‘Airlines and passengers failed’: Industry reacts to shake-up of flight delay compensation rules
Air passengers travelling in Europe will have to endure a longer flight delay before qualifying for compensation, if a long-awaited agreement to overhaul passenger rights legislation is approved.
After more than a decade of negotiations, European transport ministers have signed off on a revised package of air passenger protections that includes a major change to compensation thresholds.
Airline groups have criticised the proposal, arguing it does not go far enough to protect carriers from payouts for flights that are delayed but “rescuable”.
What will change under the new flight delay rules?
Under the new rules, which are still subject to final approval, short-haul travellers will only be eligible for compensation if their flight is delayed by at least four hours. This is up from the existing three hour rule. For long-haul flights, the delay must reach six hours.
In exchange, compensation levels are also being tweaked. The payout for delayed short-haul flights will rise slightly from €250 to €300.
However, compensation for long-haul delays will fall from €600 to €500.
The update is part of a wider revamp of 31 different air passenger rights, aimed at simplifying the system.
Responding to the announcement, trade body Airlines For Europe (A4E) said: “After twelve years of waiting, EU transport ministers have adopted a compromise on air passenger rights, unblocking a proposal first made by the European Commission in 2013. The text now goes to the European Parliament.
“Instead of agreeing on delay thresholds of 5 and 9 hours that could have saved up to 70% of rescuable cancelled flights, member states have diluted the Commission’s proposal and added more complexity.
“Passengers want to get to their destination. Airlines want the chance to make that happen. This reform risks failing them both.”
