Passengers compensated for flight delays caused by Air France
Knowing that regulations exist, that a judgment of the Court of Justice of the European Communities dated November 19, 2009 concluded that a lump sum compensation is due in the event of a delay equal to or greater than three hours.
“We are sorry to hear that your flight from MXP airport was delayed”. Unfortunately, this was caused by a technical problem with the aircraft.
The safety of our passengers is our priority and we are constantly working to improve the standard of our aircraft. However, sometimes there are technical issues that we are forced to resolve immediately. This caused your flight delay.
We would like to apologize for the inconvenience caused by this situation. Rest assured that we are doing everything to offer the best service to all our customers. We hope that this experience will not prevent you from using our services in the future.
Here is a simple example of what an airline can tell its passengers to justify the delay on their route when this justification may be false.
What role do legal experts play in repairing damage caused by air operators?
There are precisely startups which take care of this kind of files.
Lawyers can help prepare your compensation claim by sending them your flight data and copies of your travel documents online.
Air carriers are putting forward false arguments just to deprive you of your rights.
The Court of Justice of the European Communities (CJEC) delivered a judgment on November 19, 2009 which strengthens the rights of air travelers (cases C-402/07 Sturgeon / Condor Flugdienst and C-432/07 Böck and Lepuschitz / Air France).
Passengers who are more than three hours late are now entitled to lump sum compensation, when Regulation (EC) 261/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council applies (i.e. when the flight departs regardless of the nationality of the company, or when the flight lands in Europe with a European company).
Passengers on delayed flights may be assimilated to passengers on canceled flights for the purposes of applying the right to compensation and may thus invoke the right to compensation provided for in Article 7 of this regulation when they suffer, due to a flight delayed, a loss of time equal to or greater than three hours, that is to say when they reach their final destination three hours or more after the arrival time initially planned by the air carrier.
The Court considers that passengers who are significantly delayed are in a situation similar to those who have had their flight canceled, because they are wasting time. It therefore grants them the same right to compensation.
Lump sum compensation offered to passengers delayed by Air France
Until now, travelers had to prove and quantify their damage in the event of delay. Only travelers who suffered a flight cancellation or overbooking could benefit from monetary compensation, without having to prove damage. This compensation is € 250 for flights of less than 1,500 km, € 400 for intra-Community flights of more than 1,500 km, or other flights covering between 1,500 and 3,500 km, and € 600 for other flights.
Some airlines were thus tempted to qualify a cancellation as late in order to escape this lump sum compensation.
Delayed travelers were hardly compensated, because wasting time, even many hours, does not always result in costs. The passengers suffered harm, but had difficulty recovering.
Faced with these difficulties, the CJEC issued this decision which allows automatic lump sum compensation for delays on arrival greater than three hours, without the traveler having to prove and quantify his loss. This decision appears to be a sanction against companies which were too reluctant to compensate passengers financially in such a situation, or which offered them insufficient compensation.
As the decisions of the ECJ are an integral part of Community law, airlines will have to apply the rules set out in this judgment.
They are now obliged to systematically compensate travelers when they are delayed more than three hours, up to € 250 to € 600 depending on the flight concerned.
Carriers pretend that the delay on the flight is due to an uncontrollable situation
The only way for an airline to evade the indemnity requirement is to demonstrate that the delay was caused by extraordinary circumstances. The Court reminds him: “However, such a delay does not give entitlement to compensation for the passengers if the air carrier is able to prove that the significant delay is due to extraordinary circumstances which could not have been avoided even if all reasonable measures had been taken, namely circumstances beyond the effective control of the air carrier. ”
The judgment of the ECJ of 19 November 2009 recalls that a technical difficulty is not in principle an expeditious circumstance, even if it is likely to affect the safety of travelers and that its resolution was therefore imperative. This principle had already been stated in the judgment of the same Court dated December 22, 2008 (Case C-549/07 Wallentin-Hermann / Alitalia).
