home Documentation Lost a day of rest due to a flight delay. What to do if you are stuck at the airport

Lost a day of rest due to a flight delay. What to do if you are stuck at the airport

Another story about a long flight delay was considered by the Samara Magistrate's Court last fall. The tourist filed a claim against several defendants at once: a tour operator, an airline and a travel agency. Only one was found guilty of violating the rights of tourists.

Minus 17 hours from vacation

On the eve of the New Year, December 23, 2011, Samara resident Bessonova G.A. purchased from the Green Line travel agency a ticket to Pattaya for two worth 63,700 rubles with departure on January 23 and return on February 3, 2012.

But her rest time was shortened in an unexpected and unpleasant way. The flight from Samara to Pattaya, scheduled for the evening of January 23, was first postponed to the morning of the next day, then to the middle of the day, and ultimately took place only at 16:00. The total delay was 17 hours and 15 minutes and resulted in the loss of a day of rest.

The customer releases the carrier from claims

Upon returning from the trip, February 6, Bessonova G.A. filed a complaint with the tour operator. Referring to the norms of the current legislation, namely Art. 151 of the Civil Code and Art. 15 of the Law “On the Protection of Consumer Rights”, she demanded a refund of 50% of the cost of the flight and 10,000 rubles for unused vacation time. Anex Tour partially recognized the claim and offered to reimburse the price of one night's stay at the hotel - only 1,085 rubles. Regarding questions about rescheduling the departure time, I forwarded them to the carrier.

Then on February 27, the tourist wrote a claim to UTair for payment of a fine for the many-hour flight delay. She was told that, according to clause 5.3. of the agreement between UTair airlines and the tour operator Anex Tour, the customer releases the carrier from all claims from passengers, and also assumes possible costs “for compensation for damage arising as a result of the customer’s failure to comply with the specified circumstances.”

On April 14, Bessonova again contacted the tour operator with a complaint, attaching UTair’s response to it. In the letter, she noted that the defendant’s actions caused her moral harm, waiting for the flight led to nervous stress, and a day of vacation was lost. In addition, according to the tourist, clause 99 of the Federal Aviation Regulations and clause 4, clause 2 of Article 106 of the Air Code were violated - passengers of the delayed flight were not provided with soft drinks or hot meals; there was no information about the reason for the flight delay.

But Anex Tour again refused to give her a monetary refund.

Therefore G.A. Bessonova went to the courthouse at her place of residence and filed a lawsuit against the tour operator Anex Tour, the carrier Aviation Company UTair and the travel agency Green Line Samara LLC. In it, she asked the court to recover 9,900 rubles (this is 50% of the fare) from the airline for delaying the departure of the plane by 17 hours for two passengers. And from a tour operator - 1,085 rubles. prices for hotel accommodation for 1 day, lost due to flight delay, moral damages in the amount of 10,000 rubles. and a penalty for refusal to fulfill the requirements of the claim voluntarily in the amount of 10,000 rubles.

The tour operator did not deny

The defendants “Anex Tour” and “UTair” did not appear at the court hearing, asked the court to consider the case in their absence, and submitted written objections. No one from the travel agency came to the process either.

The court found that according to the agreement concluded by Bessonova with the Green Line agency, the tour operator for the tour is Anex Tour, and the duties of the travel agent include ensuring service to the tourist in accordance with the terms of the agreement, the safety of documents accepted for registration and confidentiality; that the plaintiff paid for the trip on time and provided the necessary documents for its registration.

According to the electronic tickets available in the case materials, the flight of passengers of the Anex Tour tour operator to Pattaya was scheduled for 22:45 on January 23, and was subsequently delayed until 16:00, which is confirmed by the signature of the airline representative. The court regarded this as untimely provision of transportation services - the flight was completed after 17 hours and 15 minutes from the time specified on the ticket.

The tour operator did not deny this fact and did not provide evidence to the contrary.

The result in numbers

The court considered fair and subject to satisfaction the plaintiff’s demands to collect from the carrier a fine for late payment in the amount of 50% of the freight charge, in accordance with Art. 120 of the Air Code. However, taking into account the fact that the tour operator responsible for the provision of all travel services included in the package is Anex Tour, and, according to the contract, it exempts the carrier from claims of third parties, it was decided to collect this fine from Anex. 50% of the freight charge amounted to 9,900 rubles.

