In the year 2018, Ryanair pilots and cabin crew took industrial action in a bid to secure better pay and conditions across most of its network. During peak summer season, Ryanair had to cancel as good as 400 flights due to the strikes but refused to pay compensastion to passengers at that time.
On 5th December, 2018 , UK Civil Aviation Authority had started enforcement action against Ryanair, following the airline's decision that financial compensation is not payable under European Commission Regulation 261/2004 for flight disruptions.
Now, High Court has ordered Ryanair to pay compensation to passengers, who saw flights cancelled as the result of that industrial action in 2018.
The High Court views that, the thousands of people affected by cancellations or delays during strike action by pilots and cabin crew in 2018 should be compensated.
Earlier Ryanair had cited the situation as “extraordinary circumstances” , which meant, it did not have to pay the compensation.
CAA says , under EU legislation, passengers were allowed to make an EU261 claim for flights delayed by three hours or more, cancelled flights or when they were denied boarding.
Commenting on the judgement, Paul Smith, director at the UK Civil Aviation Authority, said:
“Ryanair has refused to pay compensation to passengers affected by industrial action taken by its pilots in 2018.
“We believed that these passengers were in fact protected by law and that Ryanair could not claim its delayed and cancelled flights were ‘extraordinary circumstances’.“The High Court has today agreed with our interpretation of the law.”
He added: “We are committed to protecting the rights of air passengers and are determined to ensure all airlines comply with their legal obligations.
As Ryanair has the right to seek to appeal the judgment, the CAA added affected customers should await further information before pursuing their claims.
Picture ; Karen Bryan
.jpg)
