Compensation for delayed flights Discussion Area

clairey22

Hi,

Can anyone help me with this question?

Our BA flight departed from EDI on time 20:05 and was due to land at LGW at 21:30. Due to airport closure (burst tyre on runway) at LGW the plane could not land and was diverted to SDN where it landed at 22:20

We were kept on the plane and given mixed messages about disembarking at SDN (everyone was getting off, only hand baggage passengers could get off, then no-one is getting off) until it departed for LGW at 00:00. The plane finally landed at LGW at 00:42

I would like to know if we are we due any compensation as the flight was 3.12 hours late arriving at our destination (LGW)? Particularly because we had to find alternative transport home as no trains were running to our area at this time of night and we had bought train tickets in advance.

Do the EU regulations apply here as we had more than a 3 hour delay?

Thanks
Clairey

dzug1

Cityboy wrote: »

The EU regs do apply when taken in conjunction with the Sturgeon judgement in the ECJ: http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=CELEX:62007J0402:EN:HTML. However there is currently a stay on court cases involving Sturgeon as several UK airlines and IATA have challenged the Sturgeon judgement.

The airline is not responsible for your onward travel in this case as their responsibility ended once they transported you to LGW.

Full Reg here for reference: http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=CELEX:32004R0261:EN:HTML

Surely 'extraordinary circumstances' come into play here - Air Traffic Control decided that the aircraft could not land at Gatwick and the delay was a consequence of that?

Voyager2002

clairey22 wrote: »

Hi,

Can anyone help me with this question?

Our BA flight departed from EDI on time 20:05 and was due to land at LGW at 21:30. Due to airport closure (burst tyre on runway) at LGW the plane could not land and was diverted to SDN where it landed at 22:20

We were kept on the plane and given mixed messages about disembarking at SDN (everyone was getting off, only hand baggage passengers could get off, then no-one is getting off) until it departed for LGW at 00:00. The plane finally landed at LGW at 00:42

I would like to know if we are we due any compensation as the flight was 3.12 hours late arriving at our destination (LGW)? Particularly because we had to find alternative transport home as no trains were running to our area at this time of night and we had bought train tickets in advance.

Do the EU regulations apply here as we had more than a 3 hour delay?

Thanks
Clairey

Have you contacted the airline? In a situation like this it would be good practice for them to meet your additional transport costs, whether or not they were legally obliged to do so.

chris_robb

We were recently delayed by 7 hours to destination, Gatwick to Athens.

We boarded the plane on time, but they discovered a dent on the fuselage and we had to go back to the lounge. We waited 3:15 for re boarding a new plane, but had to go via Milan where we were told the new crew was ready and waiting.

Whilst waiting at Gatwick we asked if we could make a call to our taxi company in Greece - This was denied - and was later to costs us €80 for the waiting time.

During the flight to Milan they served food and drink but everyone thought they would be charged, so many didn't buy as as no announcement had been made. By the time it reached the centre of the aircraft they had run out of food and drink, so the people in the centre got nothing.

A further 3 hours 30 minutes passed on the concrete at Milan, and the crew (promised as waiting) arrived. We duly took off and they started serving - again starting at each end of the plane. I got up and asked if they could please start in the middle as no one had had anything. They said NO. So when they got to us, there was only water available - the first drink we had had in 9 hours. No food was available.

We arrived at Athens at 22.45 local time and found our taxi still waiting even though we were 7 hours late. We bought some water - but did not keep the receipts.

On our return to the UK we made a complaint and claim for compensation. We received a derisory reply with no hint of an apology of £3 provided we had receipts.

I then looked up this site, and found the delay to destination section where there is compensation of €400 for our delay. Easy jet deny they have any responsibility and that this only applies to cancellation.

Sorry - lost the formatting:

Provision for flight delays
Flight Length
0 – 1,500km
e.g. London > Barcelona
1,500 – 3,500km
e.g. London > Istanbul
3,500km +
e.g. London > New York
Delay to destination
More than 2 hours
More than 3 hours
More than 3 hours
More than 3 hours
More than 4 hours
Meals and calls
Yes
Yes
Yes
n/a
Yes
Compensation amount
n/a
€250
€400
€300
€600

I have looked at the actual regulation, and I can find no mention of the compensation package for delay, which is posted on this site.

In the mean time, we have sent a complaint to the Airline User Council including their refusal for any phone calls which is definitely in the regulations, and will wait to see the outcome.

dzug1

chris_robb wrote: »

I have looked at the actual regulation, and I can find no mention of the compensation package for delay, which is posted on this site.

In the mean time, we have sent a complaint to the Airline User Council including their refusal for any phone calls which is definitely in the regulations, and will wait to see the outcome.

Have a read of post 923 - the gist is that yes you are entitled to compensation, but that UK airlines are challenging the ruling about this (it wasn't in the original EU regs but a subsequent court case ruled that it ought to have been) and are not paying until a further court case has been settled

Voyager2002

chris_robb wrote: »

We were recently delayed by 7 hours to destination, Gatwick to Athens.

We boarded the plane on time, but they discovered a dent on the fuselage and we had to go back to the lounge. We waited 3:15 for re boarding a new plane, but had to go via Milan where we were told the new crew was ready and waiting.

Whilst waiting at Gatwick we asked if we could make a call to our taxi company in Greece - This was denied - and was later to costs us €80 for the waiting time.

During the flight to Milan they served food and drink but everyone thought they would be charged, so many didn't buy as as no announcement had been made. By the time it reached the centre of the aircraft they had run out of food and drink, so the people in the centre got nothing.