Next, the court considered the issue of penalties. He noted that the plaintiff twice contacted the tour operator with demands for a refund of 50% of the cost of the flight and compensation for moral damage, but to date her demands have not been fulfilled. Bessonova provided the court with a calculation of the penalty; its amount was 37,125 rubles. But the tourist considered it “possible to reduce it, taking into account the requirements of reasonableness” to 10,000 rubles. The court also decided to recover this amount from Anex Tour - since the consumer’s demands for a refund of 50% of the cost of the flight and compensation for moral damage were not satisfied within the time limits established by law and in accordance with Art. 28 of the Law “On Protection of Consumer Rights”.

Since the court established the fact of violation of consumer rights, then the demand for compensation for moral damage caused by the guilty party, i.e. tour operator, he decided to satisfy. As for the amount of compensation, the court considered the amount of 2 thousand rubles reasonable and fair.

Bessonova’s demand for compensation for unused days of hotel accommodation in the amount of 1085 rubles was also considered legal by the court: the tourist arrived in Pattaya not on January 24, as planned, but at 00:40 on January 25, and not at the hotel, but only at the airport. But he did not impose a fine on the tour operator for delaying this particular requirement, because compensation was offered to the tourist, but she did not take advantage of it.

Well, if we sum it up in numbers, the court estimated the 17-hour flight delay at 32,985 rubles - more than half the price of the tour.

Who among us has not flown at least once to another country or city? Surely many. And some are faced with the fact that the plane’s departure is delayed. So what to do in such situations?

I offer you excerpts from clause 99 of the Federal Aviation Rules “General rules for air transportation of passengers, baggage, cargo and requirements for servicing passengers, shippers, consignees” (approved by Order of the Ministry of Transport of Russia dated June 28, 2007 No. 82).

Your flight is canceled or delayed

First of all, the airline must organize luggage storage and provide a mother and child room for a passenger with a child under seven years of age.
If the flight is delayed for more than two hours, you should be provided with refreshments, and you should also be given the opportunity to make two calls or send two emails.
If you wait more than four hours, you will be provided with hot meals (and then every six hours during the day, and every eight hours at night).
There are cases when the flight is delayed for more than six hours at night, in which case you must be accommodated in a hotel and provided with transportation to the hotel, and you must be accommodated if the flight is delayed for more than 8 hours during the day.
The airline must do all this at its own expense, i.e. completely free for you. And regardless of the reasons for the flight delay.

If the cause of the delay is not force majeure, then the airline is obliged to pay you compensation in the amount of 3% of the air ticket price for each hour of waiting as compensation for being late (according to the Consumer Protection Law, Article 28, paragraph 5), as well as 0.25 minimum wage for each hour of waiting as a fine (according to Article 120 of the Air Code of the Russian Federation). But no more than 50% of the ticket price. Typically, large airlines comply with these legal requirements, but there are often cases when these standards are ignored by carriers.

What to do if your rights are not respected?

You can dine yourself and present the bill for lunch to the airline, and it will be obliged to pay it.

You need to go to the check-in counter and get a certificate indicating the flight delay time, or put a special stamp on your ticket. By this you documented confirm the flight delay. And further down the list: two hours passed - drinks, four - a hot lunch. Be sure to keep all receipts and invoices for these services.

After this, you must write a statement to the airline asking to reimburse all expenses and pay compensation for the delay. The application must be accompanied by all receipts, a certificate of flight delay and the ticket itself. Usually airlines do not take the case to court, because... For them, this is obviously a lost cause and they reimburse all the passenger’s expenses associated with the flight delay. If there was no force majeure, then there will be no problems with compensation. But if there is no answer, feel free to go to court. All these rules apply to both scheduled and charter flights.

