Missed flight departure due to airport technical problem

an0n1

Hi guys

I can see loads of advice on claiming compensation for delayed/cancelled flights online but can't seem to find anything relating to the situation I encountered yesterday so wanted to seek people's advice here.

I was booked on an Easyjet flight to go from London Stansted to Bilbao yesterday for a long weekend with two other friends. We got to the airport well within time but the flight was delayed by more than 30 minutes. We wait for the gate to appear on the screen. When it did (only 30 mins before it was due to depart taking into account the additional 30min+ delay), it was a gate that we had to get to via the transit train within the airport so we got on the train but due to technical fault, the train did not move – when we finally got told to get off the train and get there via alternative routes, we got directed to the wrong way and by the time we got there, the gate was closed and they wouldn’t let us in.

There were 6-9 people who missed the flight in total (including us) – other people must have been able to get on the previous train or actually directed through to the correct route.

The only thing Easyjet could offer us was free transfer and none of the options they gave us were suitable (only 2 seats available for 3 of us / Monday flight out there when our return flight was booked for Monday also).

We spoke to the Airport Manager also, who just gave us an email address to send our claim and said there was nothing else she could do.

So now I have to make claims against:

• Stansted Airport (technical issue with the train and incompetent staff who don’t know their way around the airport)
• Easyjet (knew fully there was a train breakdown but still didn’t wait for us and didn’t let us in on the flight despite us getting there before departure)
• Travel insurance (do they pay out in this sort of situation)
• Credit card company with whom we booked the flight and accomm (though I think this would be the kind of claim they would accept)

Do you have any advice you could give me re how I best to proceed with the claims?

Also, in this kind of situation, don’t airlines usually give extra time for passengers to get to the gate? Having only given people 30 mins or less to get to the gate, they had even had time to remove checked-in luggage one of the passengers who missed the flight. Do you know how long it takes to remove checked-in luggage from the plane? My feeling is that they had no intention of waiting for more passengers in the first place despite knowing about the train breakdown (which they verbally confirmed that they were aware and said they waited as long as they could…).

Sorry for the long message, but as you may be able to figure out, I am rather angry:mad:

Any advice you could give me on how to deal with this situation and claim compensation would be gratefully received.

richardw

Your claim is against Stansted Airport, so pursue them.

agrinnall

Stanstead in the first instance for sure, and I would expect them to pay up (make sure you specify what you are claiming for - flights, pre-paid/booked accommodation, travel to and from Stanstead, etc.). However, if they don't then your travel insurance should also cover you (but you'd probably have to pay an excess), and you might be able to claim from the CC company, although with a claim like this it's probably better to hope that one of the other two will pay up.

I can't see that this is Easyjet's fault at all, it's your responsibility to be at the gate in time and even if you arrive before the flight departs there's little chance that they will let you board late due to the cost to them of a possible missed departure slot.

Caz3121

an0n1 wrote: »

So now I have to make claims against:

• Stansted Airport (technical issue with the train and incompetent staff who don’t know their way around the airport)
• Easyjet (knew fully there was a train breakdown but still didn’t wait for us and didn’t let us in on the flight despite us getting there before departure)
• Travel insurance (do they pay out in this sort of situation)
• Credit card company with whom we booked the flight and accomm (though I think this would be the kind of claim they would accept)

Do you have any advice you could give me re how I best to proceed with the claims?

Also, in this kind of situation, don’t airlines usually give extra time for passengers to get to the gate? Having only given people 30 mins or less to get to the gate, they had even had time to remove checked-in luggage one of the passengers who missed the flight. Do you know how long it takes to remove checked-in luggage from the plane? My feeling is that they had no intention of waiting for more passengers in the first place despite knowing about the train breakdown (which they verbally confirmed that they were aware and said they waited as long as they could…).

