BA and EU 261 again

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  • travelworld
    Participant

    On 4 March, my BA flight to Jeddah was cancelled for unknown reasons. I was rebooked on the flight 24 hours later. On my return, I put in a claim for compensation under EU261. Today I received the following reply:-
    “Dear Mr
    Thanks for contacting us about your EU compensation claim. I apologise for the delay in our response.
    Your claim’s been refused because BA0133 on 04 March was cancelled because of operational circumstances outside of our control, this prevented the aircraft operating as scheduled. Under EU legislation, I’m afraid we’re not liable for a compensation payment in this situation.
    We take all reasonable measures to avoid cancelling a flight and we always consider if there are any operational options available before we make a decision. We’re very sorry the cancellation was necessary in this case.
    Thanks for following this up with us. Please feel free to contact us if we can help you any further and I hope we have the chance to welcome you on board again soon.
    Best regards

    So, that’s that, then. Or is it? A quick check of EU261/2004 sees that no reference is made to “operational circumstances outside of our control”. Instead, the only let out is “extraordinary circumstances which could not have been foreseen even if the airline took all reasonable precautions”, according to Article 5, Paragraph 3. BA have been strangely silent as to what the reason for cancellation was. So I’ve responded saying that they need to look at EU261 again. And I want my money.

    Any other experiences trying to get this sort of compensation from BA? Interested, but not surprised, that this seems to be a standard answer…


    EU_Flyer
    Participant

    With all due respect to BA, their letter is misleading. They would need to establish that the operation reason beyond their control arose out of extraordinary circumstances.

    At this point, I would demand BA provide you with a detailed explanation of what the operational reasons for the delay were (so you have it on record) and finish the letter by saying that your rights are reserved.

    Good luck!


    travelworld
    Participant

    Thank you- will keep you posted!


    MartynSinclair
    Participant

    Quicker to fill out a small claims court claim form. Send a copy to the BA legal team confirming you will be making a claim in the next 72 hours.

    You can judge the strength of your case by the time it takes BA to respond…


    EU_Flyer
    Participant

    [quote quote=796563]Quicker to fill out a small claims court claim form. Send a copy to the BA legal team confirming you will be making a claim in the next 72 hours.

    You can judge the strength of your case by the time it takes BA to respond…

    [/quote]

    Can’t argue with that approach. Haven’t done one of those in years. Understand there is a fee of around 60 pounds if you file it though. Still, it’s guaranteed to get BA’s attention and, as Martyn suggests, you’ll get a taste of how seriously they’re taking your claim.

    Best of luck.


    SimonS1
    Participant

    Agree with Martyn. Just go straight to 14 days notice and then MCOL (which is what the small claims is called now).

    BA will just fob you off with any old carp.


    FDOS_UK
    Participant

    Before issuing legal threats, I would write back to them and say that their response is not specific enough and they must explain, in detail, what the operational circumstances outside their control were, why these were extraordinary and why these could not have been avoided even if all reasonable measures had been taken..

    They might hang themselves with the reply, allowing you to draft a letter before action (stating how much your claim is etc.) and if they do not respond within a reasonable timeframe (say 14 days), then you could issue a letter before action, followed by a MCOL claim.

    You would then appear reasonable in Court and BA would appear unreasonable.


    FDOS_UK
    Participant

    [quote quote=796825]Agree with Martyn. Just go straight to 14 days notice and then MCOL (which is what the small claims is called now).

    BA will just fob you off with any old carp.

    [/quote]

    Fishy business, Simon?


    SwissExPat
    Participant

    I had 2 successful E261 claims with BA in the last 14 months. Both for the full Euro600.

    They cancelled a flight to BDA and re routed me… I filled in an claim online via theor website and got a refund within 10 days.

    The second I though they might have quibbled with. I arrived into LCY from Europe and then needed to go to LGW for a long haul to BDA. It was a through ticket (a journey I do frequently). The flight into LCY was delayed 3 hours (tech) and I missed my connection from LGW, arriving 24 hours late into BDA. I filed a claim and got the Euro 600.


    FDOS_UK
    Participant

    [quote quote=796884]I had 2 successful E261 claims with BA in the last 14 months. Both for the full Euro600.

    The second I though they might have quibbled with. I arrived into LCY from Europe and then needed to go to LGW for a long haul to BDA. It was a through ticket (a journey I do frequently). The flight into LCY was delayed 3 hours (tech) and I missed my connection from LGW, arriving 24 hours late into BDA. I filed a claim and got the Euro 600.

    [/quote]

    Nah, open and shut 600€.

    1 – tech, not extraordinary circumstances, so no defence
    2 – the 3 hour delay rendered the minimum connection time impossible
    2 – long delay at BDA and EC261 counts the through journey as one trip


    TravelTech1
    Participant

    BA should know better…

    A 2014 ruling ratified by the Supreme Court, in the case of Huzar vs Jet2, says that European airlines can no longer claim technical faults as extraordinary circumstances, so must pay out compensation for flight delays of longer than three hours in such cases.

    The following website explains all about it and what to do if, in your case, they reject a claim for technical faults. Good luck!

    http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/holidays/article-2271213/How-claim-EU-flight-delay-compensation-EC-261-2004.html


    travelworld
    Participant

    Many thanks- will report back!


    ontherunhome
    Participant

    Travelworld. I had a claim BA refused. After several back and forth emails etc. I just issued a small claims court action. They coughed up 3 x €600, plus fees and goodwill avios, before it went to court. They could have used a different aircraft, put you on another airline, no excuses. Good luck.


    SwissExPat
    Participant

    Referencing My BA claim at LCY… I thouht they really did quite a good job… They even put me in a Black Cab to get to LGW and also put me up in the Hilton there for a night with meal vouchers etc.

    I wonder was it because I an BAEC Gold (was on a Y+ ticket)?


    travelworld
    Participant

    Stage 2. Now BA say
    I’ve reviewed your claim and can see that on the day you were due to travel, industrial action was carried out by our crew. Strikes are an extraordinary circumstance and are outside of our control. I’m afraid this meant we had no option but to delay your flight.
    Article 5.3 of the EU Regulation 261/2004 states that a carrier is not obliged to pay compensation if it can prove that the delay or cancellation is caused by extraordinary circumstances that couldn’t have been avoided even if all reasonable measures had been taken. In Recital 14 and 15 of EU Regulation 261/2004, extraordinary circumstances include weather, strike and the impact of an air traffic management decision which gives rise to a long delay. This means you’re not entitled to compensation under the EU Regulation for your delayed flight.

    Odd that BA didn’t mention it before, but 3 March was a Mixed Fleet strike day.

    Two points-internet research suggests that strikes by the airline’s own crew do not count as an extraordinary circumstance, although this view is not unanimous. And I was en route to Jeddah- not a Mixed Fleet route, I think. I guess the crew rostered for the Jeddah flight were sent elsewhere.

    I’m tempted to carry on with a Money Claim Online claim, unless people think I’m definitely in the wrong…..

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