Airline Cage Match: Part Deux
Like most of you, I have a love/hate relationship with airlines.
Wait. No. I just hate them.
Some of you might recall back in 2008, I got into a bit of a tiff with JetBlue Airlines.
The loooong version of that story can be found at My JetBlue Lawsuit, a blog I created specifically to document my experience of going at it with JetBlue.
The short version is:
JetBlue stranded me in Portland, Oregon.
JetBlue refused to give me a refund.
I sued JetBlue in small claims court.
I won.
Fast forward 14 years and I’M BACK BABY!
This time, l'objet de mon attention is a French airline called “La Compagnie.”
First, some back story:
EK (my wife) and I recently took a trip to Paris to celebrate the 30th anniversary of our 30th birthdays with equally aged friends.
We decided to fly on La Compagnie airlines out of Newark airport because the airline flies all business-class jets, with full lay-flat seats. I have been nursing a bad back for the better part of four years and this seemed like a good idea.
Let me say at the outset that it WAS a good idea.
The planes were new, the seats were fantastic, the service was great, the food was passable (but who cares about airline food these days) and the flight to Paris arrived a full hour early.
It was great.
Our return trip departure was delayed four hours and we arrived 4 hours 25 minutes late.
Again, the plane, the crew, the service, the in-flight entertainment system were all top-notch.
And truth be told, the 4.5-hour delay was not that big a deal. It happens.
BUT…
I recently learned about European Union (EU) Rule 261/2004, which spells out very specific remedies for delayed flights, cancelled flights, overbooked flights, and lost luggage, all when associated with flights on EU-based airlines and/or flights of any airline, regardless of what country it is based, originating from the EU.
In my case, the EU rule very clearly states that:
‘Long delay’ means when a flight does not depart until after the scheduled departure time by:
i) two or more hours, for flights of up to 1500 km;
ii) three or more hours for intra-EU flights of 1,500 km and longer, or for other flights between 1501 and 3000 km;
iii) four or more hours, for all other flights.
Now, I’m no math genius, and I fervently believe that the rest of the world can stuff the metric system in a hat (because ‘murica!), but I’m pretty sure the trip from Paris to Newark is juuuuust a bit outside 3000 kilometers.
And, according to the rule, I am entitled to 600 euros per ticket compensation, or just over $1,200.
This situation is obviously different from my donnybrook with JetBlue. La Compagnie got me there and back safely. The service was great. Delays happen. But the airline is a company based in the EU and the flight originated in the EU so, playing by the rules it (La Compagnie) agreed to… I want my refund.
I have filled out the official EU complaint form and sent it to La Compagnie customer service with the appropriate documentation.
Now, we wait.
From what I have read, it can take weeks or months for the airlines to respond, if they do at all. Adding to the uncertainty is the fact that I am a U.S. citizen, not an EU citizen. People in the EU can go to their country’s governing bodies to file an official complaint if they are ignored or refused by the airline.
In the United States, we live under Department of Transportation guidelines which, in no uncertain terms, state that we have no rights as airline passengers, other than the right to be treated like an unwanted stepchild in a sadistic fairy tale.
So, if La Compagnie ignores me, or denies me, I’m not sure what recourse I would have, other than to drag them through small claims court in Litchfield County, Connecticut, JetBlue-style, which I would have to imagine would be an enormous pain in the ass to some €1,500/hour lawyer from Paris, but would be an enormous amount of fun for moi, as was the JetBlue thing.
For now, I will give La Compagnie the benefit of the doubt and assume it will meet its legal obligation.
If not, I hope the legal team enjoys getting to know the back roads of Connecticut on their way to the courthouse.
Stay tuned.