Airlines have ATC slots and if they miss a slot they can experience extensive delays so they would not wait for people.
How long it takes to get the bags off will depend on how long it takes them to locate them in the hold. All the paperwork will have been completed with the total passengers and baggage numbers and then, when they offloaded you and your baggage they will have had to redo all the paperwork. So even though you got there before departure it is not as simple as you boarding the plane, all the paperwork would need to be resubmitted which in turn to cause missed slot
Easyjet will probably have a gripe with the airport for not displaying the stand so late and being allocated an inconvenient stand.

re your claim
Stansted Airport - may be your best option but think you are going to have a battle
Easyjet - will respond that your boarding card states you need to be at the departure gate x minutes before departure and you were not through no fault of theirs
Travel Insurance - you would need to check your policy
CC - I see no option here as what you purchased was provided even though you were not able to use it

Nodding_Donkey

Caz3121 wrote: »

Easyjet will probably have a gripe with the airport for not displaying the stand so late and being allocated an inconvenient stand.

I doubt it, the Airlines update the Flight Information Screens but if the delay was caused solely by the TTS breaking down then you have a valid claim against the airport. As long as you went through security a reasonable time before your flight (they can check) and didn't mess around when the gate was put up on the screens.

In a situation like that staff are brought in from other areas, usually security, and the trend has been to make full time staff redundant and replace them with people on seasonal zero (or very low) hours contracts so a lot of those staff are shown around once on basic training and then left to find their own way. The reason the train breaks down so often is that it is obsolete and parts are hard to get. Stansted Airport used to have a vast stock of parts but they were sold to save money.

duchy

The question may be asked why only nine people missed the flight and how the many others managed to get to the gate in time.

agrinnall

duchy wrote: »

The question may be asked why only nine people missed the flight and how the many others managed to get to the gate in time.

From the OP:

"There were 6-9 people who missed the flight in total (including us) – other people must have been able to get on the previous train or actually directed through to the correct route."

The question that isn't addressed is why the OP couldn't get on the previous train, was it full, or were they too slow getting to it after the gate was advised?

814man

Surely this is a key fact:

"we got directed to the wrong way"

No different to me getting wrong directions in my car to an airport and missing flight, or asking someone who does not know the right way. It cannot be the airlines responsibility (or anyone else for that matter) that you were given the wrong directions. Surely if this is accepted then anyone who ever misses a flight would be able to say it was because they were given the wrong directions at some stage in their journey.

Voyager2002

814man wrote: »

Surely this is a key fact:

"we got directed to the wrong way"

No different to me getting wrong directions in my car to an airport and missing flight, or asking someone who does not know the right way. It cannot be the airlines responsibility (or anyone else for that matter) that you were given the wrong directions. Surely if this is accepted then anyone who ever misses a flight would be able to say it was because they were given the wrong directions at some stage in their journey.

No, because they were directed by an airport employee responding to a breakdown in airport equipment. Under these circumstances they were entitled to rely on the directions they were given.

Westin

No, because they were directed by an airport employee responding to a breakdown in airport equipment. Under these circumstances they were entitled to rely on the directions they were given.

I don't wish to split hairs but that wasn't actually what the OP said.

when we finally got told to get off the train and get there via alternative routes, we got directed to the wrong way and by the time we got there, the gate was closed and they wouldn’t let us in.

It could equally have been other well wishing passengers giving incorrect suggestions to get to the gate area, or possibly another random airport staff member from Costa Coffee who was around that was asked for directions.

I do feel for the passenger but also did wonder how everyone else made the flight. Very unfortunate indeed to be on the transit that broke down but possibly the group cut it too fine to make it down to the gate area.

Certainly worth taking it up with STN airport owners. I don't see any fault or responsibility on the airline.

bobblebob

Caz3121 wrote: »

Airlines have ATC slots and if they miss a slot they can experience extensive delays so they would not wait for people.
How long it takes to get the bags off will depend on how long it takes them to locate them in the hold. All the paperwork will have been completed with the total passengers and baggage numbers and then, when they offloaded you and your baggage they will have had to redo all the paperwork. So even though you got there before departure it is not as simple as you boarding the plane, all the paperwork would need to be resubmitted which in turn to cause missed slot

This is what makes me laugh when people turn up late and moan the plane is still there and why cant they get on. Its not that simple for the reasons you have said