Woman takes Ryanair ash cloud case to Europe

By Ann Cahill, Europe Correspondent

Friday, February 10, 2012

The right to compensation when an airline cancels a flight could be changed as a result of Dubliner Denise McDonagh’s case against Ryanair, which she has taken to the European Court of Justice.

The airline refused to pay her €1,129, which she claimed after her flight from the Portuguese airport of Faro was cancelled because of the volcanic ash cloud last April. She was stranded for nine days as a result of what Ryanair considered to be the unnecessary airspace closure following the eruption of the Iceland volcano.

Under EU legislation, passengers are entitled to compensation and hotel accommodation if flights are delayed or cancelled, even if the circumstances areconsidered to be "extraordinary".

Both sides agreed the issues raised by her action taken in Dublin district court should be referred to the European court.

The Luxembourg-based court was asked to rule on whether it was right that compensation must be paid for what could be considered an ‘act of God’, which travel insurance companies do not have to cover.

Ryanair wants them to rule on whether the volcanic ash closures were "extraordinary circumstances", and if there should be a limit on how long an airline’s duty of care lasts from, given that it is limited for other forms of transport.

Stephen McNamara of Ryanair said it believes passenger rights legislation is discriminatory and not fit for purpose. "It does not place airlines on an equal footing with competing road, rail and sea transport providers and it makes airlines the insurer of last resort as insurance companies and governments evade any responsibility for these unforeseen events". While there is no monetary limit to the amount of compensation airlines must pay, Ryanair points out that for rail it is limited to "reasonable costs" and to €80 a night for sea and coach services. There is no time limit for air and rail, while for sea it is limited to three nights and to two nights for coach.

Solicitor James Hennessy, representing Ms McDonagh, said she and Ryanair had agreed the case should be heard by the European Court. "Since the legislation came from Europe, that is perhaps where it should be answered", he said.

The decision is not expected until later in the year. It will be keenly watched by airlines and by passengers, still waiting to be compensated for delays due to the volcanic ash.

This appeared in the printed version of the Irish Examiner Friday, February 10, 2012