Passenger Rights Day 2024
30 September 2024
On September 23, 2024, the 2nd Passenger Rights Day took place at the University of Vienna, organized by the Institute for European, International, and Comparative Law. The program was divided into three panels: 1) Recent Developments in Jurisprudence, 2) Forms of Cooperation in Aviation and Associated Challenges, and 3) The Passenger Rights Regulation in the Context of Package Travel Law. Experts from the German-speaking region (mainly attorneys) delivered industry-specific presentations with numerous practical examples, followed by discussion sessions.
The topics included the EU Passenger Rights Regulation, the principle of equal treatment, the role of the European Court of Justice, consumer protection, extraordinary circumstances, compensation, and alternate services, multimodal travel, Online Travel Agencies (OTAs), and, more broadly, liability claims and regulations.
Most of the presentations and discussions focused on the EU Passenger Rights Regulation (No. 261/2004), which mainly governs passenger rights in cases of flight delays (starting from 3 hours) and flight cancellations.
Panel 1 discussed recent developments in jurisprudence. The European Court of Justice aims to ensure a high level of protection for air passengers. However, interpretation and application can vary in individual cases, leading to different and constantly evolving rulings on both national and international levels. Regarding the principle of equal treatment, this particularly applies to passengers of canceled flights versus those of delayed flights. In terms of delays (from 3 hours onward), the time stamp for delay claims is established as follows: after landing, the “block-on” occurs when the aircraft reaches its designated position at the airport. The delay is officially marked when the aircraft door opens, providing passengers with a means of disembarking via a staircase or passenger bridge.
Extraordinary circumstances (especially weather conditions) leading to delays or cancellations are now clearly defined. This includes, among other things, the occurrence of cumulonimbus clouds. Adverse weather conditions are only considered extraordinary if they deviate from the usual, expected operations of air travel and are severe enough to halt the operations of one or more airlines. Additionally, air traffic control orders and the captain’s nautical authority can play a significant role in determining the causes of cancellations or delays. This refers to decisions made by the pilot before, during, or after the flight, which are final and irreversible.
The limits of alternative transportation, especially in the case of cancellations, were also a focal point. Distinctions were made in terms of location, time, and subject matter. There still remains no cooperation between IATA carriers (344 airlines worldwide) and low-cost carriers concerning the provision of replacement flights. However, the distinction between IATA airlines and low-cost carriers seems less clear-cut in practice than presented, as the current IATA member list includes well-known European low-cost airlines such as Volotea and Vueling.
Panel 2 delved into the forms of cooperation in aviation and the challenges that come with them, examining interlining, blocked space, code-sharing, leasing, and alliances. I cannot, however, agree with the predicted decline of wet leasing contracts. Recent wet leasing contracts of the Lufthansa Group with Air Baltic, direct wet leasing of Swedish BRA aircraft by Austrian Airlines, and the fact that one-third of Swiss Air Int.'s European flights are operated by wet leasing partners, provide clear counterarguments.
Additionally, initial ideas and drafts for a new EU Passenger Rights Regulation were presented. This regulation would cover multimodal travel, i.e., using different modes of transport to reach a destination, where a single contract governs the entire journey. This is in contrast to intermodal travel, where multiple modes of transport are used, but each segment is governed by its own contract.
Regarding Online Travel Agencies (OTAs), such as kiwi.com or Opodo, special attention was drawn to the virtual credit cards OTAs use as a payment method with their suppliers (airlines), which can lead to complications regarding refunds. Furthermore, some OTAs do not have any direct contractual relationship with their alleged suppliers and simply make bookings on behalf of passengers.
Panel 3 focused on the Passenger Rights Regulation in the context of package travel law. This included unavoidable and extraordinary circumstances in package travel law, as well as compensation payments and advantage compensation in package tours.
In my opinion, attention should be drawn to the lack of valorization (inflation adjustment or otherwise) since the regulation came into effect. The compensation levels of EUR 250, EUR 400, and EUR 600, based on the affected flight distance, remain unchanged. The cumulative EU inflation rate from 2005 to 2024 was about +52%. This means that the compensation amounts have lost 52% of their value and should now actually be EUR 380, EUR 610, and EUR 915, respectively.
The strong interest from the audience and the rising number of cases underscore the importance of this topic in the aviation and travel industries. Personally, I would have appreciated speakers from airlines, airports, or package tour operators at this conference, to provide perspectives beyond the legal viewpoint. A big thank you goes to the organizers, especially Mag. Sophie Haiden, who made this high-level event accessible free of charge.