With increasing commercial air travel, there has also been an increase in passenger claims against airlines since EU Regulation 261 that grants passengers rights in case of cancellation, denied boarding and more recently also long delays, came into force. Business opportunities have arisen for lawyers and claim agencies who seek to assert rights on behalf of passengers for a fee. The price passengers pay however is to give up a hefty chunk of their compensation in exchange for such assistance. The practices of such claim agencies have been criticized by stakeholders in the aviation industry, one such criticism is their manner of remuneration because the compensation in a successful claim does not end up with the person who was granted rights by the Regulation: i.e. the passenger. It is in this respect that the recent decision of the Court of Appeal in the U.K., confirming that airlines may compensate passengers directly and cut out the ‘middleman’, was a helpful clarification on the manner of dealing with claim agencies. This article examines the decision itself and the repercussions from that decision, and whether it really is the end of the matter, and what airlines need to anticipate in the foreseeable future.
Air and Space Law