Browsing Tag Court of Justice
The Court of Justice rules on the possibility to consider technical failures caused by a hidden design defect revealed by the manufacturer after cancellation of the flight as an “extraordinary circumstance”
The occurrence of an unexpected and unprecedented technical failure affecting a new aircraft model recently put into service, which results in the air carrier cancelling a flight, falls within the concept of “extraordinary circumstances” according to Regulation No 261/2004 where the aircraft’s manufacturer recognises, after that cancellation, that that failure was caused by a hidden design defect concerning all aircraft of the same type and impinging on flight safety
The Court of Justice rules on the possibility to consider the shortage of staff of the airport operator providing baggage loading services as an “extraordinary circumstance”
Despite the fact that there being an insufficient number of staff of the airport operator responsible for the operations of loading baggage onto planes may constitute an “extraordinary circumstance” according to Regulation No 261/2004, in order to be exempted from its obligation to pay compensation to passengers the air carrier whose flight has experienced a long delay on account of such circumstance is required to show that it could not have been avoided even if all reasonable measures had been taken and that it adopted measures appropriate to the situation to avoid the consequences thereof
The Court of Justice rules on the funding for an independent supervisory authority through a financial contribution on airport users
Directive 2009/12 does not preclude a national legislation under which funding for an independent supervisory authority is secured by levying a financial contribution on airport users, even if they are not established in the Member State covered by that authority or incorporated under the latter’s law
Air transport. The Court of Justice rules on the ex officio review, by a national judge, of the unfairness of the clause prohibiting the assignment of passenger rights
The national court is not required to examine ex officio the possible unfairness of a clause which, in the contract of carriage concluded between a passenger and an air carrier, prohibits the assignment of rights enjoyed by the former with regard to the latter, where that court has an action for compensation brought before it against that carrier by a commercial company which is the assignee of that passenger’s claim for damages, provided that the company concerned has or has had a genuine opportunity to rely, before that court, on the possible unfairness of the clause in question
Air transport. The Court of Justice rules on the concept of “signed agreement of the passenger”
In the event of cancellation of a flight by the operating air carrier, the passenger is deemed to have given her “signed agreement” to reimbursement of the cost of the ticket by a travel voucher where she has filled in an online form on the website of that air carrier, by which she chose such a means, to the exclusion of reimbursement by a sum of money, where that passenger has been able to make an effective and informed choice and, accordingly, to give informed consent to such reimbursement, which presupposes that the air carrier concerned has provided her, in a fair manner, clear and full information as to the various means of reimbursement available