Airline denied boarding: any liability?

Voyager2002

So what happens when airline staff refuse to allow a passenger to travel on the grounds that they believe he needs a visa for his journey, even though he has a print-out of the relevant embassy's website clearly stating that a visa was not required in his particular situation?

The journey had been to attend a wedding, so the total loss resulting from the airline's action was far more than just the fare.

asea

Which country was it for & what nationality did the traveller hold?

Voyager2002

asea wrote: »

Which country was it for & what nationality did the traveller hold?

He had a Nigerian passport but is legally resident in the UK. He was trying to travel to Switzerland (together with his British wife). Switzerland does not require a visa if the visitor is allowed to stay in the UK (or the USA) for longer than six months.

Ironically, the wedding was in France and he had gone to the trouble of getting a visa for France, but the closest airport was the other side of the border in Switzerland.

jonathon

if he needed a shengen visa for france then surly he needed one for switzerland ?

dzug1

I assume his passport FULLY met the requirements for evidence:

Visa not required for a stay of max. 3 months provided holding:
a. residence permit or right of residence; or
b. "Right of Abode", "Leave to Enter" or "Leave to Remain"
stamps contained in the passport, provided for an
indefinite period; or
c. Entry Clearance for multiple entries (MULT) and provided

endorsed "indefinite leave to enter the U.K." also accepted
without regard to the expiry date; or
d. temporary entry permits which must be valid for at least 6
months upon date of entry provided:
- stamped "leave to enter the United kingdom is hereby given
until (date) ; or

- containing "The holder is required to register at once
with the police" at the end of the stamp.

Erikin_2

British Airways said: "……………….. we remind customers that it is their responsibility to ensure they have the correct passport and visas before travelling."

The way I read things from this example the airline has the last word at time of boarding. A judgement is made by the airline; I don’t know how a definitive answer is sought in a short time. Accept this traveller is honest but it is not unknown for forged documents to be produced so understand why a produced print off is not viewed as official.

From my experience of travelling such a decision would not rely solely on one person – you would ask and get referral to someone further up the authority chain. What weighs with the airline, I suppose, if they get it wrong they have the cost of sorting out a refused entry customer.

Small consolation at the time, but if it turns out the airline is wrong you will no doubt have the option to claim compensation and/or sue.

Denied-boarding compensation system. This relates more to the “bumping” of passengers rather than denied by reason of an issue with an official document. Nevertheless, worth a read because the” bumping” practice clearly shows how easily it is to be denied entry on to an aircraft even with unquestioned documentation.

dzug1

jonathon wrote: »

if he needed a shengen visa for france then surly he needed one for switzerland ?

Switzerland is not in Schengen. Yet - it's happening soon I think.

BernadetteN

Voyager2002 wrote: »

He had a Nigerian passport but is legally resident in the UK. He was trying to travel to Switzerland (together with his British wife). Switzerland does not require a visa if the visitor is allowed to stay in the UK (or the USA) for longer than six months.

Ironically, the wedding was in France and he had gone to the trouble of getting a visa for France, but the closest airport was the other side of the border in Switzerland.

Here's the Swiss government's own website stating that Nigerians with certain UK leave to remain or on indefinite residency or with right of abode in the UK have permission to enter Switzerland without a visa. Perhaps in future that person could go to the bother of getting a free EU/EEA/Swiss family permit type visa given to third country nationals married to EU/EEA nationals, if ever wishing to fly again via Switzerland, but then the Swiss would probably be reluctant to issue a non mandatory visa!

http://www.bfm.admin.ch/bfm/en/home/themen/einreise/Ausweis-_und_Visumvorschriften/liste_3_aufenthaltstitel.html

benjus

The Schengen agreement is not the same as the EU. Norway and Iceland are in Schengen and are not EU members.

CherwellRiver

My friend has similar experience. She is a Chinese national and has a student visa to stay in the UK. She travelled from Lisbon to Switzerland, but was refused boarding by the check-in staff and subsequently even the supervisor. Finally, they referred us to the ServisAir counter.

The lovely lady at the ServisAir counter was far more sensible. After I explained once again that my friend did not require a separate visa to enter Switzerland, she talked to the airline staff and then they agreed to let us go.

We lost nothing in this incident, apart from some hassles. However, I sent a complaint letter to the airline afterwards. They sent us a 50% off voucher. But I never use them again.

Voyager2002

CherwellRiver wrote: »

My friend has similar experience. She is a Chinese national and has a student visa to stay in the UK. She travelled from Lisbon to Switzerland, but was refused boarding by the check-in staff and subsequently even the supervisor. Finally, they referred us to the ServisAir counter.

The lovely lady at the ServisAir counter was far more sensible. After I explained once again that my friend did not require a separate visa to enter Switzerland, she talked to the airline staff and then they agreed to let us go.

We lost nothing in this incident, apart from some hassles. However, I sent a complaint letter to the airline afterwards. They sent us a 50% off voucher. But I never use them again.

And by contrast, when I travelled with my wife (Chinese passport) to Switzerland, British Airways evidently knew the situation. Her passport was scrutinised closely, then they gave us our boarding passes and sent us to the departure gate. We had brought a print-out of the page from the Swiss embassy's website that made it clear that she did not need a visa, but the BA staff were fine and so we did not need to show this to them.