Consumers to get better deal for cancelled or delayed flights, July 2003

Following the second reading of a draft Regulation on 2 July 2003, MEPs voted on 3 July to improve compensation and assistance to air passengers who are denied boarding or whose flights are cancelled or subject to long delays. Each year, more than 1 million people are affected by such problems, yet existing legislation, passed in 1991, offers them little support.

If the text adopted by the European Parliament is agreed by the Council, it will help consumers in four main ways:

1. by extending rights to passengers on all kinds of flights, scheduled and non-scheduled
2. by reducing incidences of 'denied boarding', through making airlines and tour operators ask for volunteers to give up their seats (in exchange for an alternative flight or their money back) before turning passengers away. Passengers could therefore only be denied a seat if there were insufficient volunteers. Anyone so prevented from flying would have to be given the choice of an alternative flight as soon as possible (with refreshments, meals and accommodation provided where appropriate) or - where delay has made their journey pointless - having their fare refunded. They would also have to be paid compensation on the following basis:
   • €250 for flights of less than 1500 km
   • €400 for flights between 1500 and 3500 km
   • €600 for flights of more than 3500 km
3. by minimising the inconvenience of cancellations, through the mechanisms applied to customers who are denied a flight, as in point 2 above (subject to passengers not being given at least two weeks' notice of a delay or not being re-routed at a time very close to the original flight)
4. by assisting passengers facing long delays, by offering them free meals, refreshments and - if needed - hotel accommodation (applicable to delays of two hours for flights of 1500 kilometres or less; three hours for intra-EU flights of more than 1500 kilometres; four hours for other flights)

MEPs also called for people using other forms of public transport to be similarly treated.

If Parliament gets its way, the Regulation would take effect 12 months after adoption, rather than the three months proposed by the Council - on the grounds that travel brochures for 2004 have already been printed.

Parliament's vote received mixed reactions. Welcoming the news, the European Commissioner responsible for transport, Loyola de Palacio, said 'this is an important day in our common effort to put the citizens at the heart of EU policies.'

However, the European Consumers' Organisation, BEUC, criticised the proposed text, saying that MEPs had watered down the Regulation. Amongst the examples given was the failure to require airlines to disclose information about service indicators, including punctuality. The Organisation's Director said that 'Parliament's reputation as a consumer's champion has suffered a setback' and that MEPs 'may see the concrete effect of their vote the next time they are waiting for a delayed flight to Strasbourg.'

There have also been complaints from the budget airlines, who argue that the compensation levels will hit them harder than their more expensive rivals. In their view, the Regulation could lead to more expensive tickets. easyJet stated that it 'supports the aim of the legislation', but wanted compensation to be based on ticket price, rather than a flat rate. The airline's Chief Executive described Parliament's text as 'a nonsense.'

Links:

European Parliament:
	Daily Notebook: 03-07-2003
European Commission:
	03.07.03:	Loyola de Palacio welcomes European parliament vote on Air passenger rights: huge increase of compensations for denied boarding and cancellation of flights [IP/03/944]
BBC News Online:
	03.07.03:	New EU law over air misery
European Consumers' Organisation (BEUC):
	Homepage
easyJet:
	Homepage
	EU serves up air passenger compensation fudge

Eric Davies
Researcher
Compiled: Friday, 4 July 2003

Background and reporting on the week's main stories in the European Union and the wider Europe.