I wish you pleasant travels and flights without delays

Questions and answers on the topic “What to do if your flight is delayed or cancelled”

Vadim (10/27/2009):
What should I do if my flight was postponed to a later time (until 10 o'clock) and I missed the train, tickets were purchased in advance and I did not have time to return them, because... was in another country.
Evgeniy (12/10/2009):
Hello! Tell me, this is the situation! I bought tickets Tyumen-Krasnodar, as well as Krasnodar-Tyumen, a month before departure. 3 days later the airline called me and said that the flight back was cancelled. They offer to come and hand over your ticket. The problem is that no one else offers direct flights back except this airline. They offer to take a connecting flight through Moscow, but tickets cost almost 3,000 rubles more. and in Moscow I will have to move from airport to airport and wait about 15 hours. What can be done in such a situation? (most likely, if I had known, I would not have bought tickets at all)
Valentina (04/05/2010):
Hello. On September 12, Siberia Airlines delayed the departure of the flight to Moscow Domodedovo Airport for 13 hours for technical reasons, the ticket was marked. We were late for the flight from Domodedovo to Frankfurt, Lufthansa Airlines. A representative of Siberia Airlines did not take proper measures to help with the rescheduling of the flight and had to buy new tickets at a more expensive price; the old ones disappeared. The airline company persuaded them to buy it and promised that we would be compensated for our losses, but our written claim was refused. We are going to sue. We are preparing documents. What are our chances? Sincerely.
Ilya (04/25/2010):
Hello!
I bought return tickets. Departure in the afternoon.
At the airport I find out that the flight has been canceled and they offer to fly tomorrow at the same time. I was ready to fly with other airlines, but there are no flights...
The ticket was electronic. At the cash register the money was returned to me. 1350 rub. Fully. I asked that a note about the flight cancellation be made on my itinerary receipt. Done. With stamp and signature.
Can I count on compensation for the cost of concert tickets? A ticket to the concert cost 7,000 rubles.
Airline "Avianova".
Igor (04/28/2010):
If, in the event of a delay or cancellation of a flight due to the fault of the airline, in order to catch the event I am forced to buy more expensive tickets from another airline, can I, in accordance with Article 28 of the Consumer Rights Protection Law, demand compensation from the first airline for the difference in the cost of air tickets?
Igor (11.05.2010):
What is considered a cancellation and what is a flight delay? For example, at the airport they announced to me that my flight had been postponed for a day (2, 3 weeks, a month...) - is this a postponement or actually a cancellation of the flight?
Valentina (12.05.2010):
An old board, an almost worn-out resource, will naturally break down often. The airline is in no hurry to replace the plane until the last minute, as it can still squeeze money out of it. And all breakdowns are called delays due to technical reasons. Supposedly they are worried about the lives of passengers. Maybe it’s better to buy a new board that won’t break down often, this will take care of the passengers, and not screw our brains, hiding behind the instructions that they themselves came up with for themselves.
