Denied boarding on a flight

Q: A few weeks ago I went to check-in for my flight to Paris and was told that my flight was overbooked and had therefore to wait for the next available flight. It took several hours before they finally managed to book me on another flight to Paris. Apart from the hassle and mental stress, I basically wasted a whole day at the airport. Am I entitled to some form of compensation?

A: When overbooking occurs the airline must compensate the passengers left behind as long as they have a valid ticket, a confirmed reservation and have checked-in on time.

However, prior to denying boarding to a number of passengers the airline must first seek volunteers who agree to be placed on a later flight or else who choose to have their tickets refunded.

Volunteers are also entitled to benefits they have to negotiate with the airline.

The law provides no parameters as to what benefits the airline should offer.

Passengers who do not volunteer but due to overbooking are denied boarding have the same entitlement to assistance and compensation as those whose flight has been cancelled.

This means that passengers must first of all be offered a choice between a full refund and an alternative flight. Passengers must also be provided with meals and refreshments and the possibility of making two free telephone calls, e-mails or faxes.

In the event of re-routing when the flight is the next day, free accommodation and transport to and from the airport should be provided by the airline.

In addition to all this, passengers have the right to monetary compensation which varies according to the length of the flight. The minimum amount is of €250, which covers flights of 1,500 kilometres or less, €400 for flights of more than 1,500 but less than 3,500 kilometres.

The maximum compensation is of €600 for all flights which cover a distance of more than 3,500 kilometres. The distance is calculated from the first point where the passenger is denied boarding and the final destination.

This financial compensation could be reduced by half when passengers are offered re-routing to their final destination on an alternate flight and the arrival time does not exceed the scheduled arrival time of the flight originally booked by not more than two hours on all flights of 1,500 kilometres or less, or not more than three hours in the case of flights between 1,500 and 3,500 kilometres, and by four hours for flights of more than 3,500 kilometres.