, however, charge you between £10 and £35 for the privilege of changing a single detail of your booking.
You will also be charged the difference in cost for a more expensive flight - including the fees and taxes. What's more, the fees for changing the route or time apply to each leg of a journey and each passenger, so if you have to change the outward and the return flights, they will be doubled for one traveller and quadrupled for two.
In short, it's a nice little earner for the airlines, and worth bearing in mind if you aren't absolutely sure you will be able to fly. The only mystery is why other carriers haven't yet followed suit and still demand that customers who want to make changes pay for a completely new ticket - though some will change the name, for a fee.
Ryanair.com
Up to 12 hours' notice online and three hours by phone.
Route and time changes: £15. per passenger, £20 by phone
Name changes: Only by phone. £35.
Bmibaby.com
Up to three hours before departure.
Route and time changes: £15 each.
Name changes: £30 each. £2.50 additional fee for changes made by phone.
EUjet.com
Up to two hours before departure.
Route and time changes: £10 each, £15 by phone.
Name changes: £10 each, £15 by phone.
Basiqair.com/uk
Up to 24 hours before departure online; one hour by phone.
Route and time changes: €20 each.
Name changes: Only by phone. €25 each.
Easyjet.co.uk
May issue a credit note to those who have suffered a family bereavement, less a £15 fee for each leg of the journey. Changes allowed with two hours' notice.
Route and time changes: £10 online, £15 by phone.
Name changes: £10 each, £15 by phone.