Greetings. As I understand it, if the flight is delayed and I don’t catch the train, then I will buy myself a new ticket, and only then demand compensation. and another question, is it possible in such a situation (if the flight is delayed and with the required mark on the ticket) to exchange tickets issued according to “REQUIREMENT” (VPD)? thank you in advance.
Oksana Nagovitsyna (07/23/2010):
the question is still ripe... it’s not entirely clear about charter flights... what rights do passengers of such flights have, for the most part there is only one answer - “it’s your own fault for buying a charter ticket, having bought a ticket you agreed with all the circumstances... “This is how they respond when a flight is delayed or departs early. What should I do?
Alexander (05.08.2010):
Hello!
Through the On Board company in Moscow, within 2 months I purchased tickets for the whole family for a flight from Turkey to Moscow with Turkish Airlines on August 28. Already in Turkey I checked my e-mail. On Board reported that our flight was cancelled. They offered to return the money or fly on another flight 29 with a transfer in Istanbul with a daily wait. It is unrealistic to refuse to return home; buying new 5 tickets at the height of the season will cost 2 times more (if they are available). Turkish agents and representatives of Turkish airlines in Dalaman stated that this issue can only be resolved by the agent who sold us the tickets, i.e. company "On Board". And the On Board company does not respond to my e-mail message.
What to do and what can you count on?
Inna (08.08.2010):
Hello! An e-ticket was issued for Ufa-Moscow-Syktyvkar. The flight from Ufa was delayed due to fires in Moscow. Naturally, we were late for our connecting flight in Moscow and also landed at another airport. The representative office did not take any measures, there was a refusal - you should not have been here, this is not our flight. No water, no food, the child was flying for 8 months, we were also refused to receive a room for the mother and child. They refused to return the tickets because we had already completed part of the journey. There was no choice but to take a train ticket. marked the delay. tell us in Syktyvkar we have any chances to return the ticket price and compensation
Tatiana (08/29/2010):
Hello! We bought tickets for two with a young man from a travel agency. Departure from St. Petersburg on August 29 at 15.30. Arrival back to St. Petersburg on September 7. We have electronic tickets in hand. We accidentally find out that the flight is delayed for unexplained reasons and will take place at 00.00 from August 29 to 30, i.e. delayed by 8.5 hours. With the voucher we lose a day and a night, for which, of course, everything was paid for. What should we do in this case to return the cost of this day and night, lost vacation in Turkey due to the fault of the carrier. Validator 50KOG KOLAVIA SURGUT RU 31300001 0020. Best regards, Tatyana
Olesya (09/05/2010):
Hello!
Electronic ticket Moscow (S7) - Kiev (A9) - Tbilisi and back. The connection back was 5 hours, then A9 rescheduled the flight and the connection was 9 hours (the departure was earlier in the morning, but now at night, and I’m flying with my 2-year-old daughter and must not sleep at night, and in Kyiv there is no room for mothers and children (!)
S7 disclaims responsibility, because A9 changed the departure time. But I bought tickets from S7 and they also received the money, and A9, motivating this, does nothing. What are my actions?
At the same time, at the time of purchase there was no direct flight, but at the moment both companies have it. Thank you.

