Air Transport – Passenger rights25/08/04 / cata_european-union-news

The new Regulation will replace the current 1991 regulation, the scope of which was limited to protection of passenger rights only in cases of denied boarding. The objective of the new regulation is to considerably broaden the rights of passengers using scheduled as well as charter air transport.

Consequently, if either denied boarding of a passenger against his/her will (taking place particularly if more tickets have been sold than is the actual capacity of an aircraft), cancellation of a flight, or long delay of a flight occur on a flight departing from a Community airport, or that is to arrive at a Community airport and is operated by a Community carrier, the passenger has a right to compensation, which might have a form of one or more of the following:

a) financial compensation;

b) reimbursement of the cost of the air ticket or, alternatively, right for an alternative flight to the final destination under comparable transport conditions;

c) right for free of charge services consisting of meals and refreshments, hotel accommodation and transport between the airport and place of accommodation, and access to means of communication (two phone calls, facsimile messages or emails).

None of the above-mentioned passenger rights may be limited or waived, not even by a contractual provision.

In contrast to the current legal framework, the right for financial compensation has been significantly strengthened. The financial compensation may always be invoked by the passenger in the case of denied boarding. The amount of compensation is calculated according to the flight distance and ranges between 250 EUR and 600 EUR. In addition, the amount of compensation is not limited by the price of an air ticket.

If cancellation of a flight occurs the financial compensation may be invoked only upon the condition that the cancellation has not been notified in a prescribed timeframe and the passenger has not been offered a flight that would enable him/her to reach the destination without any substantial delay. However, the carrier shall not be obliged to pay any compensation if it can prove that the cancellation has been caused by extraordinary circumstances.

Unlike in the two above-mentioned cases financial compensation cannot be granted in the case of delay of a flight. Thus, the passenger is not entitled to an alternative flight and the right for an alternative flight does not arise if the delay is under five hours. In principle, passenger rights are limited to free of charge refreshments and access to means of communication.

The regulation also sets forth detailed conditions for reimbursement of a ticket price in case the carrier downgrades the travel class of a passenger. In such a case the amount of reimbursement ranges between 30% of a ticket price for short distance flights and 75% of a ticket price for the longest distance flights (exceeding 3,500 km).

Finally, it is noteworthy that a passenger is entitled to invoke the rights conferred on him/her by the regulation only upon the condition that he/she holds a valid reservation, i.e. an air ticket or other equivalent evidence, e.g. in an electronic form (e.g. a reservation code) and that he/she presents him/herself for check-in at the time agreed with the carrier, or if no time is stipulated, 45 minutes before scheduled departure at the latest.

This regulation will come into force on 17 February 2005.