BMI baby flight cancellation - what do I do next?

welnik

Arrived at my airport ready for my journey home to discover there was a delay. Turned out there was a fault with the plane and it was eventually cancelled. As a consequence we were told to book ourselves into hotels and were handed a form. They then laid on a flight 20 hours after it should have left.

Has anyone had this happen? I have been given a claim form from them but I dont know what to make of it. This is what it says:-

Cancellation due to extraordinary circumstances
(Eg: weather, technical, air traffic control, airport related problems, civil unrest or security issues)

In accordance with EC regulation you will be entitled to the following:-

a) if you choose to travel we will provide alternative transport, under comparable conditions, to your final destination.
b) If you choose not to travel we will provide a full refund or any unused portion of the ticket.

Cancellation due to reasons other than extraordinary circumstances

In accordance with the EC regulation you will be entitled to the following:

a) If you choose to travel you will received compensation as per the table below plus alternative transport, under comparable conditions, to your final destination.
b) If you choose not to travel you will receive compensation as per the table below plus a refund of the cancelled sector of your journey. However, if your journey no longer serves its purpose you may be entitled to a refund of the entire ticket.

In all circumstances we will provide for you free of charge:

a) Meals and refreshments, depending on your waiting time
b) Two short phone calls or emails
c) If travel by a new route or alternative flight includes an overnight stay, we will provide accommodation with transport between the airport and the hotel.

So as my flight was at 20:00 hours and I had to find my own hotel (2 kids under 7 to sort out too!) and now hoping that I can claim back my room and taxi fares for which I have receipts.

I have checked my insurance policy and it says I am entitled to compensation through them but I have to have something in writing from BMI baby explaining the circumstances. This has to be supplied within 28 days of travel or the claim is invalid.

I am presuming my plane had a technical problem but not really sure.

Anyone else had to claim?

cheers
Wel

mad_rich

You need to find out the reason for the cancellation. Write or phone the airline and ask them for details. If, as is most likely, they come back to claiming that it was 'circumstances beyond our control', then ask them to prove it.

The only justification for them not to pay out is "extraordinary circumstances which could not have been avoided even if all reasonable measures had been taken". And the burden of proof is on the airline, not you. A technical fault is one of those debatable problems, but don't just accept the airline's word if they "technical problems are extraordinary circumstances"

It sounds like they are going to pay your hotel expenses without quarrel, so the only question is whether they will pay cancellation compensation. Start here for info.

bagand96

Good advice from Rich. Also, first thing to do is phone up bmibaby and ask for written confirmation of the delay, so that you can claim off your travel insurance. It will literally be a letter "we can confirm flight WWxxxx was delayed on XXth July for 20 hours" but that will satisfy your insurance company. Remember this claim is separate from your claim with bmibaby.

Then persue your claim with bmibaby, using the good advice from rich. Technical delays are an awkward one, as its a grey area whether it is beyond their control or not. They have to prove it was beyond their control, but the flip side is you can't really prove it was within their control...

unsure

Good Luck Welnik,
A similar thing happened to me with BMI baby. They were atrocious. It was impossible to get through to customer services on the phone. They didn't respond to emails and failed to respond to a registered letter that I know was received by them.
As a result I have never flown with them or BMI since and it's cost them a lot more money than it cost me!
I hope things have improved but wouldn't count on it.

welnik

Many thanks for your replies. Ive sent of my original receipts duly copied and by recorded delivery. Telephoned the airline watchdog as it were and they have said that if I have no joy, they will assist me further in claiming. If all else fails, I could take them to the small claims court apparently. Legally, Im entitled to claim back my hotel and taxi fares.

Fingers crossed.

cheers
Welnik

FRANKIEBOY_3

welnik wrote: »

Many thanks for your replies. Ive sent of my original receipts duly copied and by recorded delivery. Telephoned the airline watchdog as it were and they have said that if I have no joy, they will assist me further in claiming. If all else fails, I could take them to the small claims court apparently. Legally, Im entitled to claim back my hotel and taxi fares.

Fingers crossed.

cheers
Welnik[/quote

Four of us have had much the same experience from BMIBABY, only our flight was cancelled with 3 months to go(5th Jan 08).
We have a conecting flight to catch and the offered flight is no good,so far they have refused to reimburse us,what can we do?:A

lisyloo

We have a conecting flight to catch and the offered flight is no good,so far they have refused to reimburse us,what can we do?

Is it a "connecting" flight within the legal definition i.e. one that BMI baby sold you as a "connecting flight" or are they just 2 flights that you booked seperately.

You rights would be different depending on the answer.

Unfortunately if you made independent arrangement i.e. booked 2 flights seperately, then it's not their problem (legally speaking).
They should refund you for the cancelled flight and any extra should be covered by your travel insurance (minus excesses).

If they were genuine "connecting flights" i.e. sold together then your rights will be greater and they must provide the whole package that they sold you.