Flight cancellation: does the airline pay compensation?
Lisa Vogel studied departmental journalism with a focus on medicine and biosciences at Ansbach University and deepened her journalistic knowledge in the master's degree in multimedia information and communication. This was followed by a traineeship in the editorial team. Since September 2020 she has been writing as a freelance journalist for
More posts by Lisa Vogel All content is checked by medical journalists.The coronavirus has now spread almost worldwide and is affecting public life - including air travel. Are passengers entitled to compensation if a flight is canceled as a result?
No compensation for outages due to coronavirus
Normally, passengers are entitled to compensation of up to 600 euros per person in the event of flight cancellations or delays due to certain circumstances, according to the Association of Passenger Rights Advocates (APRA). APRA includes companies that inform affected customers about passenger rights and help them to claim compensation.
The passenger's right to compensation as soon as a flight is delayed or canceled, however, only applies if the flight problem is the responsibility of the airline concerned. The airlines are not liable for external influences such as bad weather or political quarrels.
This also applies to the coronavirus pandemic. "In our opinion, the current corona crisis is now clearly beyond the control of the airlines and should therefore be legally classified as an exceptional circumstance," says Adeline Noorderhaven, President of APRA. This means that customers can no longer claim compensation in the event of flight cancellations caused by the spread of Sars-CoV-2.
Pay attention to the reason for the cancellation
It is different if the airline cancels the flight due to insufficient occupancy - for example due to the coronavirus epidemic. Then the cancellation will be made for economic reasons and financial compensation is possible. “For passengers, it is advisable these days to take a closer look at the reasons airlines cite for short-term cancellations,” says Oskar de Felice, legal expert at the consumer portal Flightright.
According to Flightright, you could be entitled to compensation in the event of a cancellation in the following cases:
- The airline is canceling the flight for economic reasons
- There is no official travel warning for the target area
- It is a domestic flight in Germany
If the airline informs its customers in these cases less than 14 days before the planned departure, the passengers can be entitled to compensation under EU passenger law. However, if the airline announces the flight cancellation more than 14 days in advance, there is no entitlement to compensation.
Refund the ticket price, guarantee accommodation
Even if there is no compensation for a flight cancellation caused by a coronavirus, the airlines must reimburse their passengers for the ticket costs or provide alternative transport. If passengers are stranded at an airport overnight, they are also entitled to accommodation and transportation there.
“Passengers are very vulnerable consumers. It is our mission to defend them when they are treated unlawfully. Nevertheless, we think it is important to always think realistically and sensibly, "says Adeline Noorderhaven.
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