Olga Stupnitskaya
answers (09/07/2010):
Olesya, good afternoon!
You have connections from different airlines, so in this case the companies are unlikely to reimburse anything. But you try to sue A9, maybe the judge will side with you and oblige the airline to return your money for the flight. But in reality, the chances, unfortunately, are not great.
*Victoria* (09/08/2010):
We also had connecting tickets. Anapa-Moscow-Blagoveshchensk. The plane from Anapa was delayed for 7 hours and we didn’t have time to board the Moscow plane. The airlines were different (Anapa-Kuban airlines, Moscow-Yakutia) So who should we sue? Who should we ask?
Alexey (11/15/2010):
Good afternoon
2 months before departure, tickets (return) were purchased for a certain date... 6 days before departure, the airline warned about the cancellation of the flight and offered to fly on another airline with more expensive tickets...
The difference in tickets was initially paid by the airline, but after returning I had to pay it off!
What can be done in this regard, since the difference is significant
Danila (11/15/2010):
Hello!
I bought a tour package to Thailand. Date 16.11. -25.11. Flight to their Khabarovsk.
I bought tickets to Khabrovsk on November 15, the flight was postponed to November 16 due to weather conditions, i.e. I didn’t make it on time for the flight from Khabarovsk to Bankog. The tour operator refuses to refund the cost of the tour package, is there any chance of getting the money back? Thank you.
Julia (12/14/2010):
Hello! Flight 29222 from Rimini to Moscow should be on December 11, 2010 at 17:50, the carrier is Orenburg Airlines, in fact we departed on December 12, 2010 at 12:30 pm on another Tatarstan airline. I want to receive compensation for a flight delay. Which airline should I apply for?
Elena (12/27/2010):
My brother bought a ticket from a travel agency, and today will be the third night he will spend the night at the airport (the flight has been postponed until an indefinite time due to snowfall). He calls and asks: what should I do? There is no point in flying anymore. Firstly, there is very little time left for rest. Secondly, it is not a fact that they will fly out tomorrow. Can he refuse the trip in this case and get his money back? Thank you.
Svetlana (12/29/2010):
Olga, good afternoon. The day before the famous events, we bought tickets to Egypt, departure on January 6, 2011. We fly with Aeroflot from Sheremetyevo-2.
What do you think is the best way for us to proceed? Should we hope for better weather conditions or is it still better to return our tickets? If we pass, what do we lose? Who will pay the cost of the tour and the ticket price? Who should I contact with this question? Thank you.
Natalya (12/29/2010):
Good evening. I purchased a Moscow-Rome-Milan-Moscow tour package from 291210 to 050111. Departure on an Aeroflot flight, flight cancelled. Is Aeroflot or the tour operator obliged to resolve the flight issue with compensation? If I purchase a ticket on another airline, will I be reimbursed for losses and by whom? Can I purchase a ticket to another city in Italy that is available? Let's say Milan and expect compensation from a hotel in Rome for the days of stay used?
Thank you very much in advance
Olga (December 30, 2010):
Good afternoon On December 28, 2010 at 6.55 I was supposed to fly on an Aeroflot flight from Krasnoyarsk to Moscow. There I had to take the train at 15.42 and then go on a bus tour around Europe. The flight was delayed for a day, the group left without me, and the ticket was lost. Who should reimburse me for the trip in this case? The tour operator refers to its charter where, if the tour is canceled on the day of departure, it reimburses no more than 5% of the cost.
Olga (01/11/2011):
Hello. 12/27/10. My brother was supposed to fly with Siberia Airlines from Moscow to Kemerovo at 23:40......instead, he flew out only the next morning at 11:00. No food, no hotel were not provided. Unfortunately, he lost his ticket. Now there are electronic tickets, is it possible to somehow restore it? What can be done in such a situation. And where to go. Thank you.
Nikolay (01/14/2011):
Hello!
On December 26, 2010, I was supposed to fly to Eilat on 12.15 flight SU501.
I lost 1.5 days of my expensive tour.
Aeroflot offers for this, as indicated on the website, some kind of mythical vouchers.
I would actually like to receive not vouchers, but real compensation for 1.5 days of my vacation lost due to the fault of Aeroflot (the lack of icing can in no way be considered force majeure) and moral damages.
Can I count on this or not?
Please reply to my email address.
Thank you in advance for your response.
Lesik (01/14/2011):
Hello Olga.
My husband and I were supposed to fly on December 26, 2010 at 10:30 on an Orenburg Airlines flight to Turin. In fact, the departure took place on December 28, 2010 at about 15-00. During our stay at Domodedovo airport, we were not offered any hotel, no hot food, no hotel, and the airline representative refused to communicate with us at all. As a result, our stay in Italy was shortened by 2 days.
The air tickets were paid for by the travel agency, we paid the travel agency for the entire tour, without allocating the cost of air tickets.
In this case, who should we file a claim with: the travel agency (with whom I have an agreement) or the carrier (we have air tickets on hand, but they do not indicate the cost)?
And can we count on compensation for two lost days or only penalties in the amount of 25 rubles for each hour of flight delay?
Thanks in advance for your answer.
Alina (01/25/2011):
Hello.
Two different tickets and different airlines were purchased. Last Sunday there was heavy snowfall and flight 1 was delayed so that it was impossible to catch flight 2. We are very afraid of a similar situation, because... We are leaving in 1.5 weeks. How should you behave in such cases?
Elena (02/08/2011):
Hello! I had paid for a Krasnodar-Larnaca ticket from January 30 to February 10. But due to the cancellation of the flight on the 10th, I was asked to fly either on February 6 or 13. I had to fly on the 6th, without having time to do all the business for which I flew to Cyprus. (From February 11 to February 14, tickets to Moscow with another airline had already been paid for) I lost half of the days planned in Cyprus. Can I demand from the airline a second flight at their expense, since my trip was in vain. Thank you.

