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EasyJet Delays Dealing
with Delays
"LOW cost carrier EasyJet is
continuing to make it as hard as possible for its passengers to obtain
compensation when their flights are delayed." reports passenger
delay specialist Fairplane UK. EasyJet recently announced a business
milestone when it flew its 45 millionth passenger, but does not normally
respond to requests from its customers for compensation; instead it waits
for court proceedings to be issued.
Unless there are exceptional circumstances, airline passengers are generally
entitled to fixed statutory compensation of between €250 and €600 if their
flight lands more than 3 hours late, and airlines are under a duty to let
their passengers know about their right to this payment. In FairPlane's
experience however, when Easyjet receives a claim, it almost always ignores
it, and customers are forced to sue in the courts if they want to recover
their compensation. Not surprisingly, many give up and never receive
recompense for a flight which may have landed many hours late or have even
been cancelled.
Daniel Morris, Director at FairPlane UK, commented:- "We have an
enormous number of live cases against EasyJet and we have been in regular
contact with them. In some cases EasyJet have even confirmed in writing that
they owe this money, and have agreed a timescale to pay it, but have simply
failed to do so. I find it disheartening that EasyJet are announcing
milestones highlighting the loyalty of its passengers and yet feel it is in
order to fail to pay a debt to the very same people who use their airline."
He went on to say:- "There are even 1 or 2 cases where we have needed
to instruct the court bailiffs to seize goods from EasyJet's headquarters.
It sounds ridiculous, but it is the only way that we can obtain compensation
for passengers within a reasonable timeframe. We are simply looking to
provide everyday travellers with money that is rightfully theirs."
EasyJet, despite having a net income in 2014 of £450 million, appears in
some cases to be doing all it can to resist paying compensation amounts
ranging from £190 to £450, and there is concern that the airline may have
lost sight of its need to retain customer loyalty.
Under EU regulations, passengers who suffer a 3 hour flight delay or flight
cancellation are entitled by law to fixed levels of compensation. The
trouble is, airlines often don't pay despite them being liable. Indeed,
airlines often come up with invalid excuses not to pay the EU delayed flight
compensation sums at all.
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