Named and shamed, the top airlines that refuse to pay up for their delayed f lights
AIRLINES are cheating passengers out of millions of pounds in compensation for delayed flights, an investigation has found.
Ryanair, British Airways, Norwegian, Thomson and Emirates are among the worst offenders, the consumer group Which? claims.
Passengers flying from the EU or with an EU airline are entitled to up to £530 if their flight is at least three hours late.
But Which? found airlines were wriggling out of paying up.
Until last year, British passengers whose claims were rejected by an airline had to take their complaint to industry regulator the Civil Aviation Authority.
Which? said the CAA ruled in favour of passengers in 53 per cent of appeals during the 12 months to last August.
But some airlines were particularly reluctant to honour legitimate claims, with the regulator telling Norwegian Air to pay up in 83 per cent of cases.
The Spanish budget airline Vueling, which is owned by the same parent com- pany as British Airways, was told to pay passengers in 79 per cent of cases, while Ryanair was close behind on 77 per cent.
BA had 1,166 flights delayed by more than three hours and was advised by the CAA to pay up in 48 per cent of cases.
Thomson had to pay up in 69 per cent of appeals, Thomas Cook was overruled in 41 per cent of cases, and EasyJet decisions were overturned 39 per cent of the time.
The industry is facing a backlash for poor customer service, rip-off charges and cramped seats. BA has set aside £100million for those affected by its global IT meltdown over the May Bank Holiday weekend, which left tens of thousands of passengers stranded.
Alex Neill, of Which?, said: ‘Some airlines seem to be making it as difficult as possible for passengers to receive the money they are entitled to for flight delays. We want to see airlines introduce measures so that, where possible, passengers are compensated automatically.’
Which? says airlines often cite ‘ extraordinary circumstances’ such as bad weather, unforeseen technical problems and strike action to avoid paying up.
But the investigation showed airlines had also exploited the fact that the CAA has no power to enforce its judgments, and in many cases airlines simply ignored the regulator’s rulings.
Labour MP Louise Ellman, who chaired the Commons transport committee, said: ‘This is totally unacceptable. The rules must be strengthened.’
The compensation system for airlines was overhauled last year.
Now most passengers must take their complaint to one of several new ‘alternative dispute resolution’ bodies, depending on which one the airline has signed up to. These can force airlines to pay compensation, but experts fear passengers may be put off because some may have to pay a £25 fee if they are unsuccessful.
Which? said the system was too muddled and should be replaced by a single ombudsman.
A CAA spokesman said: ‘Nearly 80 per cent of passenger journeys from the UK are now covered by airlines who are signed up to dispute resolution services.’
BA said: ‘We fully honour our EU compensation obligations.’
Ryanair said 504 complaints were received in an eight-month period in 2016 when it carried more than 83million customers, adding: ‘This shows just how good Ryanair’s compliance is.’
Emirates said: ‘Many delays are caused by factors beyond our control and not the airline’s responsibility, such as inclement weather, bird strikes, and airport closures. In the event of delays or cancellations, we always ensure our customers are looked after.’
‘This is totally unacceptable’