CP ECTAA Two airlines cease operating in one week leaving thousands of passengers with no protection

05 février 2012

While the European Commission has been lingering for two years about initiating legislation to protect passengers against airline failure, Spanair suspended its flights on 28 January and the Hungarian airline Malev ceased operations on 3 February.

When an airline ceases operating, many passengers have no recourse against the airline to recover the money of their unused ticket or to obtain repatriation if they are stranded abroad. There is a big consumer protection gap: while a passenger is fully protected if his/her flight is part of a package travel, a passenger with a seat-only ticket is left unprotected against the airline insolvency. This discrepancy is illogical, considering that in both cases, consumers are required to pay in advance and often use the same flights.

Airline insolvencies in the last decade have affected 1.8-2.2 million people in Europe, among which the vast majority did not have any protection, with an average cost per passenger up to €800.

The serious lack of air passenger protection has been recognised by the European Parliament, which called the European Commission in November 2009 to take action to protect passengers against airline failure. The European Commission has since then been studying policy options to address the issue. It received on 20 December 2011 a parliamentary question, yet to be answered, recalling the Parliament’s call and requiring clarifications on the Commission’s calendar for action.

Said President of ECTAA: “It is time that legislative measures be taken urgently by the European Union to ensure that all air passengers benefit from similar protection in case of airline failure and to ensure a level playing field between airlines and package travel organisers”.