Changes from plenary report to plenary report

Added“No show” policies and denied boarding

RemovedRecital 19 b (new): (19 b) In order to assist passengers in the case of flight disruptions or delayed, damaged or lost baggage, air carriers should set up contact points at airports where their personnel or third parties commissioned by them should provide passengers with the necessary information regarding their rights, including complaint procedures, and assist them to take immediate action.

AddedThe Regulation introduces a partial ban on “no show” policies, by which a passenger who did not use an outbound ticket would be denied boarding when attempting to use the inbound leg of the same ticket. This is now forbidden, and no fee can be charged.

RemovedCouncil position

AddedMultiple compensation in case of multiple disruptions

RemovedRecital 19 c (new): (19 c) Given the short deadlines for the submission of complaints for delayed, damaged or lost baggage, a special baggage claim service should be set up at all airports where passengers have the possibility to submit a complaint upon arrival. For this purpose, air carriers should provide a complaint form in all official languages of the Union to passengers. This could also take the form of the common Property Irregularity Report (PIR). In order to ensure uniform conditions for the implementation of this Regulation, implementing powers should be conferred on the Commission to lay down the form of the standardised claim form through implementing acts.

AddedParliament ensured that a passenger is entitled to compensation for multiple disruptions if they experience both cancellation and delay.

RemovedCouncil position

AddedClear rules on vouchers

RemovedRecital 20: (20) The objective of Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 is to strengthen the rights of consumers by ensuring a high level of protection for air passengers within the internal market, in line with Article 38 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights. In joined Cases C-402/07 (Christopher Sturgeon, Gabriel Sturgeon and Alana Sturgeon v Condor Flugdienst GmbH) and C-432/07 (Stefan Böck and Cornelia Lepuschitz v Air France SA)14 (“judgment in Joined cases C-402/07 and C-432/07’), the Court of Justice reflected this objective by recognizing that passengers experiencing flight delays of three hours or more suffer damage in the form of irreversible loss of time that must be compensated promptly and in a standardized manner. Relying on the principle of equal treatment, the Court confirmed that such long delays cause harm comparable to cancellations and that a difference in treatment could not be objectively justified. Specifically, the Court considered that, when the delay in arrival of a flight is equal to, or in excess of, three hours, the passengers concerned are entitled to compensation, like passengers whose original flight has been cancelled and to whom an air carrier is not able to offer re-routing in accordance with the conditions laid down in Article 5(1)(c)(iii) of the regulation, that is, on a flight which departs no more than one hour before the scheduled time of departure and reaches their final destination less than two hours after the scheduled time of arrival. / In line with the…

AddedClear rules on vouchers are introduced. Parliament guaranteed that they will be voluntary, that they could be more than the amount of the reimbursement or compensation due, and that, after they expire, all remaining amounts are refunded to the passenger’s bank account.

RemovedCouncil position

AddedRight to bring a musical instrument

RemovedRecital 21: deleted

AddedPassengers are allowed to bring their musical instruments with them on a flight, including on a seat where needed. They will also have a right to take other additional hand baggage.

RemovedCouncil position

AddedTransportation to the right airport if diverted and compensation in case of delay

RemovedRecital 22: deleted

AddedIf a plane lands at a different airport than planned, airlines are required to provide a transfer to the original airport of arrival and if passengers arrive more than three hours late at the original airport, they are entitled to compensation.

RemovedCouncil position

AddedCodification

RemovedRecital 23: (23) The standardised compensation in Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 serves to compensate for a loss of time which is common to all passengers. It is therefore appropriate to define compensation levels according to the distance of the flight disrupted and the delay at arrival.

AddedMany passenger rights established through the case law of the Court of Justice of the European Union since the original 2004 Regulation have now be codified in the Regulation and therefore are protected for the future. Parliament ensured that there was no step back on passenger rights.

RemovedCouncil position

AddedConclusion

RemovedRecital 24: deleted

AddedThe final text can be regarded as a very satisfactory and well-balanced compromise as it manages to secure the rights of passengers while at the same time providing clarity and being fair to air carriers.

RemovedCouncil position

AddedParliament’s delegation to the Conciliation Committee therefore recommends that the joint text be approved at third reading.

