EasyJet demanded to see death certificate before refunding ticket for charity

Ozan Yunus fell in with meningitis over Christmas and was switched off life support on 30 December

(Getty Images)

EasyJet has been branded "insensitive" after the airline demanded to see a passenger's death certificate before they agreed to issue refund for charity.

Daniel Pallace, 26, asked easyJet for a refund to honour his friend Ozan Yunus, 28, who died of meningitis over Christmas, hoping to donate the money to Meningitis Now, which provides support and funding for research.

The pair were due to fly to Spain for a stag party but Yunus was unable to use the ticket after he fell ill with meningitis on Christmas day and was tragically disconnected from life support on 30 December.

Pallace was shocked by the lack of compassion when the airline demanded to see Yunus' death certificate before they would give him a refund.

The trainee pilot claims easyJet pressed him into handing "proof" of death and put the seat back up for sale.

Pallace said: "What really shocked me was how easyJet cancelled the reservation but made it available online, so they made money on the seat without refunding us.

"How can they say we haven’t done enough to get the refund when they’ve already put it back up for sale?," he told the Daily Mail.

Pallace and Yunus, who worked as a school teacher in Kent, had booked the flight to Barcelona for £108.98. Facing a maze of bureaucracy, Pallace was forced to contact Yunus' sister, Yasemin.

He added: "I contacted his sister Yasemin to forward the death certificate to me so I could give it to them.

"This still wasn’t good enough for them, and even when Yasemin forwarded it herself they wanted more documentation. I can’t believe a death certificate from the sister of the man who has died isn’t enough paperwork for them."

Yasemine Yunus, 23, said the airline "bombarded" her with e-mails to prove her brother was dead.

EasyJet denied it declined to issue a refund and took the correct steps to protect personal data.

A spokesperson said: "Unfortunately that means the refund could not be issued until security screening had been passed and permission had been given by an immediate family member.

"We would like to apologise for any inconvenience experienced at an already difficult time."