EC compensation rights on delayed flights?

Virgin won't compensate, I was on a flight from Antigua (Via Barbados) last December and was delayed over 8 hours due to A technical problem with the door and was delayed 5hrs in Antigua and they then flew us to Barbados at less than 10,00ft due to the problem with the door and could not fly higher, we then had to sit on the tarmac waiting for a part to be flown in from Florida by private jet and finally took off at 2.30am. We put in a claim but they said it was extraordinary circumstance and won't pay out. Finally got to Gatwick over 8hrs late.

Virgin won't compensate, I was on a flight from Antigua (Via Barbados) last December and was delayed over 8 hours due to A technical problem with the door and was delayed 5hrs in Antigua and they then flew us to Barbados at less than 10,00ft due to the problem with the door and could not fly higher, we then had to sit on the tarmac waiting for a part to be flown in from Florida by private jet and finally took off at 2.30am. We put in a claim but they said it was extraordinary circumstance and won't pay out. Finally got to Gatwick over 8hrs late.

The long delays aside. What was flying at 10,000ft like? Must have been a good view?

Virgin won't compensate, I was on a flight from Antigua (Via Barbados) last December and was delayed over 8 hours due to A technical problem with the door and was delayed 5hrs in Antigua and they then flew us to Barbados at less than 10,00ft due to the problem with the door and could not fly higher, we then had to sit on the tarmac waiting for a part to be flown in from Florida by private jet and finally took off at 2.30am. We put in a claim but they said it was extraordinary circumstance and won't pay out. Finally got to Gatwick over 8hrs late.

Ok, some of the regs come into play in terms of guidance of which meals/accommodation/phone cards etc be offered at the discretion of the airline. Did you guys get anything at all?

How long were you on the tarmac for? Sounds nasty.

We were given a meal in Antigua before departing at 11pm for Barbados. Some passengers refused to get on saying its not safe flying at that height with problem with the door, and my partner and I didn't really want to get on. The crew would not really fly the plane if it wasn't safe, would they?

Flying at 10,000ft - we didn't see anything as it as 11pm when we finally departed Antigua after 5 hours delay and when we arrived at Barbados at midnight we had to sit in our seats and wait for the part to arrive, once it arrived it only took 10 mins to fit an engineer in Barbados had prepared the plane for the new part. The Barbados passengers stayed in the departure lounge so at least it wasn't crowded on the plane.

The crew would not really fly the plane if it wasn't safe, would they?

The airline wouldn't let the plane fly otherwise. Some people may have been uneasy though and no doubt arrangements would have to be made for them (pretty sure VS would not be liable to pay for those though given the offloading was a personal choice )

Good to hear that they gave you a meal. So you guys were stuck on the tarmac in Barbados for 2hr30? If so then EU261 would say the airline had a four hour delay cushion with which to torture you before compensation is due ):

Virgin won't compensate, ...

But the circumstances are different and each case should be looked at on it's own merits and you can't say that because you didn't get compensation then no one else ever will either.

In your case it really does appear that it was an extraordinary technical problem with the door but if you feel you have a case for EU 261 and VS have rejected it then you could take VS to the small claims court. You don't need lawyers to do this.

In the instance of the OP it was a sick (or forgetful) pilot which VS should and could have made reasonable provision for i.e. pilots being on-call (like cabin crew have on-call / standby duty in their rotas )

Our LAX to LHR VS008 Flight was delayed from 16:59 local and eventually took off at 01:08 local - a delay of over 8hrs.
We were alerted 4 1/2hrs before departure and given a $12 Meal voucher and offer of 5000 Flying Miles.
We were told the delay was due to "Technical Difficulties and The Aircraft being out of place"

Should we pursue a claim for compensation ?

I received the full 600 euro compensation from Virgin for a delayed flight caused by pilot sickness. It was in Feb 2008 and I only applied earlier this year. I had already received 10,000 miles at the time, but thought I would try my luck completing the very simple application form on their website. My flight was delayed approx. 6 hours.

I would definitely apply and would follow up in the small claims court if they turn you down as they are providing the EU compensation for such circumstances.

Good luck!