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Problems with air transportation often affect the quality of rest of our tourists. Increasingly, you can hear about blatant cases of delays or cancellations of flights by seemingly quite large and well-known airlines. For example, the recent problem that arose among tourists with VIM-Avia caused a lot of noise. Of course, you can talk a lot about who is to blame for this, speaking on lengthy topics, but it is worth remembering that first of all, living people suffer from this, who have planned their vacation or are forced to fly to another city or country due to some family circumstances . And these people may be hoping that they will get on another connecting flight to continue their onward journey. But suddenly they find out that their flight is canceled or delayed, and it doesn’t matter whether it is direct or charter. What should they do in this case, what steps should they take? How to get compensation for a ruined vacation?

It is difficult not to get confused in such a situation, especially if it happened to you for the first time, or your flight was a connecting flight, or you were tied to the time of your arrival. But it is worth remembering that your plane ticket is nothing more than an agreement with this airline, which has undertaken to deliver you, as a passenger, to the point of the planet you need and at the time you need, otherwise, it undertakes to take care of its passenger, if circumstances did not go according to plan.

Every passenger should know that the Civil Code of the Russian Federation stipulates cases when the air carrier is not responsible for cancellation or delay of a flight, these are: various natural phenomena - fires, snow drifts, hurricanes, floods; bad weather conditions; sudden military action; complete cessation or restriction of cargo transportation in a number of directions; in some cases, during a strike by airline or airport personnel, in the presence of malfunctions that pose a threat to the life and health of air passengers. In all other cases, the fault lies with the airline that violated its obligations under the contract.

First, let's take a closer look at what happens when a direct or charter flight is canceled by an airline.

- The flight may be canceled several days before the plane departs for its destination.

In this case, the airline traditionally offers passengers several ways to solve the problem of canceled flights: an alternative to flying on another route of the same air carrier or a flight from another company, but the destination remains the same.

The passenger has the right to demand a full refund of the cost of his air ticket. For example, if you purchased one air ticket for a flight with transfers, then you are required to refund the amount for the entire route. If a passenger bought two tickets, for example, Moscow-Barcelona and separately Barcelona-Valencia, and the first flight to Barcelona was cancelled, then you will only be refunded the amount spent on the air ticket from Moscow to Barcelona, and you will need to return the ticket from Barcelona to Valencia at normal rates. If the cancellation of the flight affected the second part of the air travel - Barcelona-Valencia, and no alternative options were provided to you, but the trip has lost its meaning, then the air carrier is obliged by law not only to refund the money for the air ticket to Valencia, but also to fly you back to Moscow for free . Regarding the refund for round trip tickets, you will be able to get a refund of their full cost if the flight is canceled and if you purchased them not separately, but as a “round trip”, that is, two tickets on a single form.

- The flight may be canceled or delayed when the tourist is already at the airport.

The airline is required to give you clear information about the reason and time for which the flight was delayed. You have the right to demand this information from an employee of your airline, and he is obliged to offer tourists options for their further actions. Often, an airline employee makes a proposal to transport tourists to their destination on another aircraft or on a flight from another carrier. And provided that the air carrier is at fault, this flight will be free for the tourist.

Not all passengers who have suffered moral and financial problems due to canceled or delayed flights are aware of their rights to receive compensation. This compensation varies depending on the timing of the transfer and cancellation of the flight, as well as the distance to the desired point. If the airline is at fault, it is legally obligated to give the passenger three percent of the cost of his air ticket for every hour he spent waiting, as compensation for the flight delay. This is stipulated in Article 28, paragraph 5 of the Law “On Protection of Consumer Rights”. In addition, pay as a fine twenty-five percent of the minimum wage for each hour of waiting, but this amount cannot exceed half the price of the air ticket. No other additional compensation is given to canceled passengers when flights are cancelled, but every tourist has the right to have the amount of their tickets refunded or exchanged for a similar flight.

Rights of a tourist passenger when a flight is delayed for more than two hours:

Making two phone calls or sending two emails; - you are required to provide free drinks; - if you have children under seven years of age with you, then you must be given free access to the mother and child room.

Tourist rights when a flight is delayed for more than four hours:

The passenger must be fed a free hot meal, and fed every six hours during the day and every eight hours at night.

Rights of tourist passengers when rescheduling a flight by more than eight hours during the daytime and more than six hours at night:

The airline must bring you and check you into a hotel at its own expense, and provide you with a free transfer there and back. According to the law, tourists do not have the right to be placed in the same room with strangers. If the passenger does not like the room provided or the hotel offered, then he can find a suitable option, and the airline must pay an amount that will be equal in price to the initial accommodation option offered to it. A tourist can pay the price difference for the more expensive room he has chosen or pay for his stay in full, but in this case we recommend that you keep the receipt of payment in order to thus return part of the money spent if there are objective reasons for refusing to stay according to the option offered by the air carrier . But, it is worth knowing that if you refuse the room offered by the airline, you lose the right to a free round-trip transfer, but the air carrier is obliged to store your luggage at its own expense.

Where can tourist passengers complain to receive compensation for a canceled or delayed flight?

