MSE News: BMI Baby closure Q&A: your rights

Former_MSE_Helen

This is the discussion thread for the following MSE News Story:

"Thousands of holidaymakers' plans have been left in tatters after BA's owner announced plans to close down BMI Baby ..."

Read the full story:

BMI Baby closure Q&A: your rights

richardw

Bmibaby passengers whose flights are cancelled have a right to re-routing under EU regulation EC 261/2004 article 5 and 8, IAG must offer re-routing or they are in breach of the regulation.

richardw

Centipede100's post

"Quote from BMIBaby website:

Will you come to an arrangement with other carriers to transfer our tickets?
We are unable to transfer customers on to alternative airlines including bmi and British Airways.

To rebook elsewhere now is too expensive - will you come to an arrangement with other carriers so they will offer us reduced rate tickets?
We are unable to offer customers preferential rates with alternative airlines, including bmi and British Airways.

EC 261/2004 Article 8 comes into play here, despite what BMIBaby have stated above:

Article 8

Right to reimbursement or re-routing

1. Where reference is made to this Article, passengers shall be offered the choice between:

(a) - reimbursement within seven days, by the means provided for in Article 7(3), of the full cost of the ticket at the price at which it was bought, for the part or parts of the journey not made, and for the part or parts already made if the flight is no longer serving any purpose in relation to the passenger's original travel plan, together with, when relevant,

- a return flight to the first point of departure, at the earliest opportunity;

(b) re-routing, under comparable transport conditions, to their final destination at the earliest opportunity; or

(c) re-routing, under comparable transport conditions, to their final destination at a later date at the passenger's convenience, subject to availability of seats.

2. Paragraph 1(a) shall also apply to passengers whose flights form part of a package, except for the right to reimbursement where such right arises under Directive 90/314/EEC.

3. When, in the case where a town, city or region is served by several airports, an operating air carrier offers a passenger a flight to an airport alternative to that for which the booking was made, the operating air carrier shall bear the cost of transferring the passenger from that alternative airport either to that for which the booking was made, or to another close-by destination agreed with the passenger.

Passengers are entitled to a re-route on either the original carrier or if that is impossible (due to withdrawal of a route for example) on an alternative carrier.

If passengers do not wish to take the refund but be re-routed as is their right, they should write to BMIBaby in the first instance and give the airline 48 hours notice that unless a suitable re-route is offered, the passenger will book elsewhere and expect the airline to reimburse them for the differential in the fare. I say this because fares with alternative carriers may rise quickly and you will need to mitigate yours and BMIbaby's potential exposure. You should also categorically state that you do not wish to be refunded but re-routed.

There are a couple of examples below where passengers stood their ground and insisted on their rights under the Regulation and both received recompense by the airline (one of which was BMIbaby).

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/3070460

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/2287415

My posts are just advice, nothing more nothing less. What you choose to do with them is up to you."

spheric

This article needs looking at...

Surely, the first thing people would come to MSE for in this case would be for help in rescuing their plans.

My travel insurance's airline failure clause words the relevent section as covering you if the airline "ceases to trade". Which would apply to flights once the whole thing has closed down, but not to those affected by the first tranche of closures. If I'd have been affected, that would've made an interesting argument (me arguing that the cancellations are the first phase of a closure, them arguing that the airline is still operating).

As for EU rights, there's no way IAG can argue force majeure, so it becomes a matter of whether IAG inherit liability when BMI baby disappears. I fear they may try to delay claims long enough to vanish the business and then leave people claiming from an empty, closed account.

Credit card liability isn't limited to the purchase price... You're perfectly entitled to claim consequential loss from them, just as you would direct from any business that left you out of pocket.

Anyone who is affected by this has my deepest sympathy, and I sincerely hope MSE is working on some sort of practical help for those who are now in trouble.

bagand96

This could get messy... If bmibaby stall and stall, by the time you end up in small claims court there might not be a bmibaby to turn up? Who do you summon then? Bmi? BA? IAG?

richardw

bagand96 wrote: »

This could get messy... If bmibaby stall and stall, by the time you end up in small claims court there might not be a bmibaby to turn up? Who do you summon then? Bmi? BA? IAG?

bmibaby appears to be being shutdown by IAG, so my guess is IAG.

bagand96

will-in-estoril wrote: »

Hundreds of BMI Baby staff's lives have been left in tatters after BA's owner announced plans to close down BMI Baby.

This is the real tragedy.

Absolutely and well said.

I do hope that any MSEr's who find cause to contact bmibaby over the coming weeks realise that the poor person at the end of the phone doesn't know how they'll pay the bills in September. And no; they didn't ask for this either.

balletshoes

I contacted bmibaby yesterday by phone, as my flight situation wasn't clear cut (outbound still operational, but return withdrawn). The agent I spoke to could not have been more helpful.

superflygal

will-in-estoril wrote: »

Hundreds of BMI Baby staff's lives have been left in tatters after BA's owner announced plans to close down BMI Baby.

This is the real tragedy.

I just want to say thank you very much for thinking of us! I am one of those people who will be jobless. I am a stewardess (at least for a few more months) I have a young family, and absolutely loved my job. It was wonderful. I will miss it so much, and can't see me ever having a job like that again. Gutted.

SFG x

bagand96

I just want to say thank you very much for thinking of us! I am one of those people who will be jobless. I am a stewardess (at least for a few more months) I have a young family, and absolutely loved my job. It was wonderful. I will miss it so much, and can't see me ever having a job like that again. Gutted.

Sorry to hear of it it's a horrible situation. Keep the faith... I don't know where your based but other airlines have already announced they are expanding into baby's breach so there may be opportunities there. Maybe not this summer but you never know.

Just don't be tempted to go "self employed" with the blue and yellow lot who register their planes in Ireland

superflygal

Just don't be tempted to go "self employed" with the blue and yellow lot who register their planes in Ireland [/QUOTE]

Hey Bagand96,

No fear, I would rather be on the dole than work for them!! I know an ex RA girl, who delivered a baby inflight, gave the new mother her uniform coat to clothe the unexpected new arrival. She was told she had to operate her next 2 sectors and PAY for a new coat as she "shouldn't have given it away then should she?" (by her manager) Not a word of thanks or praise was given to her. :eek:

Thanks for your nice words!!

SFG x