Know your rights ahead of Ryanair's staff strikes this summer

LONDON (July 5, 2018). The budget airline Ryanair will face several strikes in the upcoming summer holiday season. To start, it has come to light that an agreement with flight attendant unions has not been reached, leading to strikes across Italy, Spain, Portugal and Belgium in July.  German labour union Vereinigung Cockpit, who represent pilots, have also not reached an agreement yet, which may lead to a further strike in August in Germany if an agreement is not reached by end of July.

Paloma Salmeron, passenger rights specialist at AirHelp, the world’s leading flight compensation company, explains:

“Ryanair flights will be disrupted in July due to flight attendant strikes following failed negotiations with trade unions Sitcpla, SNPVAC, CNE/LBC and UILTASPORTI. Should pilots follow suit, further strikes are to be expected in August across Germany. Flight attendant strikes are the consequence of staff requests to stop employment under Irish law exclusively.

Affected passengers whose flights arrive at the destination with at least three hours delay due to a possible strike may be entitled to compensation of up to € 600 per person. This also applies to travelers whose Ryanair flight is canceled if they are informed of the cancellation of their flight less than 14 days before the actual departure date.” 

In April this year, the European Court of Justice ruled that airline staff strikes cannot be considered as an extraordinary circumstance, which would have relieved airlines of their duty to pay compensation.

“For Ryanair passengers, it is now important to monitor the situation and regularly check the status of their flight. Any rebooking on bus, train or other flights should under no circumstances be carried out without notifying the airline. For a delay of more than five hours the airline is obliged to refund passengers the full ticket price. In the event of delays of more than two hours and an affected distance of more than 1,500 kilometers, the operating airline must also provide passengers at the airport with meals and drinks and with the option of making two phone calls or sending two faxes or e-mails. If necessary, the airlines must also provide accommodation and facilitate transport there. We advise everybody to claim this service from the airline. AirHelp supports the passengers in getting their rightful compensation and, if necessary, also takes the airlines to court. “

Flight problems: these are the passengers’ rights

Flight cancellations and delays may entitle passengers on flights to Europe on a European carrier, or from Europe with any airline to compensation of up to 900 CAD per person. The amount of the compensation payment is calculated according to the distance of the flight. The legitimate right to compensation depends on the actual delay at the point of arrival and the reason for the cancelled or delayed flight. Affected passengers can enforce their compensation claim retroactively, generally up to three years after their flight date.

Extraordinary circumstances, such as bad weather conditions or medical emergencies, may result in exempting the operating airline from their duty to compensation.

Check your eligibility still at the gate

With the AirHelp app, affected passengers can check at the airport whether their delayed or cancelled flight entitles them to compensation. It is sufficient to scan the boarding pass with the App-internal Boarding Pass Scanner. Afterwards, passengers have the option to let AirHelp claim their compensation from the airline. The AirHelp App is available for free from the Google Play Store and Apple App Store.

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AirHelp is the world’s leading flight delays compensation company, helping passengers apply for compensation following a delayed, cancelled or denied boarding. Since launching in 2013, AirHelp has helped more than five million people process airline compensation claims worth almost 300 million euros in total reimbursement. AirHelp has offices across the world, is available in 30 countries, offers support in 16 languages, and employs more than 500 employees globally.