The KLM ground staff will strike next Wednesday. There is a high chance that flights will be canceled as a result. What can you do if you are faced with a canceled flight?
Imagine: you are at the airport and hear at the last minute that your flight to your holiday destination will not depart. The last thing you want to do is figure out what you can do and what your rights are. What you do want to know is how you can still be on the beach with a drink in your hand as soon as possible.
According to a spokesperson for the Consumers’ Association, you have three options: request a refund for your ticket, opt for the next available, comparable flight to your final destination, or a comparable flight on a day of your choice. Whether you have a chance depends on the reason your flight was canceled.
The most important factor determining compensation is whether the airline had to cancel due to force majeure or not. Force majeure includes bad weather conditions such as (snow) storms, strikes by airport personnel, and poor visibility due to ash clouds after a volcanic eruption. “But also, for example, a bird flying into the engine,” says Paul Vaneker of EUclaim.
Applications are often wrongly rejected
Vaneker helps passengers with compensation claims or getting a refund. He explains that there are three assessment moments that determine whether you are eligible or not:
If there is no force majeure, you can skip the other two questions and you are entitled to compensation. But even if there is force majeure and the next two points can also be answered with ‘no’, you should get your money back, says Vaneker. That amount can be up to 600 euros per person.
That still goes wrong regularly, Vaneker sees. Companies still reject applications too often on incorrect grounds. They benefit from the fact that most people often do not get further than the question of whether there is force majeure or not.
You can’t do much about a bird
While you can’t do much about a bird in the engine, you do have control over how you act afterwards. “The airline must do everything to arrange a replacement flight as soon as possible,” says Vaneker. “Then that bird itself may be an extraordinary circumstance, but if that is not handled well afterwards, you are still eligible for compensation.”
Because if a storm, strike, global outage or other extraordinary circumstance throws your holiday plans into disarray, the airline is not immediately relieved of its obligation to get you to your destination. “If the next replacement flight according to the airline only departs after, for example, 24 hours, then that is very unlikely.”
Vaneker understands that not everyone always feels like starting the discussion, you have other things on your mind. But you do have a chance. If the airline continues to be difficult, he advises hiring a specialist or consulting your legal assistance insurance. “After all, you pay a premium for that every month.”
Pay attention to where you book your tickets
The spokesperson for the Consumers’ Association still advises booking directly with the airline, instead of with a flight ticket website. You have the same rights there, only in practice it often does not go so smoothly. Among other things because a flight ticket site is only an intermediary, which does not make the process easier. The procedure can also be made unnecessarily complicated and extra mediation costs are sometimes charged.
So pay attention to where you book your tickets and don’t forget to request a cost reimbursement if something goes wrong. “For the overnight stay that you are forced to make and the costs for food and drinks,” says Vaneker. “It must be necessary costs. So no oysters and champagne, but rather a hamburger.” And it is up to you to prove what you have spent, he adds. “So take photos of all your receipts.”
Lost luggage? Don’t let it ruin your vacation
“It happens regularly,” says Vaneker. “Don’t sit and wait until your suitcase is found again. You have the right to purchase the necessary things that you need in the meantime.” That is at least a toothbrush, some clothes and for example a swimsuit. And suppose you are making this trip because you have been invited to a party, then it is also allowed to purchase a new outfit. You only have to be able to prove this.