Airlines loose EU compensation rules battle
11.09.05
EU rules on compensation for delayed or stranded airline passengers have been backed by the European courts after a challenge by airlines. The legislation forces airlines which to provide food, hotels and compensation for travellers - costs that can be greater than the original ticket price.
The European airline industry, lead by the budget airlines has mounted a legal onslaught in the European Court of Justice against the new laws. But the EU's Advocate-General - whose opinion is not binding but generally followed in the final ruling - rejected the arguments of the International Air Transport Association and the European Low Fares Airlines.
'There is no doubt, in the view of the advocate general, that the obligations imposed on the air carriers are a suitable and proportionate means of reducing the trouble and inconvenience to passengers resulting from delays or cancellations,' an EU statement said on Thursday. The final decision of the ECJ is expected before Christmas.
Under the law, airlines have to pay compensation to passengers bumped from flights due to overbooking or cancellations and give assistance - in the form of refreshments or hotel accommodation - in the event of long delays. The rates of compensation depend on the length of the planned trip, not how much passengers paid for the ticket.
Passengers are compensated €250 for flights of less than 1500 km, €400 for flights of between 1500 - and 3500km and €600 for flights of more than 3500km. Airlines are not liable for claims if they can prove a cancellation was caused by unavoidable circumstances such as storms or strikes - as in the case of the chaos at Heathrow airport last month.
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