LONDON, (Reuters) – Britain’s competition regulator has withdrawn its actions against Ryanair UK and British Airways for failing to refund passengers who were prevented from flying under COVID-19 restrictions. It said that there was not enough legal clarity to make the decision uncertain.

IAG-owned British Airways, which was involved in pandemic lockdowns offered refunds instead of providing compensation to legal unable passengers. Ryanair also provided the opportunity to rebook.

In June, the Competition and Markets Authority started action against airlines. It stated that passengers legally incapable of taking flights should be refunded their money.

However, it stated that the law does not give passengers a sufficient right to a reimbursement in these unusual situations and could therefore not justify continuing with its legal action.

Andrea Coscelli Chief Executive stated that CMA strongly believed the passengers should get a full refund.

“But after considering all the pertinent law and gathering evidence, we concluded that due to the indeterminate outcome and the long time it would take for this case to go through the courts, the additional expense of public cash cannot be justified,” he stated.

The CMA also stated that it hoped the law would become clearer.

Ryanair stated that it was happy with the conclusion of the investigation.

Spokesperson: “We had a limited schedule for those customers traveling for important reasons during UK lockdowns.”

Passengers were able to make changes without incurring a flight change fee. Many people took advantage of this option.