The European Parliament’s Transport Committee approves stricter rules for airlines. Compensation of 300 euros starts after 3 hours of waiting, compensation also for non-EU flights. Strict on exceptions and obligation to inform passengers
Flight three hours late? Minimum refund of 300 euros. It is one of the new rules, to protect travellers, arriving from Brussels. After months of discussions, the European Parliament’s Transport Committee rejected the softer line and chose to strengthen citizens’ defense by extending rights to flights to overseas territories and reducing the waiting thresholds that trigger compensation. Now other steps are needed between Parliament, the Commission and the European Council, but the signal is clear: Brussels wants greater fairness and transparency in relations between airlines and passengers.
Refunds after 3 hours of flight delays: how it works and who is entitled to it
At the center of everything is the revision of regulation 261 of 2004, the text that establishes the duties of air carriers in the event of delays, cancellations and other disruptions. The main news that emerged from Brussels concerns the time threshold. 3 hours of flight delay, compared to 5 hours, will be enough to trigger the refund. The figure remains 300 euros, as established this summer, therefore an increase compared to the 250 euros now foreseen by the regulation. New, non-EU flights are also involved, within 3,500 km, and, for the first time, the overseas territories of the member states. This means that a delayed flight to Guadeloupe or Martinique will be treated the same as one to Madrid or Berlin. The new rules also affect long-haul flights. For routes between 3,500 and 6 thousand kilometres, the compensation will be triggered after 5 hours of delay (no longer after 9), while for flights over 6 thousand kilometres, it even goes from 12 to 5 hours. Easier compensation for passengers, therefore, also on intercontinental routes.
In the event of cancellation or denied boarding, the right to reimbursement remains automatic and immediate. Furthermore, passengers will be able to submit the compensation request within one year of the interruption of the trip, with the possibility of receiving a pre-filled form within 48 hours from the airline, even in digital format.
In which cases airlines do not pay the refund and what changes
There remain some exceptional situations in which companies are not required to pay any financial compensation. These are cases in which the delay or cancellation does not depend on the will or management of the carrier. Which? Extreme weather conditions, natural disasters, political instability or war, closure of airspace for safety reasons or external strikes that do not directly involve company personnel. But be careful: internal strikes, i.e. those involving pilots, flight attendants or company staff, are no longer considered “exceptional circumstances”. In these cases, therefore, the company will have to compensate the passengers.
But, despite the cases in which reimbursement is not mandatory, companies will have to document and not just declare the so-called “exceptional circumstances” that exempt them from reimbursements. Furthermore, passengers will have the right to receive detailed information on these reasons, under penalty of sanctions for companies that do not comply with the communication obligation.
News on “tarmac delay” to free hand luggage for passengers
Another novelty concerns the so-called “tarmac delay”that is, the long wait on the plane already boarded but stopped on the runway. In these cases, the maximum threshold has been lowered to 3 hours: once this limit is exceeded, the company will have to return passengers to the gate to allow disembarkation, unless take-off is scheduled within half an hour. Stop, therefore, the “blocking” on board without information or assistance.
Confirm the changes to the right to free hand luggage (up to 7 kg and 100 cm in overall size) and the free seats for minors next to adults that accompanies them. Additionally, extra fees for online check-in or for correcting typos on tickets are prohibited. Finally, the obligation of complete assistance in the event of a flight postponed to the following day is reiterated, with overnight stay and transfer paid by the carrier
