Hundreds of flights from airports across the country have been canceled recently due to understaffing and computer problems. Thousands of passengers have found themselves stranded, sent hundreds of miles and forced to miss special occasions as a result of the cancellations.
EasyJet and TUI are the two most notable airlines to remove flights from the service. Huge queues have been pictured at a number of UK airports after more than 200 flights were canceled due to a software glitch.
At Bristol Airport, 30 easyJet flights were canceled last week, with the airline cutting a total of 200 flights. Tui canceled its Bristol-Paphos flight on Saturday May 29, after passengers waited eight hours after the scheduled flight time.
Also read: Angry travelers call Bristol airport a ‘zoo’ amid flight chaos
Previously, staff shortages and increasing passenger numbers were the main factors causing more passengers to leave their journeys in tatters. Once news of a canceled flight has arrived, it’s understandable that the next thought process is about what compensation rights they have for the disruption.
The relevant rules only apply to regulated flights within the UK or EU. For those set for flights anywhere else in the world, there is another set of rules that apply, but you can still get your money back in addition to compensation, as BristolLive reports.
If a flight is cancelled, you have the legal right to a full refund or an alternative flight to get to your intended destination. This applies regardless of the delay between notification of the cancellation and the time your flight was due to depart, as well as the cause of the cancellation.
Additional compensation may be claimed to the extent that certain criteria apply. Any amount between £110 and £500 can be claimed.
The levels of compensation will depend on the delay of the alternative flight as well as the distance of the trip. The cheapest claim (£110) is for a journey between 0 and 1,500km, such as London to Paris, and the alternative flight departs more than two hours before and lands up to two hours after the originally scheduled flight. The most expensive claim (£500) is for journeys over 3,500km, such as London to New York, and the re-routed flight lands over four hours late.
A photo uploaded to social media on May 11 shows passengers at Bristol Airport queuing outside the gate
Even if you opt for a refund rather than being rerouted, compensation may still be claimed depending on the times of the alternative flight offered. To be eligible, the rescheduled flight must arrive later than scheduled, the flight was canceled within 14 days of travel, and the reason for the cancellation rests firmly with the airline.
Examples of airline fault include the flight being underbooked, a staff strike, or the pilot was ill and not replaced. Extraordinary circumstances, such as adverse weather conditions, political issues, and security or safety issues would release the airline from any blame, so no compensation could be claimed.
Nor can compensation be claimed if the passenger was informed of the cancellation between seven days and two weeks before the scheduled departure time and offered them rerouting which ensured that you reached your final destination within four hours after scheduled arrival. time. If you were notified less than seven days before the flight and the proposed re-routing would reach the final destination less than two hours after the scheduled time of arrival, you would also not be entitled to compensation.
Being kicked off a flight due to overbooking will entitle you to compensation, again depending on the distance of the flight. If you are downgraded, even if you will not get a full refund of your ticket, you are entitled to compensation – 30% of the cost of your ticket for short-haul flights, 50% for medium-haul flights and 75 % for long-haul.
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Source: www.somersetlive.co.uk
This notice was published: 2022-05-30 04:00:00
