When Iberia Airlines canceled Olga Betzler’s flight from Barcelona to Los Angeles, she assumed getting her $654 refund would be straightforward. 

She was wrong.

You probably think you know how this one ends, but this story has a twist. And you need to know about it, just in case an airline ever owes you money. 

Even though Iberia approved her compensation claim, it then demanded sensitive banking details, ignored her calls, and left her in bureaucratic limbo. 

“Every time I called, they said, ‘We don’t know why you haven’t been paid,’” she says. “It felt like they were hoping I’d just give up.”  

Betzler’s case is one I’ve wanted to write about for a long time because she made a mistake that’s so common, and so time-consuming, that reading this article could literally save you money the next time you fly.

Her story raises urgent questions for travelers: 

• If an airline approves your refund, how long should you wait before escalating the issue?
• How can you escalate an airline refund request? 
• Can an airline force you to share sensitive bank details for a refund — and is it safe? 

“They kept asking for information that made me uncomfortable”

Betzler’s ordeal began when Iberia canceled her flight, which was operated by its budget subsidiary, Level. She filed a claim under EU Regulation EC261, which mandates refunds for cancellations within 7 days. 

Instead, Iberia responded within a month, approving her $654 payout. But instead of processing the refund to her credit card, the airline demanded a bank transfer — and a laundry list of personal details.  

“They wanted my SWIFT code, ABA number, and a copy of my passport,” Betzler says. “My bank warned me not to email that information, but Iberia insisted it was the only way.” 

She reluctantly complied. Iberia’s response: silence. 

For months, Betzler called Iberia’s customer service line. Agents confirmed the refund was approved but claimed they couldn’t access the legal department handling payments. 

“They told me to keep emailing a no-reply address,” she says. “It was a loop with no exit.”  

Would Iberia just keep Betzler in a holding pattern, promising her the $654 but then doing nothing?

If an airline approves your refund, how long should you wait before escalating the issue?

The law is clear: Under EC261, refunds for canceled flights must be processed within seven days. When payments stall, patience is not a virtue.

Don’t wait more than two weeks. If you haven’t received your money by then, chances are the airline has no intention of paying you (despite what it may claim). Delays often stem from overwhelmed systems or even deliberate stalling. 

Betzler waited another four months before asking for help from my advocacy team. That’s half an eternity on the airline refund timeline. 

Consumers assume companies operate in good faith, but sometimes you have to be a squeaky wheel. Betzler was a compliant, quiet customer — the kind that an airline can easily exploit.

How can you escalate an airline refund request? 

Airlines would like you to believe that their call centers are the only way to check the status of your refund. In fact, if you ask for an email address of an executive, they’ll probably tell you that no such executive exists. That’s nonsense, and that’s why I created a directory of executive contacts. Because I’d had enough of the lies, and you, the customer, deserves better.

How do you become the squeaky wheel? 

1. File a complaint with the airline in writing. 

Airlines have websites where you can fill out a form and get a paper trail started. It’s absolutely essential to have something in writing so that you can prove you’ve asked for a refund. Phone calls don’t count because there’s no paper trail of your request.

2. Climb the escalation ladder. 

If the airline doesn’t respond, or if it stalls, pull out your escalation ladder and start climbing it. Send an email to one of the customer service executives I list on my consumer advocacy site, Elliott.org. If that doesn’t work, contact aviation regulators like the U.S. Department of Transportation. The DOT has strict refund rules and refunds must be automatic. For EU carriers like Iberia, the Agencia Estatal de Seguridad Aérea (AESA) can levy fines.If that doesn’t work, contact your, ahem, favorite consumer advocate.

3. Dispute the charge with your credit card company.

If an airline promises you a refund in writing but credit you in a reasonable amount of time, contact your credit card company. It may consider an email or letter from the airline to be the equivalent of a credit memo — in other words, a promise to pay — and based on that, your credit card company might issue a refund. You are also protected under the Fair Credit Billing Act for services you ordered but never received.

Those three steps usually work, but not always. So what might have gone wrong with this case?

Can an airline force you to share sensitive bank details for a refund — and is it safe?

No — and yes.

No, an airline can’t force you to share sensitive bank details. But is it safe to share your SWIFT code with another bank? Absolutely.

Let’s take those questions one at a time.

Airlines often push bank transfers to avoid credit card processing fees, especially in Europe. To do that, they ask for a SWIFT code and bank account number, which allows them to transfer the money directly into your account. 

You have the right to insist on a refund to your original payment method. Although EU regulations don’t specify a refund method, the U.S. Department of Transportation requires airlines to honor passengers’ preferred reimbursement promptly.

Your bank’s SWIFT number and bank account number are not the same thing as a credit card number. Sharing it with a company doesn’t put you at risk of having money stolen. Someone with your bank account information can only transfer money to your account, not withdraw it.

Transferring money to a bank account is common in Europe. U.S. customers get nervous about a bank transfer because they fear the airline will use the information for nefarious purposes at some point. But that’s not how it works in Europe.

What about the copy of Betzler’s passport? Again, American visitors freak out when someone asks for a copy of their passport. But it’s completely routine outside the country. I’ve never come across a case in which someone lost money or had their ID stolen because they showed a hotel or airline their passport or shared their bank account information.

However, refusing to give up that information almost certainly led to a delay. Iberia didn’t have the information it needed, at least initially, to process a refund. That might have put Betzler’s refund request on hold even after she sent the information over.

Bottom line: It’s OK to share this information with your airline. Betzler’s bank should have known that and told her.

Will she ever get her refund?

Betzler had waited long enough for her money. Our advocate Dwayne Coward contacted the company on her behalf and explained the rules. A few weeks later, the $654 was safely in her bank account.

The lesson for the rest of us is clear: Airlines follow the path of least resistance. If you don’t make noise, you may never get your refund.