With many airlines carrying thousands of passengers to numerous locations, flight delays and cancellations are never a surprise. However, problems arise when airlines avoid responsibilities and try to avoid flight delay compensation by substituting with vouchers and discounts.
But no passenger should give up on their travel plans because of a bad experience. With this in mind, Click2Refund’s expert lawyers’ team works diligently to help passengers get maximum refunds for flight cancellations and delays while saving them from mammoth paper trails and legal maze. Recently, we helped our clients file flight delay compensation and cancellation refunds and won the case on their behalf in courts. Read this blog to learn more.
Our passenger was traveling from Hamburg Airport to Lisbon, approximately two hours and thirty minutes away, and had a layover at Madrid. On the day of departure at Hamburg Airport, Iberia Airlines informed them of the delay. It stretched to around one hour and forty-five minutes and missed the connecting flight from Madrid to Lisbon. This delay made the passengers eligible to file a flight delay compensation claim with Iberia Airlines.
The EC261 gives passengers the right to compensation and assistance whenever the flight is delayed or denied entry at boarding. They can claim:
The compensation amount is determined based on two things;
In cases of missed connections or cancellations, the airline must offer either a refund of the total cost of the ticket or provide an alternative flight to reach the final destination. This alternative flight, however, should not exceed a delay of 3 hours. If that happens, the passenger will have a right to claim compensation between 250 and 600 EUR based on the flight distance.
Lastly, the airlines should pay the compensation in cash or by electronic bank transfer, travel vouchers, etc.
The client’s compensation satisfied all the items mentioned above on the checklist. So, after screening the eligibility and the clauses, the court ruled in favor of the client, asking Iberia to pay €400 since the flight distance was 2200 kms. It will also pay the entire legal interest right from the date of the first judicial hearing and any cost incurred.
In this case of flight delay compensation, the client had boarded the flight of Iberia Airlines but was significantly delayed and faced difficulties availing of the airline's services. An airline can only refuse a compensation claim when it can prove that the delay was caused by extraordinary circumstances, which means it could not have been avoided.
In addition to the flight delay compensation slab, if the delay causes a misconnection, the airline must provide an alternative flight for the missed connecting flight and take passengers to the final destination. If it's an alternative flight, the airline must ensure that it is not exceeding three hours.
The airline can reduce the compensation by 50% if the delay is between 3-4 hours (more than 3 but less than 4 hours) for flights of more than 3500 km. Passengers not only have the right to standardized monetary compensation in case of denied boarding or cancellation, but also in case of long delay (long being three hours or more).
Since our client's delay was more than three hours and the carrier had traveled more than 3500 km, we could file a claim for €1200 for 2 passengers (600 EUR per passenger). The court ruled against Iberia Airlines and directed them to pay the flight delay compensation and an additional accrued interest from the date of jurisdiction interpellation.
Our client here was traveling on the Lisbon-Santo route and had a halt in Madrid through IBERIA Airlines. The flight got critically delayed, and passengers reached their final destination three hours after the scheduled arrival time. Therefore, Click2Refund’s team decided to file a flight delay compensation.
While the non-response against flight delay complaints is not an offense, airlines must establish the reason for denying a passenger’s compensation request. Airlines will have to prove that the delay was not due to extraordinary circumstances like:
In this case, the client faced a long delay, with an extended halt in Madrid. So, the court ordered IBERIA Airlines to compensate €600 as moral damages and hassle during the journey, plus the accrued interest from the lawsuit, starting from the date of jurisdiction interpellation.
In this case, the client was traveling on the Barcelona-Lima Route, and the flight took more than three hours to reach the destination. The travel distance is projected to be more than 3500 km. In addition to this, the designated customer service of Iberia Airlines for the client’s geographical location did not respond to the flight delay complaint within the deadline. The amount claimed against the flight delay was 1200 Euros for two passengers.
While the airlines’ no-response to a complaint doesn't automatically mean they agree with it or admit fault; they still have to give reasons for the failure of compliance and lack of due diligence towards passengers. Even if they don't respond, the burden remains with the passenger filing the flight delay complaint. The judge can still decide based on the evidence presented, and the principle can be adjusted based on circumstances
Additionally, the airlines must prove that the delay was due to unavoidable circumstances and that the authorities could not have averted it and carried out a timely departure and arrival. The compensation must be paid either in cash.
The court ordered in favor of our client and asked the airlines to pay €1200 for 2 passengers for moral damages and struggles during the journey. The airlines were also entitled to pay the lawsuit and legal moratorium cost as accrued costs from the date the jurisdiction started.
Our client was traveling from the Mexico City to Lisbon with a stop in Madrid. They claimed payment of 1200 euros for 2 passengers as financial compensation for the cancellation of the boarding of the flight to Lisbon with a stop in Madrid and a second denied boarding on the replacement flight, all of this under the provisions of arts. 5 and 7 of regulation EC 261/2004.
The Airline canceled boarding on the day of departure and denied boarding on the replacement flight. They cited increased air traffic and stated it was a non-compensable incident.
According to the EC261 Regulation on air passenger rights, passengers should be able to rebook an alternative flight or receive a refund for the full cost of the ticket. Airlines must notify the cancellation within 14 days before departure, failing which makes the passenger eligible for a flight cancellation compensation of €600.
Since IBERIA Airlines failed to comply with the regulations, Click2Refund had two perfectly compensable incidents that led to the court ruling in favor of the client.
The court ruled in favor of the client, and the airline was ordered to pay €1200 as a compensation for two passengers. The airline also had to pay the accrued interest for moral damage and legal moratorium starting from the date of jurisdiction interpellation.
As we saw here because airlines are busy serving so many destinations at once, they often fail to empathize with the struggles and damages passengers face due to Iberia flight delays, cancellations, denied boardings, etc. Moreover, they force passengers to withdraw complaints by accepting trivial travel vouchers and other add-on services.
Additionally, things can take a quick turn if you are forced to sign declarations that allow them to waive all rights necessary to claim your refund. In this case, the best way is to take the matter to a professional, such as Click 2 Refund, who can file your case in the courts on your behalf in the jurisdiction countries. By doing so, you will avoid dealing with the hassles of the court by yourself and escape from getting stuck in the maze of paperwork trails, regulatory loopholes, and more.
To help you escape the trouble, Click2Refunds offers non-invasive, robust, and agile compensation support for all your delayed and canceled flights. Our lawyers, with deep expertise in claim handling, will assess your compensation reasons, help you prove your eligibility, build a solid case, compute the ideal refund, and get the money you deserve - all of this in just the blink of an eye
Our compensation process is simple and granular
Submit your flight information and claim requirements through our user-friendly website.
Our professional claim experts will fight for compensation and help you navigate the legal procedures.
We will ensure a swift resolution and transfer your compensation to you as quickly as possible.
Filing your claims for flight delay compensation or cancellation refund is often exhausting. Moreover, passengers often have to wait for days and months to get their complaints processed. Worse still, they deny boarding to alternative flights and reject compensation claims. If things are not in your favor, your claims can also get denied owing to regulatory loopholes.
With this in mind, Click2Refund brings you a comprehensive suite of services to help you leverage the EU legal network and get your refund in the shortest time possible. Our team boasts a success rate of 98%, handles all legal work at no up-front costs, and operates on a no-win, no-fee basis, giving you a risk-free service.
Want to know how much of a flight delay compensation and flight cancellation refund your airline owes you? Use our flight delay compensation calculator in just two minutes.