Ryanair is forced to pay flight delay compensations to passengers

As a result of European Court judgment, passengers can be compensated with up to £437 per ticket in case of flight delays or “technical reasons” cancellation

Britain’s aviation regulator has begun formalities against Ryanair Company to pay compensations to delayed passengers. Passengers can be compensated with a maximum amount of £437 per ticket in case of flight delays or “technical reasons” cancellation, depending on the flight distance.

Until European Court of Justice decision outcome, thousands of requests made by passengers of Ryanair, Flybe, Thomas Cook, Jet2 and WizzAir were put on hold. Now, 15.000 cases rejected by budget airlines will go back in court. The majority of these claims are against Ryanair.

ECJ decision was: “The airline must ensure the maintenance and proper functioning of all aircrafts used for commercial activities. No component of an aircraft is indestructible; these situations are inherent in the normal operations of an airline. Therefore, when a flight is canceled due to unforeseen technical errors, the airline remains obliged to pay compensation to its passengers.”

The UK’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) warned Ryanair to comply with the law to avoid court action. CAA enforced action against Ryanair to protect the UK passengers' interests, as the majority of the airlines cite “adverse weather conditions” and “hidden manufacturing tech defects” to avoid the claims.

Lawyer Kevin Clarke, Bott & Co solicitors declared: “The fact that the same issue has had to go to the European court of justice despite the [UK] supreme court ruling shows the lengths the airline industry will go to to avoid paying out on valid claims. Fortunately the courts have once again ruled in favor of consumers – we’re delighted with this outcome.”

In response to the Civil Aviation Authority enforcement, Ryaniar spokesman declared: “Ryanair [...] will continue to comply with the EU261 legislation. Since less than half of 1% of Ryanair flights are delayed by over three hours, this ruling will have less effect on Ryanair than any other airline.”