Kiwi.com Double Charges Flight Tickets After System Error

I purchased round-trip tickets through Kiwi.com with Ryanair for March 14 (Budapest to Rome) and March 17 (return). I initially made the purchase on March 2; however, I was unable to confirm the booking because the confirmation link sent by email did not work due to a system error on their end. When I checked the next day, I saw that the tickets from this first attempt had not been issued.

I then re-entered the system to purchase the tickets again, but I encountered the same confirmation issue. At that point, I contacted live support and clearly explained the problem I experienced with the first purchase and that I now had to buy the tickets again. I explicitly stated that I should not be charged for the first unconfirmed transactions, otherwise it would result in a double charge. The live support agent assured me that since I had not confirmed the first booking, those charges would not appear on my card.

With the assistance of technical support, I completed and confirmed the second transaction and successfully received my tickets. However, when I checked my credit card the next day, I saw that I had been charged for both transactions—March 2 and March 3. In other words, the first transaction, which I never confirmed and could not complete due to a system error, was still charged, resulting in a duplicate payment.

On March 5, I contacted Kiwi.com via email and explained the situation in detail. I was told that the transactions would be reviewed, and as time passed, I continued to send follow-up emails. In their most recent response, I was informed that action can only be taken up to 48 hours before the trip, and since the travel has already occurred, no refund can be issued. However, I had reported this issue in writing approximately 8 days before the trip.

Despite this, I continue to receive generic automated responses, and I have been unable to reach a representative by phone.

I am requesting a full refund to my credit card for the incorrectly charged first transaction, totaling $445 (₺14,178.12 converted to USD; ₺8,306.21 + ₺5,871.91). Since the first booking remained unconfirmed due to a system error and resulted in a clear duplicate charge, I expect a full cash refund—not a refund with a 10% deduction or in the form of Kiwi Credit.

I would also like to note that I have been managing this entire process through my email address t***@gmail.com and under reservation numbers W4D2MQ and GTW1WC.