If there was a cancellation or delay of a domestic direct or charter flight of a Russian company, then claims are considered in accordance with the legislation of the Russian Federation. Passenger complaints against foreign airlines that have not fulfilled their obligations to them on the territory of the Russian Federation are also considered in Russia. But when an airline postpones or cancels a flight abroad, litigation is conducted in the country and according to the laws where this happened, and the place where the air carrier is registered will not play a role.

Claims are submitted by the passenger personally at the airport of departure or upon arrival. When there is no representative office of your airline at the airport or its employees are not on site, the claim is submitted through the airline’s website. Although emails can often be ignored, it is better to send your claim by registered mail to the airline, make a detailed list of the enclosed documents and keep a copy of your statement, confirmation of dispatch, as this can be used in legal proceedings if the air carrier ignores you or refuses you compensation. According to our Russian legislation, a passenger has the right to present his claims to the air carrier within six months from the date of cancellation or delay of the flight.

I would like to touch on another important point for tourists, which is very topical for Moscow airports. Very often, passengers are taken to an airport different from the one indicated on their ticket. In this case, the airline is obliged to deliver the tourist passenger to his desired destination using free transport. And this rule applies to all airports in the Russian Federation.

As soon as you realize that you will not arrive on time and will be late for check-in, immediately contact the company through which you booked the hotel. Tell the customer service operator about your situation and ask them to contact the hotel. The employee will warn the manager that you will be delayed, but will definitely arrive and they will be waiting for you.

Why notify the hotel when I have already booked and paid for the room?

The internal regulations of many hotels state: if the guest has not checked in before midnight or three in the morning, the room goes on free sale. For example, you booked a room from January 4th to 7th, but due to weather conditions the flight was delayed, and you only arrived early in the morning on the 5th. If the hotel is not notified in advance, your reservation will be canceled, and there may simply not be any available rooms. You will be nervous and rush to look for another hotel.

Even if you have already paid for the room, this does not mean that the hotel will wait for your arrival during the entire period of your stay. When you do not arrive on the specified day, the hotel waits until midnight or until three in the morning - the exact time depends on the hotel's policy. Then the reservation is canceled and the room goes on sale.

If you choose a pay-on-arrival rate but arrive late, the hotel will still ask you to pay the full amount. In some cases, managers accommodate guests and allow them to pay for the actual period of stay: you booked a room for five days, but due to problems with the flight, you only stayed for three, so you pay for them.

Is it possible to get a refund for days that were missed from the booking?

The flight was delayed, but you still checked into the hotel, although you stayed not five days, but four. Now you want to get back the cost of the lost day. Unfortunately, hotels extremely rarely recalculate the price, since in this case the responsibility lies with the air carrier.

Airline employees are required to inform you what compensation you can claim, as well as explain who to contact and what documents to provide.

note thataccording to Article 794 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation the airline is not responsible for delay or cancellation of a flight if this occurs due to natural phenomena. These include weather conditions, which are considered force majeure.

Before you go on a trip, save the contacts of the support service of the service through which you booked the hotel. Ostrovka support staff can be contacted at any time by phone 8 800 775 65 25 , e-mail [email protected] and on social networks. The Ostrovka mobile application has a free Internet call - you can connect to Wi-Fi at any airport.

Cheat sheet for when you're late getting to your hotel due to flight problems

Let us know that you will arrive later. If the hotel does not wait for you before midnight or three in the morning, it will cancel your reservation.
Remember that the responsibility for your delay lies with the air carrier. Only airline representatives can advise you on compensation issues.
Don't expect the hotel to reimburse you, but ask if it's possible to recalculate the price. Occasionally, hotels accommodate guests halfway.

You cannot influence the weather forecast or speed up the departure of the plane, but you can prepare for a force majeure situation: save contacts of the support service and inform the hotel about a late check-in. This way you will know that you will not be left without a roof over your head, and then they will announce boarding for the flight.

FLIGHT DELAYED

According to paragraph 99 of the Federal Aviation Regulations, the airline is obliged, at its own expense and regardless of the reasons for the flight delay, to organize luggage storage and provide a mother and child room for passengers with children under seven years of age.

If you wait more than two hours, you must be given refreshments and given the opportunity to make two FREE phone calls or send two emails. Four hours late - hot lunch or dinner.

