[EU_Flyer]

Extraordinary circumstances are generally meant to cover events which are beyond the airline’s control. An air traffic controller’s strike would fall under this description. But a strike by the airline’s own staff wouldn’t. If BA can’t effectively manage their internal staff relations – that’s not their customer’s fault.

I’d respond to BA on this basis. See how far you can run it without using a Claims agency as they take a large cut from experience.

[travelworld]

Alex F- I’ve done that, but that brought the “don’t contact us again” response. So I’ve used the County Court Money Claim on Line system, which is very simple to utilise if you want to litigate yourself. if BA defend my claim, there will be a short hearing before a District Judge which I will do myself. I am a solicitor, so it’s not a problem.

[travelworld]

Well, to update you my claim for 600 Euro was issued last week, BA have filed the appropriate notice at court saying that they intend to defend it, and have instructed international law firm Norton Rose Fulbright to defend it. Indeed, the hourly charge out rate of the solicitor dealing with it is likely to be about the same as the value of my claim……

[FDOS_UK]

[quote quote=801737]Well, to update you my claim for 600 Euro was issued last week, BA have filed the appropriate notice at court saying that they intend to defend it, and have instructed international law firm Norton Rose Fulbright to defend it. Indeed, the hourly charge out rate of the solicitor dealing with it is likely to be about the same as the value of my claim……

[/quote]

Will be interesting to see if they offer to settle before the hearing, on condition of agreeing to an NDA.

Personally, I would tell them to stuff the NDA, as I did with another airline in the past – they were shocked and insisted it was standard practice:-) Eventually they ‘got’ my point that my claim did not include signing an NDA and that an offer including one was not the same as settling my claim. I got my money and they withdrew the NDA.

[Tom Otley]

So if you didn’t sign the NDA… who was it?

[FDOS_UK]

Air Malta …… and it was to refund a paid for seat assignment that went wrong 🙂 Hardly something that required an NDA.

[travelworld]

NDA= non disclosure agreement. Basically, we will pay you if you don’t tell anyone we have. Ironically, I might have signed one if I hadn’t issued proceedings and gone public on this forum but it will be hard to sign one now.

[travelworld2]

Well, we got as far as the provision of witness statements before BA’s lawyers asked me to accept a settlement whereby they paid me….everything. Since it was a complete capitulation I couldn’t really object. So the issue never went to trial.

[PhilipHart]

Good on you @travelworld2.

Although I would have been seriously tempted to up my demand on the basis that dealing with the matter incurred an opportunity cost!

[FDOS_UK]

[quote quote=828521]Well, we got as far as the provision of witness statements before BA’s lawyers asked me to accept a settlement whereby they paid me….everything. Since it was a complete capitulation I couldn’t really object. So the issue never went to trial.

[/quote]

Well done – have you promoted yourself to Travelworld2 as a result? 🙂

[travelworld2]

FDOS- Thank you. I have had s split personality ever since the Forum’s last software upgrade…. 🙂

[SwissExPat]

Older thread revisited due to subhect matter being relevant to my latest booking.

I booked with BA to fly from HKG to ZRH (one way booking using Avios plus some small cash) in F during November 2018. This flight will be operated by CX. (direct)

I received an email today saying this CX flight is now cancelled and I am re-booked on the same CX flight 1 day later.

1. I believe that I will not get the E261 compensation (€600) because they have given me more than 14 days notice?
2. I believe I will be able to claim the cost of a Hotel for the extra night I will be in HKG plus 1 day of meals?
3. There is currently seat availiability in F on the LX flight doing this journey at the same time (+/- 10 minutes) as my original CX flight and I believe that e261 obliges BA to book me on this service (although I can see that they would try to avoid this)?

Thanks for any views.

[AMcWhirter]

SwissExPat – Unfortunately you wouldn’t be covered by EU261 because it’s far ahead and you are flying to EU/Switzerland with a non-EU airline.

Readers will correct me if I am wrong but it’s the operating carrier that matters and not the website the flight was booked through.

[SwissExPat]

Thanks Alex

I conceed that it seems that e261 won’t apply because CX is not an EU airline (and I am arriving back into the EU and not departing the EU).

But it seems that if it were, the only relevant time stamp is if the cancellation was notified either before or after 14 days before the flight.

If less than 14 days, then the only relevance is that the statutory fixed amount of cash would be payable in compensation.

If e261 applies then in any case the airline is obliged to provide hotel, meals and rebooking on a similar flight. As far as I can see, this requirement would apply regardless of when they cancelled the flight.

As it stands (and from some limited research) it seems that in my case, CX as absolutely no requirement to do anything for me in terms of Hotel costs or meals etc?

It would seem that there is no consumer protection when this flight is cancelled (or is there something equivalent or similar in place in HOng Kong?)

[capetonianm]

By my understanding of EU261 Alex is correct on both counts.

I am dealing with an interesting case now. Friends of mine last month were booked on a BA flight LIS-LHR. Having checked in online, they monitored the departure time and saw it getting later and later and changing from early evening to late night and then to midday the next day. They asked me to help with the EU261 claim. I asked them if they’d been given hotac etc and told their rights and they said :

“No we didn’t go to the airport because we knew it was delayed.”

As we all know, contrary to a specific instruction from the airline, and for several very valid reasons, you are supposed to get to the airport at the correct checkin time even if you know your flight is delayed. On the face of it their action would enable BA to repudiate their claim, but as they checked in online, the airline would have no way of knowing that they hadn’t gone to the airport. They did have hold baggage but again, they could say they saw the huge queue at checkin/ticket counter etc and when they found out that the flight was delayed by some 16 hours they went home with their bag. Logically, many people would have done the same.

It will be interesting to see how BA respond, as the EU261 claim is otherwise valid since it was an a/c serviceability problem.

[Author]

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