Don’t get mad, get compo for flight horrors
YOU have been contacting me all week with your stories about cancelled and delayed flights.
The majority booked with British Airways, easyjet, Ryanair and TUI, although most other airlines have been impacted.
Many have been left to fend for themselves with no information – while others have been refused compensation because the delay was caused by “extraordinary circumstances”.
So, here’s all you need to know if you’ve been caught up in travel Armageddon:
WHAT’S CAUSED THE CHAOS?
Airlines and airports are suffering chronic staff shortages following mass redundancies and people leaving for different industries during the lockdowns.
Many are now struggling to recruit quickly enough and have been caught out with the need to train new recruits before they can be let loose on their new jobs.
MY FLIGHT WAS CANCELLED
You have the right to either: ■ a full refund - including other flights from the airline that you won’t use in the same booking such as onward or return flights; or ■ a replacement flight to get you to your destination
If you’re part-way through a journey and you don’t want a replacement flight, you also have a right to a flight back to the airport you originally departed from.
COMPENSATION
If the flight was cancelled with less than two weeks’ notice (as in most of the recent cancellations) you will be entitled to compensation, unless you asked for a replacement flight and your delay turns out to be less than two hours.
MY FLIGHT WAS DELAYED
If your flight delay falls into one of these categories:
you will be entitled to:
■ food and drink,
■ access to phone calls and emails,
■ accommodation if you are delayed overnight, and journeys between the airport and the hotel.
WHAT IF I GET NO HELP AT THE AIRPORT?
Some airlines will provide you with vouchers at the airport for food etc. Many people have told me their airline failed to do this and simply left them to fend for themselves. Whilst this is terrible customer service, it does not break any rules.
However, you are entitled to demand that the airline reimburses you, although you will need to produce receipts to make a claim.
Airlines have to pay only for “reasonable” expenses. You will not be reimbursed for alcohol, expensive meals
or luxury hotels.
COMPENSATION
If your flight arrives three or more hours late you will be entitled to compensation. This is thanks to a law known as UK261 (if your flight departed or landed in a UK airport) or EU261 If the flight was outside of the UK but to or from an EU airport.
‘EXTRAORDINARY
CIRCUMSTANCES’
The airline does not have to pay up if a cancellation or delay was caused by “extraordinary circumstances”, which is basically an event outside its control. Such as: ■ Foreign and Commonwealth Office travel bans, drone disruptions, security threats, extreme weather, political unrest, an unruly or sick passenger, or industrial action unrelated to the airline.
But the following events do not fall within the definition of “extraordinary circumstances”:
■ Staff shortages, overbooked flights, technical problems identified during routine maintenance or a delay caused by bad weather affecting an earlier flight.
I MISSED MY FLIGHT DUE TO LONG SECURITY QUEUES AT THE AIRPORT
Lots of people have complained to me about this. Joe from Crawley queued at Amsterdam airport for five hours and missed his easyjet flight to Stansted. When he got to the front, security would not let him through as his ticket was no longer valid. So he had to buy a new one and join the back of the queue again!
Unfortunately, you have no claim against the airline as security is the airport’s responsibility.
You are highly unlikely to get compensation from the airport, so the only other option is to check your travel insurance.
I MISSED MY PLANE DUE TO A LONG QUEUE AT THE CHECK-IN DESK OR BAG DROP
This is the airline’s responsibility, even if it has outsourced the service to a third party, so you are entitled to compensation.
HOW DO I MAKE A CLAIM?
You must contact the airline first. Most have an online complaint system and many stipulate in their terms of carriage that they will not entertain any claim unless the passenger personally lodges it directly with them. This means the airline will reject claims that initially come direct from a claims management company or law firm.
The airline has up to eight weeks to respond. If it fails to respond in this time or if your claim is rejected, ask if it is subscribed to an alternative dispute resolution scheme (ADR). If it is, you can lodge your claim with the ADR scheme for free (unless the airline is British Airways, in which case there is an ADR fee). The two authorised schemes are cdrl.org. uk and cedr.com.