Families in legal bid after being stranded in Romania
FAMILIES are planning legal action against an airline as it emerged some were being told to wait up to 11 days to leave Romania after their plane back to Glasgow suffered a malfunction.
Some 200 passengers were affected as the flight from Bucharest to Glasgow was cancelled on Monday and scores are believed to be still trying to get out of the country.
Hungarian low-cost airline Wizz Air had promised that passengers would be put on the first available flight after passengers were standed at Otopeni Airport.
However, only a small number were expected on the Glasgow flight last night, while others are waiting till Monday.
A number of others were told they could not get back on a Glasgow flight until next Friday, which meant being stranded in Romania for 11 days.
The airline said that the flight to Glasgow and the following day’s flight from Glasgow to Bucharest had to be cancelled as due to “unscheduled technical maintenance which took longer than expected”.
Among those told they had to wait 11 days was Ervin Hugel, 34, his wife, Adina, 35, and their 11-month-old baby Christian. He said the situation was a “bloody nightmare” and they are preparing their own legal action for compensation.
Having run out of baby food and clothes, the family who were in Romania for a wedding decided to take a flight to Birmingham today and then fork out £100 on train tickets to get them back to their home in Edinburgh. Then Mr Hugel will have to travel to Glasgow Airport to get his car and pay off the overstay parking charges.
Wizz Air said in a statement: “In line with WIZZ policy and typical airline practice, passengers were offered either a full refund, or free rebooking on the next available Wizz Air flight.
“Wizz has also provided hotel accommodation and meal vouchers to those choosing to wait until the next available flight.
“Beyond this, we have advised passengers of their rights under EU law with regard to compensation, and how to apply.
“We are maintaining regular communications with our affected customers and continue to ensure their needs are met.
“Wizz Air sincerely apologises to all affected customers for any inconvenience caused.
“However, the safety of our passengers, crew and aircraft is our number one priority.”