RemovedRecital 24 a (new): (24 a) The Flight Emissions Label established pursuant to Article 14 of Regulation (EU) 2023/2405 of the European Parliament and the Council1a is at the disposal of the service providers should they want to display, in an easily accessible format on their websites and on tickets, accurate and objective information regarding the environmental impact of their travel in a comparable way. / 1a Regulation (EU) 2023/2405 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 October 2023 on ensuring a level playing field for sustainable air transport (ReFuelEU Aviation) (OJ L, 2023/2405, 31.10.2023, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2023/2405/oj).

RemovedCouncil position

RemovedRecital 25: (25) To ensure legal certainty, Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 should explicitly confirm that the changing of flight schedules has a similar impact on passengers to cancellations, delays or denied boarding and should therefore give rise to the same rights.

RemovedCouncil position

RemovedRecital 26: (26) Passengers who miss a connecting flight which is part of a journey as a result of a disruption, a change of schedule or a delay on a previous flight should be properly assisted while waiting for rerouting. In such cases, in accordance with the principle of equal treatment and with the judgement of the Court of Justice in Case C-11/11 (Air France v. Folkerts)1a, passengers should be entitled to compensation upon reaching the final destination of their alternative flight or transportation, on a similar basis to passengers experiencing disruptions on direct flights in light of the delay upon reaching the final destination of their journey. / 1a Judgment of the Court (Grand Chamber), 26 February 2013, Air France v Heinz-Gerke Folkerts and Luz-Tereza Folkerts, Case C-11/11, ECLI:EU:C:2013:106.

RemovedCouncil position

RemovedRecital 29: (29) Where a passenger has opted for rerouting at the earliest opportunity, the air carrier often makes the rerouting conditional upon the availability of seats on its own services, thereby denying its passengers the option of being rerouted more quickly by alternative services. Therefore, the carrier should also propose other options for rerouting, including to an alternative airport, by a different route, on another carrier’s services or on other transport modes where this can speed up rerouting. Alternative rerouting should be dependent upon the availability of seats. That rerouting should be, subject to certain conditions, at the air carrier’s expenses and provided under comparable transport conditions.

RemovedCouncil position

RemovedRecital 31: (31) Whether transport conditions are comparable could depend on a number of factors and on the particular circumstances. Where possible and where it does not entail further delay, passengers should not be downgraded to transport services of a lower class compared with the one on the reservation. Rerouting should be offered at no additional cost to the passenger, even if passengers are rerouted with another air carrier or on a different transport mode or in a higher class or at a higher fare than the one paid for the original service. Reasonable efforts should be made to avoid additional connections. Persons with disabilities or persons with reduced mobility should not be subject to any additional connecting flight when rerouted, unless otherwise agreed by the passenger. The total travel time should be as close as reasonably possible to the scheduled travel time of the original flight, taking into account the options available at the airport where the disruption occurred, in the same class of transport or a higher one if necessary. If several flights are available with comparable timings, passengers having the right to rerouting should accept the offer of rerouting made by the air carrier, including on those air carriers cooperating with the operating air carrier. If the operating air carrier provides the passenger with rerouting under comparable transport conditions the passenger should accept such rerouting. If the operating air carrier provides the passenger with rerouting…

RemovedCouncil position

RemovedRecital 31 a (new): (31 a) Where a passenger informed the operating air carrier of his or her choice to continue his or her journey, and if the operating air carrier has not offered within three hours a rerouting, the passenger should have the right to arrange his or her own rerouting under comparable transport conditions in order to reach his or her final destination without further delay. However, the passenger should remain entitled to rerouting by the operating air carrier until the passenger has informed the operating air carrier of his or her decision, to arrange his or her own rerouting. When arranging their own rerouting, the passengers should limit the expenses to those that are necessary, reasonable and appropriate.

RemovedCouncil position

RemovedRecital 31 b (new): (31 b) Assistance could be limited or declined if its provision would itself cause further delay to passengers awaiting a delayed flight or the rerouting. If a flight is delayed late in the evening but can be expected to depart within a short period of time and if dispatching passengers to hotels and bringing them back to the airport in the middle of the night could lead to a much longer delay, the air carrier should be allowed to decline to provide hotel accommodation and corresponding transfers. Similarly, if an air carrier is about to provide food and drinks but is informed that the flight is ready for boarding, it should be allowed to decline to provide this assistance. Apart from these cases, this limitation should be applied only in very exceptional cases, as every effort should be made to reduce the inconvenience suffered by passengers.

