Airlines react to double whammy court decision
Airlines have warned that fares will ultimately rise following two landmark rulings over delay compensation last week.
They say they are surprised and disappointed by the Supreme Court’s decision, announced on Friday, to block appeals by Thomson and Jet2 in cases relating to whether they were liable to pay compensation following travel delays.
Nathan Stower, chief executive of the British Air Transport Association representing UK airlines, said although airlines support the ‘principle of passenger protection’, and ‘always meet their obligations’, the rules should be ‘clear, affordable and proportionate for the sake of passengers and airlines’.
"The current system fails those tests and this decision will further increase costs which ultimately are borne by all passengers," he said.
"Vital reform of the EU regulation has recently stalled in Brussels due to disagreements between the Spanish and UK governments over Gibraltar. These differences must now be urgently resolved to allow the necessary reforms to proceed."
Individual airlines also expressed their disappointment.
A spokesman for Monarch said the current system was not sustainable.
"The current application of Regulation EU261 has been extended beyond its original scope and does not offer a sustainable model for airlines," he said.
"Ultimately, the customer will end up bearing additional costs through increased fares across the industry. We would encourage the EU to revisit and reform the Regulation to reflect the true nature of operating a European airline."
Andrew Haines, chief executive of the Civil Aviation Authority, said it would be updating its advice to airline passengers.
"We acknowledge airlines’ concerns about the proportionality of the flight delay regulations and recognise that airfares may increase as a result," he said.
"However, the court’s decisions in these cases bring legal clarity to this issue and we now expect airlines to abide by them when considering claims."
Bev
Editor in chief Bev Fearis has been a travel journalist for 25 years. She started her career at Travel Weekly, where she became deputy news editor, before joining Business Traveller as deputy editor and launching the magazine’s website. She has also written travel features, news and expert comment for the Guardian, Observer, Times, Telegraph, Boundless and other consumer titles and was named one of the top 50 UK travel journalists by the Press Gazette.
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