Germanwings: Bumped off flight and rebooked for flight on next day. How to make claim?

11/23/2018 6:52:13 PM

This is a standard tactic of some airlines:

They will claim that there were “extraordinary circumstances”. This is not the case. A crew member falling ill is expectable, and if they are unable to replace them that is to be blamed on their organization.

In fact German courts have already ruled in favor of the passenger in such cases (see, e.g. LG Darmstadt, 23.05.2012 – 7 S 250/11).

I wouldn’t take the vouchers and insist on the compensation. But even if you did take the vouchers I’d still file for compensation. It makes total sense to use one of the “flight rights portals” in this case.

They will most likely refuse the payment until you sue (at which point they may quickly drop the case in order to not create another precedent). Thus it’s probably more convenient to let someone handle that for a fee (which you only pay if successful).

I know that the question is open for a while, but it may be useful for others in the same situation – and you could still claim the compensation even now, if you didn’t.

8/18/2017 6:34:00 PM

They will have to pay you the standard 250 € compensation, but not for income loss or any other damages. With that delay, you could also cancel the flight, get all your money back, and fly with another airline instead, if you so choose.

Yes, according to Article 9, Paragraph 1 c) they also have to provide or pay for:

(c) transport between the airport and place of accommodation (hotel or
other).

So your taxi should be covered, though by my experience they will probably try to dodge out of it (I’ve had to sink lawyers on the airlines twice already for delayed flights).

The full regulation is here:

http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX:32004R0261&from=EN

5/14/2013 7:46:02 AM

As Gagravar already explained, a lot is covered in eu regulations. Getting what you are entitled to, can still be a daunting task. I have heard good stories about Euclaim.
They offer free advice to what you are entitled to.

5/12/2013 9:18:57 PM

Lost earnings – nope. Some travel insurance might cover that, but almost all won’t, and the airline won’t normally be liable for that sort of thing.

The airline is pretty much always liable in such cases for sorting you out with accommodation and food, which it sounds like they have. (They probably don’t have to cover your taxi if you decline the hotel, but it’s worth asking them if they will)

In addition, flights from the EU with any airline, and flights to the EU with any EU airline, are covered by EU Regulations. The magic phrase to google for is Regulation (EC) 261/2004. Not only does that cover the accommodation, food and communication stuff, it also provides for additional compensation in the event of long delays (depends on flight length when the cutoff is), cancellations and denied boarding.

If you look at the details you’ll see that an intra-EU flight of under 1500km (such as yours), when the delay isn’t due to extraordinary circumstances, you’re entitled to €250 in addition to the re-routing + food + hotel.

You should contact your airline and ask for your EC 261/2004 compensation, and they should send you a form. Very few airlines seem to pro-actively tell you you’re entitled to it, but following a recent ruling of European Court of Justice they’re all pretty good about paying it when you know to claim. If you don’t get help from the airline, you’ll need to talk to your national regulator (the CAA in the UK)

Oh, and it may also be worth asking them about re-routing you with a different carrier to get you there quicker. They are supposed to do so, but often are reluctant to if they can fly you themselves at some point as that’s cheaper, and there hasn’t yet been a court case to clarify how much of a delay is unacceptable before you can demand a re-routing with someone else.

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About me

Hello,My name is Aparna Patel,I’m a Travel Blogger and Photographer who travel the world full-time with my hubby.I like to share my travel experience.

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