EU transport ministers agree to increase air delays with right to compensation to 4 hours
The Council of the European Union has just approved an amendment to the EC 261 regulation on passenger rights, which will allow airlines to delay flights by up to 4 or even 6 hours without the obligation to compensate, compared to the current 3-hour threshold. This change means that 60% fewer passengers affected by delays will be eligible for compensation.
The only justification offered for this serious setback to consumer rights is that it will help avoid cancellations. According to complaints platform Air Help, “this is an absurd justification, as airlines must also pay compensation for cancellations, in addition to incurring additional costs related to passenger care, passenger repositioning and operational costs to reposition their aircraft”.
In addition, instead of adjusting compensation in line with inflation over the past 20 years since the regulation was introduced, the EU Council has opted to reduce the amounts for medium- and long-haul flights.
The maximum compensation available to passengers is now 500&euro, and flights of less than 3,500 km are limited to 300&euro. This is a significant reduction compared to the current amounts of 250€, 400€ and 600€ per passenger.
The agreement also includes the extension of the concept of “extraordinary circumstances”: airlines will have new justifications to avoid compensation, such as crew illnesses, technical failures or external strikes. All these situations could more easily be qualified as “extraordinary”.
Spain, Portugal, Germany and Slovenia were the countries that opposed the amendment of EC Regulation 261/2004.
PASSENGER RIGHTS
AirHelp claims “that this change in regulation severely undermines rights and increases confusion among travelers throughout the European Union. This reinstatement of passengers' right to be compensated for disruptions could be the biggest setback in the history of consumer protection in the EU”.
EC 261 has long been a global benchmark in passenger protection, guaranteeing fair compensation for delays, cancellations and denied boarding caused by airlines. By weakening this regulation, “the EU is deliberately tipping the balance even further in favor of airlines, leaving millions of passengers with less protection and limited options to complain,”, Air Help added.
For its part, Flightright, charges that “the Passenger Rights Regulation is now in intensive care; if Parliament does not stop it, there will be almost nothing left of él”.