[Neil]

Our LAX to LHR VS008 Flight was delayed from 16:59 local and eventually took off at 01:08 local - a delay of over 8hrs.
We were alerted 4 1/2hrs before departure and given a $12 Meal voucher and offer of 5000 Flying Miles.
We were told the delay was due to "Technical Difficulties and The Aircraft being out of place"

Should we pursue a claim for compensation ?

It depends if the delay was due to circumstances out of Virgin's control / it was due to an extraordinary circumstances.

Hello Just wondering the circumstances which the compensation has been paid out for a delayed flight due to pilot sickness, from 2008. Was it from a home base. I had a delay for the same reason and have had compensation declined.
Thank you

It appears that the VS (and probably all airlines) default position is to decline comp under EU261 even if it is clearly their legal responsibility.

From what I have read 'Wright' should have received the comp - I thought technical issues have been deemed not to be extraordinary circumstances. The argument is that there should be sufficient and regular maintenance to avoid such issues.

Hi there

Just thought I would give you an update. After sending off a letter VS asked me to fill in a form for EU claims which is hidden on the website, after doing this I today received full compensation of EUR 600 - in ££

So seems VS do agree that they dropped a clanger in not having a spare pilot for backup in London.

Hi there

Just thought I would give you an update. After sending off a letter VS asked me to fill in a form for EU claims which is hidden on the website, after doing this I today received full compensation of EUR 600 - in ££

So seems VS do agree that they dropped a clanger in not having a spare pilot for backup in London.

Good news. Don't spend it all at once !

Result
Money towards next flight ?

Result
Money towards next flight ?

I think its almost certain that VS will get their money back off me at some stage

[Darren Wheeler]

I think its almost certain that VS will get their money back off me at some stage

And there lies one of the problems with the EU rules.

It's all very well saying airlines must pay compensation, but ultimately it's the passengers who pay for the compensation through increased fares. The money payed out is effectively yours in the first place.

And there lies one of the problems with the EU rules.

It's all very well saying airlines must pay compensation, but ultimately it's the passengers who pay for the compensation through increased fares. The money payed out is effectively yours in the first place.

At least with EU261 the compensation goes to the passengers affected unlike other regulatory fines where the dosh goes to the Government (but which is still paid from fares)

And of course VS could easily have avoided paying out compensation in the first place by having a pilot(s) on-call to replace the forgetful one.

And there lies one of the problems with the EU rules.

It's all very well saying airlines must pay compensation, but ultimately it's the passengers who pay for the compensation through increased fares. The money payed out is effectively yours in the first place.

At least with EU261 the compensation goes to the passengers affected unlike other regulatory fines where the dosh goes to the Government (but which is still paid from fares)

And of course VS could easily have avoided paying out compensation in the first place by having a pilot(s) on-call to replace the forgetful one.

Absolutely. I'm a big fan of the EU261 compo because it's a strong incentive for airlines to get their house in order.

Also, the OP may wish to spend his €600 on something non-airline related, it's his choice and is appropriate recompense for the time he lost at the hands of VS.

[Darren Wheeler]

And there lies one of the problems with the EU rules.

It's all very well saying airlines must pay compensation, but ultimately it's the passengers who pay for the compensation through increased fares. The money payed out is effectively yours in the first place.

At least with EU261 the compensation goes to the passengers affected unlike other regulatory fines where the dosh goes to the Government (but which is still paid from fares)

And of course VS could easily have avoided paying out compensation in the first place by having a pilot(s) on-call to replace the forgetful one.

Absolutely. I'm a big fan of the EU261 compo because it's a strong incentive for airlines to get their house in order.

Also, the OP may wish to spend his €600 on something non-airline related, it's his choice and is appropriate recompense for the time he lost at the hands of VS.

But it's still paid for by higher fares. Regular flyers who don't experience qualifying delays contributes more than the once a year passenger who is unlucky one one day.

I'd be happier if they extended the same rules to the trains too.

But it's still paid for by higher fares.

In theory the airlines who are the worst offenders will have the highest compensation costs. So, again in theory, it might push up their fares. But in quite a competitive market where fares are often matched to the penny by competitors (ahem...), I wonder whether it does actually result in higher fares.

It would be interesting to see some data to work out what is really happening. My guess is that the regulation may dent profits a bit, but that it probably is not yet sufficiently widely used to really apply upward pressure to fares.

I'm probably wrong!

The railways have 'Delay Repay' for compensation.