Compensation for delayed flights Discussion Area

laniuk · 10 September 2013 at 12:54PM

Hi there

My friends and I were delayed out of Shanghai Pudong into Helsinki on Finnair last month. We then missed our connecting flight to London and had to stay in Helsinki overnight where they arranged for a hotel room and food for us. We arrived in Heathrow 14.5 hours later than we were supposed to. I have written to Finnair and a month later we got their rejection below:

In the case of your flight AY058 on 10.8, the delay was caused by technical problem and minor delay also because of Air traffic management. The aircraft arrived late from previous route because the aircraft had to be changed due problems in slat. The fault occurred without prior warning in the pre-departure check. It was required to be repaired before continuing the safe operation of the flights.

Finnair ensures passengers' safe flight with all possible foreseeable measures that can reasonably be required. Our aircrafts’ condition is constantly monitored. However, there are defects and circumstances that are beyond our actual control since they cannot be foreseen or prevented due to their nature or origin. I apologize for the inconvenience this delay caused to you. Unfortunately, no standard compensation will be paid.

Where do I go from here? Do I still have a case?
I know they did provide accommodation and food but the compensation is for time lost and we lost over half a day.
I want to refer my case to the CAA as per MSE's advice but I can't seem to be able to proceed on their website. Is it because I was flying to non EU to an EU country on an EU airline?
Confused, please help!
Cheers, Lan

almay · 11 September 2013 at 2:32PM

Any advice on the following would be much appreciated. We have claimed from Thomson for a flight delay in April 2011 and have been rejected. The reason for the delay in Manchester was because the plane had to return to Sanford in Orlando due to a bird flying into the engine. The plane eventually arrived 12 hours late so we lost a whole day of our holiday. My argument is that there should have been another plane available from a closer airport or even a standby at Manchester. Has anybody else made a claim (either successful or unsuccessful) in these circumstances? Thinking of going to small claims court but would like some advice before doing so. Many thanks

laul04 · 11 September 2013 at 2:43PM

We had a 3 Hour delay back from Turkey to Gatwick(group of 8) last May with Thomas Cook Airways, wrote to them using the MSE template and received £2800 holiday voucher-Challenged this and asked for cash instead which was then paid into bank a week later.

Thomas Cook also ask you to complete an online template for flight delays, I did both that and sent them a letter.
Only took 2-3 weeks and two phonecalls to chase, worth it for some extra cash

laul04 · 11 September 2013 at 2:50PM

blocker9 wrote: »

Had a delay of over 5 hours from a flight to dom rep in january 2010 was in a big group for a mates wedding,Sent the template of to Thomas Cook got a email back saying in order to continue with claim i need 1 of 3 confirmation invoice 2 your ticket 3 boarding card i have looked everywhere but can not come across any of these,Is there any way i can continue the claim without these?Thanks.

I had a successful claim with Thomas Cook for a group of 8, for a delay last year of 3 hours and just got £2800 from them.

I also had no paperwork- I called customer services and chose an option relating to insurance claims. I explained that I needed confirmation of my booking as I had an insurance claim to make for some medical care with my travel insurance-they asked ZERO questions and happily emailed me the documents.

Furthermore, when I chased my claim after sending in my letter (with my emailed booking confirmation), I was told to complete an online form which is specific to the flight delays-there is no way to include confirmation when completeting the online form so I am surprised they are requesting some proof from you?

Might be worth calling(or getting a mate to call) and request a copy of the confirmation for your "insurance claim"

catoutthebag · 11 September 2013 at 3:33PM

In theory, would a security issue causing a delay on the inbound flight, having the knock on affect on delaying my flight (which was then further delayed as our flight picked up stranded passengers elsewhere as a 'rescue flight'), according to Eglitis et al, be ineligible for compensation? I cannot fathom the language used to decipher if it is for/against!

Anyone been in a similar case who can elaborate is it's yay e/c or nay?

oleandra123 · 12 September 2013 at 11:17AM

oleandra123 wrote: »

Anyway, regarding my sitution, there is a sentence from the ECJ in Folkerts case from February 2013 that says if a passenger is delayed on a connecting flight less than three hours but arrives at their final destination more than three hours late (we arrived 22 h late) they are entitled to compensation under Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 of the European Parliamen. Google: Folkerts case delay or similar to find out more.

I will write to TAP Portugal once again citing this sentence and see what they say, if they reject it , I will have to probably go to the court, which I'm not really keen on doing, but... Has anyone been to court in Spain with a similar case? Cheers!

Incredible! I've sent them a "threat" citing the ECJ sentence in the Folkerts v Air France C‑11/11 case:
“On those grounds, the Court (Grand Chamber) hereby rules:
Article 7 of Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 February 2004 establishing common rules on compensation and assistance to passengers in the event of denied boarding and of cancellation or long delay of flights, and repealing Regulation (EEC) No 295/91 must be interpreted as meaning that compensation is payable, on the basis of that article, to a passenger on directly connecting flights who has been delayed at departure for a period below the limits specified in Article 6 of that regulation, but has arrived at the final destination at least three hours later than the scheduled arrival time, given that the compensation in question is not conditional upon there having been a delay at departure and, thus, upon the conditions set out in Article 6 having been met. “

And they sent me email back asking for: "we would like to request that you provide us with individual documents issued by your banks, containing your name and your bank details (IBAN, Swift/Bic Code, Bank name), in order to for us to proceed with the payment of the compensation as a result of the irregularity that occurred on the 23rd of August. "

I CANT BELIEVE IT! SO EASY! I don't even have to go to court :T

lynzotter · 12 September 2013 at 7:47PM

Hi guy's,
I'm looking for some help or advice.
I was on a flight from faro to east mids about 6yrs ago, the flight was delayed for a total of 7hrs. I have found all details including the flight number the times ect but I cannot find my original paperwork or booking ref details. I have contacted the airline concerned and they are saying there is no trace of our booking, I obviously know I was on that flight are they saying it to get out of the compensation situation is there anything I can do??

111KAB · 12 September 2013 at 7:52PM

Lynzotter - post date as that may determine any advise.

LiverpoolChris · 12 September 2013 at 11:36PM

We had a 10 hr delay last October to Turkey we had about 1 hr delay then flew for about 90 mins then were told we were coming back to Manchester as the fault was still present, so we circled to lose some fuel when we landed we had a 10 hr delay which included for the fault to be fixed and then waiting for a new crew to arrive. I have emailed many times and sent them the template from Martins website on 10th August. I have heard nothing from them where do I go from here