MegaSack DRAW - This year's winner is user - rgwb
We will be in touch
We've had our flight to America to see family members cancelled and then rescheduled for a couple of days' time. Result, five wasted hours this morning (including two stood in a queue, at the end of which we were basically told to sod off home), extra airport parking charges, potentially useless tickets for an event on NYE and yet more expense for keeping the cat on lockdown for an extra couple of days. We're not massively rich, and it stings a bit to be out of pocket by a sum that could be as much as a hundred quid.
Has anyone had any experience of claiming compensation from airlines? Do they pay up with nary a murmur, or do you generally have a fight on your hands?
If it's down to the weather it's out of their control isn't it? So I'm not sure you have much of a right to compensation under EU civil avaiation regulation. Thet's what insurance is there for.
I would have thought their responsibility will be for no more than a replacement flight or refund.
probably not. Its hardly the airlines fault that your flight is delayed any more than your own - if they had overbooked the flight it'd be a different story
get onto your travel insurance and claim from there
Travel insurance. That's what it's for. We have a yearly policy that includes MTBing etc, so even if it's just a weekend away in the UK and something goes wrong, we can claim (I think...)
Most annual policies cover you for any overnight stay away from your main home and are usually very good value if you plan on taking more than one trip away in a year. I always get one and make sure I have winter sports cover 🙂
Travel insurance typically has sixty quid excess, once you deduct that the sort of losses we've incurred really start to look petty (if they didn't already 😉 ).
I'd say pretty much what PeterPoddy and Mastiles say.
They won't cover things out of their remit - e.g. events you've missed, extra car hire etc. etc.
You'd normally get a hotel room if a flight goes tech.*
And all that probably assumes it's the airlines 'fault' per se and not due to bad weather/war/wrong type of leaves etc.
Travel insurance would cover you for the delays and costs.
*Assuming a reputable airline. If it's low cost (probably not with being Atlantic flights) they'd just wave as they booted you out of the terminal into the snow.
[url= http://www.auc.org.uk/default.aspx?catid=306&pagetype=90&pageid=4426 ]"Denied Boarding Compensation"[/url] are the magic words you're looking for. Tell the airline you want it - it's not much but is a mandatory thing they have to pay, but of course they won't volunteer it.
"Denied Boarding Compensation" are the magic words you're looking for. Tell the airline you want it - it's not much but is a mandatory thing they have to pay, but of course they won't volunteer it.
I don't think so, I reckon this falls under 'extraordinary circumstances' in which case the airline doesn't have to pay compensation.
I reckon you'll get naff all if you try, or as mentioned above it will be so pitiful once you have paid the excess that it's not worth your time in pursuing it.
Me and the other half were delayed 24hrs flying out on holiday one yr and delayed over 12hrs on the way back.
When we got back, we landed in Gatwick not Stansted as we were scheduled too and so had to get a coach back to Stansted (didn't land until about 3 in the morning) and on top of that, the baggage monkeys broke my suitcase.
I thought I had taken out a fairly good level of travel insurance, but after the excess it worked out to about £20 each compensation. Not worth the time spent getting it sorted.
quick thought on this..
Easyjet just cancelled the misses' flight from Gatwick to Lyon. The next they can offer is 26th - 4 days away. But, thing is, neither Lyon nor Gatwick are facing weather problems, nor have they all day (easyjet flew a return flight there thismorning). So its clearly either about logistics, or they're cancelling some extra flights because it's easy\cheap to
so.. at what point does the compensation clause of 'unforseeable events' go out the window
incidentally, flight was only cancelled an hour after supposed departure, an additional kick in the teeth as it makes it that much harder to find another suitable flight.
I see what you're saying 5lab but presumably their planes are stuck in other airports (ie Milan, Stansted) because of the weather.
Today's afternoon flight from Madrid to Edinburgh was cancelled although both airports were ok. I don't hold out much hope of them sorting it out in time for tomorrow's flight which Im supposed to be on.
Agreed, however, all flights cancelled to\from gatwick today were both legs (ie, milan to gatwick and gatwick to milan). With this the case, surely any planes that should have been in Gatwick already were (if you see what I mean)??
Apparently they've said they'll pay for any flights with other airlines, which makes me suspicious that either somethings going on,or they're telling porkies. Mrs. 5lab is trying to get a bunch of french people, who don't speak english, onto a train to Dover (bless) so they can cross there. I don't envy any of them..
5lab - theyve prob not got enough pilots.
bit of an update on this - sleasyjet paid up, in full, for all costs my gf incurred (booking a last minute flight, getting back from gatwick, getting to heathrow, and getting from geneva to lyon at the other end), without grumbling the other day. Very good of them
5lab - easyJet are short on pilots at the moment.
Small-print is not your friend in this case.
Insurance might be...
ex-pat - did you read the thread?!
same here
cancelled flight before Xmas - flight refunded and alternative travel arrangements paid for without a fuss, albeit it took them 6 weeks to pay up.
Quite impressed really!