RemovedCouncil position

RemovedRecital 32: (32) Air carriers should offer assistance to passengers from the scheduled time of departure until the departure of their flight. Air carriers currently face unlimited liability for the accommodation of their passengers in the case where the extraordinary circumstances persist for a long period of time. An air carrier should therefore be able to limit the provision of care as regards the duration of accommodation and, in cases where passengers arrange the accommodation themselves, as regards costs and care to three nights. Moreover, contingency planning and speedy rerouting should lessen the risk of passengers being stranded for long periods.

RemovedCouncil position

RemovedRecital 33: (33) Passengers with specific needs such as persons with disabilities, persons with reduced mobility, unaccompanied children, infants, pregnant women and persons in need of specific medical assistance such as people with severe diabetes or epilepsy, may require specific attention by the operating air carrier. In particular, it may be more difficult to arrange accommodation when flight disruptions occur. Therefore, any limitations on the right to be provided with accommodation in cases of extraordinary circumstances should on no account apply to these categories of passenger.

RemovedCouncil position

RemovedRecital 33 a (new): (33 a) The service providers should ensure that persons with disabilities and persons with reduced mobility have the right, at all times, to use safety-approved respiratory devices on aircraft, free of charge. The Commission should draw up a list of approved medical oxygen equipment in cooperation with the industry and organisations representing persons with disabilities and persons with reduces mobility, taking due account of safety requirements.

RemovedCouncil position

RemovedRecital 34: (34) Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 also applies to passengers who have booked their air transport as part of a package travel. This amending Regulation aims to further improve the coherence between Directive (EU) 2015/2302 of the European Parliament and of the Council16 and Regulation (EC) No 261/2004. In that regard, passengers should be able to choose under which of those two legal acts they introduce their claims and, where appropriate, make claims under both legal acts. A passenger who has booked air transport as part of a package should be able to make claims under both legal acts where, for example, the passenger received a compensation from the air carrier for a delayed flight, but is entitled to a price reduction or compensation to be granted by the organiser for specific services, such as a hotel night, meals, an excursion or other events, missed as a consequence of the delayed flight. However, passengers should not be allowed to cumulate rights insofar as the relevant compensation or price reduction granted under both acts safeguards the same interest or have the same objective. If passengers introduce their claim with the air carrier, the air carrier should pay the full amount of the compensation due under Regulation (EC) No 261/2004. If passengers make a claim under Directive (EU) 2015/2302, the compensation paid by the air carrier should be deducted from payments due under Directive (EU) 2015/2302 insofar as the underlying rights safeguard the same interest or have…

RemovedCouncil position

RemovedRecital 36: deleted / (deleted)

RemovedCouncil position

RemovedRecital 37: (37) Regulation (EC) No 2111/2005 of the European Parliament and of the Council18 requires the air carriage contractor to inform the passenger of the identity of the operating air carrier and Council Directive 93/13/EEC19 requires the seller or supplier to provide information to the consumer on the terms and conditions of the contract. Passengers should be informed in more detail about their rights in cases of flight disruption, and should also be adequately informed about the cause of the disruption itself, as soon as the information becomes available. That information should also be provided by the air carrier where the passenger has acquired the ticket through an intermediary established in the Union. That information should, at a minimum, be provided by the air carrier or the intermediary in an accessible format and, where appropriate, through so-called ‘push’ notifications from mobile applications or by other digital means.

RemovedCouncil position

RemovedRecital 38: deleted

RemovedCouncil position

RemovedRecital 38 a (new): (38 a) The Special Report 15/2021 of the European Court of Auditors concluded that national enforcement bodies lack a good overview of operators’ compliance with passenger rights. The Commission in its evaluations also concluded that the overall approach of national enforcement bodies toward monitoring the implementation of the Regulations varies significantly: while some national enforcement bodies tend to be very proactive, others seem only to react to complaints which they receive. To address these shortcomings and to ensure better enforcement of passenger rights, enforcement mechanisms should be strengthened by granting national enforcement bodies independence, establishing a cross-border cooperation mechanism, enhancing their power to obtain information from carriers, and implementing a more effective penalty regime.

RemovedCouncil position

RemovedRecital 39: (39) In order to ensure better enforcement of passenger rights, Member States should ensure that consumers have access to mechanisms for an out-of-court resolution of disputes after those consumers have unsuccessfully complained or submitted a request to the air carrier or the intermediary. The participation of air carriers and intermediaries under the scope of this Regulation in alternative dispute resolution procedures should be mandatory and their decisions binding.