Ombudsman announced for air passengers
Passengers involved in disputes with airlines will soon be able to escalate their case to an independent ombudsman.
The Civil Aviation Authority today confirmed it will reform the way air travel complaints are handled.
Following a recent CAA consultation, the regulator plans to end its role as a complaint handler, handing over responsibility for air passenger disputes to ‘alternative dispute resolution’ (ADR) schemes, such as the type of ombudsman-style bodies that are well established in other industries.
The CAA said hailed the move as ‘a major step forward for consumers’, which would pave the way for them to get ‘quick, fair and binding solutions’ to their disputes with airlines on issues such as flight delay compensation.
Unlike under the present system, whereby airlines can choose to ignore a CAA ruling in favour of the customer, the findings on the ombudsman will be binding.
Iain Osborne, CAA group director of regulatory policy ,said: "We are moving forward with these proposals to make sure consumers get the very best level of support when in dispute with an airline.
"It can’t be right that many air passengers have to go to court to get a concrete resolution to their complaint – especially when they can easily go to an independent ombudsman with an unresolved telecoms, energy or financial services problem.
"We are not prepared to let that situation continue and moving towards an ombudsman-style approach for aviation will make sure air passengers benefit from the quick, fair and certain approach to dispute resolution that has long been the norm in other major consumer markets."
The proposals follow the European Directive on ADR, which requires schemes to be available to help settle any dispute that cannot be resolved though a business’s own complaint handling procedure.
The CAA will be responsible for approving all ADR schemes in the sector and for ensuring that any organisations delivering them are independent and impartial, and that passengers have access to a simple, efficient and effective process at low or no upfront cost.
The CAA said it had already received strong industry interest in this approach and will now be working towards achieving full participation in ADR, with airlines making contractual commitments to join schemes.
"However, the CAA is prepared to seek future legislative changes to make ADR compulsory if necessary," it said.
Once the schemes are up and running airlines will be required to inform passengers about their participation. The CAA is now welcoming applications from organisations interested in setting up ADR schemes ahead of implementation of the ADR Directive in July 2015.
The CAA will continue to handle complaints about disability and mobility issues for any airlines that are not part of an ADR scheme.
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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