As another airline goes bust, here’s how to get cash back if you’re left stranded
DANISH-owned Primera Air is the latest airline to go bust, leaving thousands of passengers stranded, many of them British holidaymakers flying into and out of Stansted and Birmingham airports. Follow our guide to getting redress when flight troubles – delays, cancellations as well as airlines going out of business – strike.
WHEN AN AIRLINE GOES BUST
TRAVELLERS whose airline goes bust and who booked as part of a package should check if their provider has Air Travel Organiser’s Licence protection.
If so, they will get their fare refunded if they have not travelled or, if mid-trip, will receive help with alternative arrangements to continue their holiday.
Those who bought their tickets ( and perhaps accommodation) direct from the airline will need to find alternative flights at their own expense. Some rival carriers may offer special f ares f or t hose stranded.
Check with credit card providers as they may offer a refund. Under Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act customers can claim back their money if they spent at least £100 on a product or service that was never delivered. Some may accept a claim from those who paid by debit card under a voluntary chargeback scheme.
Travel insurance may come to the rescue for the lucky few with adequate cover.
Policy wording needs to include ‘scheduled airlines failure’, but be warned – research by comparison website GoCompare found just four in ten annual travel policies offer cover for financial fallout from an airline collapse.
WHEN FLIGHTS ARE CANCELLED
IN THE past 30 days alone, nearly 50,000 flights have been cancelled worldwide. These figures, from website Flightstats, indicate that this form of travel aggravation is more likely to strike than an airline going broke.
Passengers travelling from a European Union airport, or from a non-EU airport and flying into an EU airport, have special compensation rights.
Airlines must refund the price of a cancelled flight – the full cost, even if you go on to take the return trip – or put the passenger on an alternative flight to the destination. This is known as rerouting. You fly as soon as the airline can organise it or if you prefer when it suits you – not when the airline decides. Passengers are also entitled to two free calls, faxes or emails, plus free meals and drinks and a hotel if an overnight stay is necessary.
WHEN FLIGHTS ARE DELAYED
NEARLY half a million flights were delayed in the last month worldwide making it a serious occupat i onal hazard f or regular ai r travellers. All passengers flying into and out of EU countries are entitled to compensation if delays are excessive – unless problems are due to circumstances outside an airline’s control such as bad weather, natural disasters or air traffic control strikes.
Recent legal cases mean airlines cannot wriggle out of paying when an unexpected technical fault causes a delay. Under so- called EU261 regulations, each passenger is entitled to compensation of up to €600 (£535), depending on length of delay and flight distance.
The compensation clock starts after a delay of three hours of arriving at a destination. Passengers on flights of less than 1,500km – say London to Amsterdam – can apply for €250 each.
For a flight between a European and non- European ai r port of between 1,500 and 3,500km – say London to Fez in Morocco – it is €400. Those on a long-haul journey of more than 3,500km, departing from Europe and who suffer a fourhour plus delay get €600.
If a connecting flight on an EU airline is delayed by more than three hours a claim is valid even if it happens outside the EU. Claims can be backdated for up to six years – but anyone who has suffered this fate should act sooner rather than later. With Brexit around the corner, it is unclear whether the current rules will stay as they are.
AVOID RIP-OFF CLAIMS HANDLERS
WHERE there is the potential for compensation, there are always vulture claims firms circling. Avoid them like the plague as making a DIY claim is easy.
Using a claims firm means they will pocket up to 40 per cent of any money due. As The Mail on Sunday revealed in July, agents of such firms swarm the baggage halls of airports looking for claimants.
The usual way to claim is via the airline, either online or by phone. But free online complaints tools such as Resolver can also do the work for you. But be aware that easyJet does not currently accept claims via such a tool.