ECJ, 6.10.2021, C-613/20

In a case before the ECJ, Eurowings has conceded a ruling that is expensive in its consequential costs.

EUROWINGS In a case before the ECJ, Eurowings has conceded a ruling that is expensive in its consequential costs.

As a rule, passengers are entitled to compensation even if their connection has been cancelled due to a strike by cabin crew. This has now been decided by the European Court of Justice in a case against Eurowings.Exceptions to this right to compensation exist only in limited individual cases, as a now published ruling of the European Court of Justice (ECJ) shows. The case was brought by a consumer who demanded 250 euros because his flight with Eurowings from Salzburg to Berlin was cancelled due to a strike (Case C-613/20).

Eurowings had argued that the work stoppage constituted a so-called exceptional circumstance and that the company had taken all reasonable measures to limit the impact of the strike. However, the European Supreme Court held that if a parent company calls a strike, it is foreseeable that workers from other parts of the group will join the strike. Like any employer, an airline whose employees strike for better working conditions „cannot claim that it has no influence whatsoever on those actions“.

In principle, under EU law, travellers can claim up to 250 euros for short flights if their connection is cancelled and no reasonable alternative is offered. This applies to flights of less than 1500 kilometres; for longer routes, the amount of compensation increases.

However, there are some exceptions, for example if passengers are informed at least two weeks in advance, or if there is an „extraordinary circumstance“ – as Eurowings considers to be the case in this instance. According to the relevant EU regulation, this is the case if the circumstances for the cancellation „could not have been avoided even if all reasonable measures had been taken“

Quelle: dpaFriday, October 08, 2021