A further 3 hours 30 minutes passed on the concrete at Milan, and the crew (promised as waiting) arrived. We duly took off and they started serving - again starting at each end of the plane. I got up and asked if they could please start in the middle as no one had had anything. They said NO. So when they got to us, there was only water available - the first drink we had had in 9 hours. No food was available.

We arrived at Athens at 22.45 local time and found our taxi still waiting even though we were 7 hours late. We bought some water - but did not keep the receipts.

On our return to the UK we made a complaint and claim for compensation. We received a derisory reply with no hint of an apology of £3 provided we had receipts.

I then looked up this site, and found the delay to destination section where there is compensation of €400 for our delay. Easy jet deny they have any responsibility and that this only applies to cancellation.

Sorry - lost the formatting:

Provision for flight delays
Flight Length
0 – 1,500km
e.g. London > Barcelona
1,500 – 3,500km
e.g. London > Istanbul
3,500km +
e.g. London > New York
Delay to destination
More than 2 hours
More than 3 hours
More than 3 hours
More than 3 hours
More than 4 hours
Meals and calls
Yes
Yes
Yes
n/a
Yes
Compensation amount
n/a
€250
€400
€300
€600

I have looked at the actual regulation, and I can find no mention of the compensation package for delay, which is posted on this site.

In the mean time, we have sent a complaint to the Airline User Council including their refusal for any phone calls which is definitely in the regulations, and will wait to see the outcome.

You are certainly entitled to "care" during the delay, which includes necessary telephone calls and refreshments. Easyjet were at fault in not allowing you to telephone your taxi company, and should certainly pay the cost that resulted (the waiting time). They were also at fault in not providing food and drink: see if you can find some way to put a cash value on this.

chris_robb

dzug1 wrote: »

Have a read of post 923 - the gist is that yes you are entitled to compensation, but that UK airlines are challenging the ruling about this (it wasn't in the original EU regs but a subsequent court case ruled that it ought to have been) and are not paying until a further court case has been settled

That is interesting. I am aware of the freeze on cases re the volcanic ash situation, but is that holding up others

I can sympathise with the airlines over the volcanic ash, and I really do not understand why they are liable, as they certainly did not cause it. Surely most people should be claiming on their travel insurance.

If the European regs mean that the airlines should pay for the consequences of Volcanic ash, then that brings the credibility and reasonableness of the whole system into account.

chris_robb

Voyager2002 wrote: »

You are certainly entitled to "care" during the delay, which includes necessary telephone calls and refreshments. Easyjet were at fault in not allowing you to telephone your taxi company, and should certainly pay the cost that resulted (the waiting time). They were also at fault in not providing food and drink: see if you can find some way to put a cash value on this.

I will certainly set out a value for this, the taxi is easy - €80, but no receipt as not possible to produce from the normal meter, so will be a problem. As for the abuse to us, I will have to think about that.

jg_brady

We recently returned from Gran Canaria after spending 24 hours in the airport.

There was an Iberian baggage handlers strike - but Thomson's made passengers for 3 delayed flights queue for 7 hours to check in for a flight they must have known would never fly. One was definitely not going to leave as the incoming flight got diverted to Tenerife. THey callously checked in disabled and handicapped people first.

They spun us lie after lie.

After a 2 hour delay I asked if they were going to offer drinks as people were visibly dropping in the heat of the airport.

They told us that the delay wasn't their fault and that they weren't obligated to give us anything.

After 6 hours someone filled a jug of water in the toilets and offered people drinks in plastic cups.

We travelled with 3 pensioners and 2 of which had been poorly. When we got to the check-in desk we asked if there was a cabin crew with enough air time left to get us home that night.

We were told that the flight had a departure slot and it would be going that night... which is true. It did leave - empty.

At about 3 in the morning - flight now 7 hrs late, we were told that the cabin crew were out of hours and that the flight was cancelled. They then offered us food vouchers.

We were told that if we could find accomodation that they would pay for it!!! Other airlines cancelled their flights hours earlier. Hundreds of people were put in hotels. How were we going to have a chance of getting accom for 2 adults and 3 pensioners ... 2 of which were poorly.

THere was no communication - we were told that they would send a rescue flight later that morning, they were to merge the passenger lists for the Manchester and East Midlands flight and that we'd be flown to Birmingham and then coached to Manchester. Indeed, they sold tickets for a flight to Birmingham.

Only then to advise us as we queued up to board that the flight would be going to the East Midlands... people wanting to go to Birmingham or Manchester were coached to their final destination.

We should have got back into Manchester Midnight on Saturday - we arrived there at 1 o'clock Monday morning. We got a letter basically telling us that we couldn't claim against them that it wasn't their fault, but to make a claim to our travel insurers.

The return flight - that was put on the board to fly at 2 in the afternoon - we didn't take off until after 5. Can I claim agains the Thomsons for that?

I have claim documents from our insurers and they're asking us how much we want to claim. How much can we claim for a delay of 23 hours?
25 if you count the 2 hours we queued?
26 if you take into account the transfer from the East Midlands airport to Manchester?

Can we claim for the cancelled flight and the delayed second flight separately?

It was so heartbreaking to see our old folks, who had been so ill on holiday, having to sleep on hard benches. To see disabled kids in wheelchairs so callously shepherded through departures.

Someone in Thomsons should get locked up for endangering peoples health and wellbeing. How much has this cost saving exercise they've done going to cost them? Everyone should know how this huge airline let down so many of their passengers.

Any advice would be grateful.

James

dzug1

Most insurance policies pay a fixed sum - so much per 12 or 24 hours. I would think that all they want you to do is calculate the length of delay from scheduled departure time to actual departure time and put down the appropriate sum. The amount will be in your policy.

If you have a non-standard policy you'll need to read it carefully as to what you can claim.