A technical difficulty can only allow a company to evade its obligation to compensate travelers under certain conditions:
A technical problem occurring on an aircraft which results in the cancellation or delay of a flight does not fall within the concept of “extraordinary circumstances” within the meaning of this provision, unless this problem arises from events which, by their nature or their origin, are not inherent in the normal exercise of the activity of the air carrier concerned and escape its effective control ”.
Airlines are sometimes tempted to raise technical difficulties to dismiss their liability. This judgment recalls that these causes of delay do not prevent them from compensating passengers, unless they can prove that they had specific characteristics enabling them to be classified as extraordinary circumstances.
A final point is clarified by this important judgment: it indicates how to distinguish an aircraft delay from a cancellation. The display at the airport, the certificates, the maintenance of the flight number, the significant length of the delay or the change in the composition of the passenger group are not decisive criteria.
According to the Court, a flight is delayed, not canceled, “as long as it is carried out in accordance with the schedule initially planned by the air carrier”, even if the delay is very significant.
Passenger rights delayed after application of Regulation (EC) 261/2004
If this judgment allows new rights to compensation to be granted to passengers who are delayed by more than three hours on the arrival of a flight, they retain the rights already granted to them by Regulation (EC) 261/2004.
Thus, they have a right to an assumption on behalf of the airline company, even if the delay was caused by extraordinary circumstances, when it is reasonably foreseeable that the delay will be at least two hours for the flights less than 1500 km, three hours for intra-Community flights of more than 1500 km and other flights covering between 1500 and 3500 km, and four hours for other flights (Articles 6 and 9 of Regulation (EC) 261/2004 ).
This pick-up includes refreshments and the possibility of having enough to eat given the waiting period; hotel accommodation in case a waiting stay of one or more nights is necessary, transport from the airport to the place of accommodation (hotel or other). In addition, the passenger is offered the possibility of making two free telephone calls or sending two free telexes, two faxes or two electronic messages.
Passengers are also entitled to the reimbursement of their airline tickets if they choose to forgo their flight if the delay is more than five hours (Articles 6 and 8 of Regulation (EC) 261/2004).
Recommended solutions to speed up the process of his compensation
Send a request to a startup dedicated to handling air disputes including flight delays? Legal experts are those who design the claim file by filing an official request with the airline concerned for a lump sum compensation of 250 euros as indicated in the judgment.
Finally, in the event of a problem, do not hesitate to multiply the proofs (photographs of the billboards at the airport, request for written confirmation to the flight attendants, screenshot of the info from the airport concerned on internet, etc.). And if you paid for your tickets with a gold card, you can appeal to your bank.
As a reminder, the limitation period in this type of file is 5 years from the date of the flight affected by a delay, cancellation or overbooking.
We can therefore ask them for help. Legal experts have the capacity to initiate such proceedings against any airline, even if it were as big and important as Air France.
Everything changed with the birth of startups
All hopes are allowed, millions of passengers return each year to the firms used to dealing with this kind of dispute. Their lawyers file a claim against the airline company on the basis of the European small claims procedure. They actually had the pleasure of winning.
Before the compensation firms appeared, the overwhelming majority of victims did not even attempt to initiate the procedures necessary to defend their interests in fear of their failure. While millions of travelers today succeed in winning these startups.
Aware of this problem, they make it their mission to help travelers with their compensation claims.
A team of experts takes full responsibility for your file to obtain the compensation due to you. To start, you can check on their site if you are eligible for a claim, and estimate the height of the costs of the latter. After having gathered the necessary supporting documents. The firm takes care of all exchanges with the airline. In the event of litigation, the lawyers of the company defend your rights in court until winning the case. A procedure that is free for you.
With their help, You are putting all the odds on your side to receive the compensation to which you are entitled. In addition, you benefit from rapid assistance. In fact, by delegating your complex, tedious and stressful claims procedures, you save time and energy. You have no costs to incur. If the request is successful, your compensation will be returned to you, reduced by a commission of 30%. And if you fail, you will have absolutely nothing to pay.
You will be assisted by an adviser throughout the complaints procedure. You can also follow the progress of your file directly online. Note that you will get your compensation at the same time as it is paid by your Air France operator.