2024-03-28 05:00:38
20 years ago, the European Union adopted a regulation which allows financial compensation of up to 600 euros in the event of flight delay or cancellation.
The post-Covid era is synonymous with an explosion in air travel, around the world but also in France. This increase in traffic is not without consequences. Flight delays and cancellations are now widespread in many airports, especially during holidays. Not to mention the consequences of strikes, which are numerous in the sector.
Faced with these inconveniences, protections exist but few take advantage of them. This is the conclusion of a study* carried out by Flightright, an online airline compensation platform, in partnership with Pollsroll.
20 years ago, in fact, the European Union adopted the regulation 261/2004 which allows financial compensation of up to 600 euros in the event of flight delay or cancellation.
Only one in two passengers sent a request after a delay or cancellation
However, according to this survey, 43% of French passengers do not know their rights in terms of compensation while 31% have already experienced flight delays or cancellations (4%), or both (8%).
Ultimately, after a plane problem, only one in two passengers made a request for compensation or a complaint to the airline or travel supplier.
However, European rules are generous for the consumer: “Any traveler departing from a country in the European Union who sees his flight canceled for non-extraordinary conditions, or delayed for more than three hours, has the right not only to be assisted, rerouted and reimbursed, but also compensated up to 600 euros.
If on paper, this framework is clear, in practice, companies do everything to extend deadlines and complicate procedures. Example with the reimbursement deadline set at seven days. In reality, customers have to wait much longer because the vast majority of tickets are not purchased directly from companies but through an intermediary such as agencies or online platforms.
It is the latter who are reimbursed by the companies (which rarely respect the seven-day deadline) and who then credit the customers, whenever they see fit. Delays can then reach weeks or even months in certain cases. French people are still waiting for reimbursement for their plane ticket canceled during the Covid crisis.
Bad will of the companies
According to the study, faced with these procedures, 13% of French people used a specialized platform and 6% a lawyer. Which does not guarantee the result: only 26% of applicants obtained a full refund for their ticket, 55% had to settle for a partial refund or a voucher. As for the remaining 27%, they received no compensation.
Several times highlighted, the bad will of airlines (low cost or otherwise) and service providers has therefore caused the European Commission to react, which has asked the sector to improve its practices. Commitments have been made to protect injured customers with a strong measure: a 14-day refund period regardless of the ticket purchase channel.
“Edreams, ODIGEO, Etraveli Group and Kiwi.com have committed to better inform consumers of their rights in the event of flight cancellations by airlines and to transfer ticket refunds within seven days from the date where they receive them from the airline, which means consumers should receive them within 14 days,” reads a communiqué.
Shortened repayment periods
Remember that ODIGEO includes the brands eDreams, Opodo, Go Voyages, Travellink and Liligo and Etraveli Group is the parent company of Mytrip, GotoGate, Flybillet, Flightnetwork, Supersavetravel, seat24 and Travelstart.
In addition to this deadline, agencies and platforms are committed to better informing their clients and above all to facilitating contact, which is sometimes an obstacle course. “The telephone number and email address of online travel agencies will be listed in or through the ‘contact us’ sections of their websites, so that consumers can also communicate with them by email or telephone.”
* Study conducted on a sample of 1,000 people representative of the French population aged 18 to 65 (3 categories: 18-34 years, 35-49 years, 50-65 years). Data was collected using an anonymous online questionnaire (10 questions) from February 8 to 15, 2024.
Olivier Chicheportiche Journalist BFM Business
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