If you are stuck longer, then you should feed every six hours during the day and every eight hours at night.

If your flight is delayed by six hours at night and eight hours during the day, you must be accommodated in a hotel and taken to it, as well as taken back to the airport.

The rules are the same in any case - the plane is stuck due to bad weather or due to a breakdown. Where should I go for this? To the airline representative. If you can’t find it, contact the airport information desk.

But that’s how it’s supposed to be by law. But what if the airline representative just shrugs and doesn’t approach the information desk - there are hundreds of passengers around it who find themselves in the same plight? Here the law stipulates how you should act.

Feel free to use everything you are entitled to, paying at your own expense. But at the same time, collect documents confirming your expenses, the Society for the Protection of Consumer Rights “Public Control” explained to us. - If you run out of food at the airport, take a taxi and go to the nearest stores and buy groceries there.

But at the same time, be sure to obtain a certificate from the airport administration confirming the fact of the delay or cancellation of the flight. Please note: if there is no electricity at the airport and you cannot get receipts for food in a cafe, then sellers are obliged, at your request, to issue receipts indicating the name of the product (service), price and date of sale. Such receipts will be full evidence for obtaining compensation.

Those who did not have enough places in hotels slept on armchairs Photo: Vladimir VELENGURIN

If you ordered a taxi to the airport and did not take a receipt, you can ask the transport company to issue you a certificate indicating the date and cost of the trip. It is better to make such a request in writing.

So, to receive compensation you need to collect the following documents:

- certificate of flight delay,
- detailed bill for cellular calls,
- bills for food in a cafe, receipts for buying groceries in a store,
- bills for hotel accommodation,
- receipts for taxi services.

You can present these documents to the airline with a requirement to reimburse all costs. If the company refuses, go to court.

Some airlines announce not a delay, but a complete cancellation of the flight - are there any guarantees for passengers (food, hotel) in this case?

This is a cunning move that complicates obtaining guarantees and compensation for passengers, admits Public Control lawyer Maria Sviridova. - But based on the Civil and Air Codes, if the air carrier refuses to fulfill the contract of carriage unilaterally, then it is obliged to compensate passengers for all losses incurred. If you have to wait for the next flight, then in such losses you can safely include the costs of food, hotel, taxi, etc. - at the same rates as in case of a flight delay.

THE PLANE WILL NOT TAKE OFF

You were let into the cabin, but the plane did not take off for an hour, two, three... This also happened at “besieged” airports. This situation is equivalent to a flight delay. You must be provided with drinks and food based on the same standards.

CAN'T MAKE YOUR CONNECTING FLIGHT

Many passengers - both those stuck at the airports of the Moscow air hub and those waiting for a flight to Moscow at Russian and foreign airports - were unable to get on connecting flights. The first flight was delayed, which means we didn't get on the second one either.

At the airport of departure, you need to get a note on your ticket (printed electronic ticket) that your plane could not take off on time for such and such a reason and was delayed for such and such a time. And at the transfer airport (when you get there), contact an airline representative with a request to rebook a ticket for another flight. This is where you will need a note on the ticket confirming your innocence of being late.

It may turn out that the next flight is only tomorrow. The airline responsible for the delay must compensate for expenses for hotel and food. Collect receipts, receipts, and other proof of expenses. And upon your return, write a claim demanding compensation for losses caused by poor quality of air transportation services. If you are forced to buy a new ticket with your own money, then you will also have the right to demand its cost (along with penalties and compensation) from the airline whose flight was delayed. To do this, first submit a written claim for compensation of losses, and if it is refused or if you have not received an answer within 10 days, you can go to court.

MISSING DAY OF REST

You were flying on vacation. But instead of lounging on the beach, you “sunbathe” in the waiting room. Due to a flight delay, paid vacation days were lost.

As a rule, it is possible to obtain compensation after returning. You can demand from the airline to compensate for the cost of services lost due to lateness: time spent at the hotel, meals, if paid for, excursions, etc. At the hotel, it makes no sense to demand money for a “missed” day, it has nothing to do with it.

Is the company to blame if a flight is delayed due to bad weather? It's all a matter of nuances: if, in addition to bad weather, there were some failures in the work of the aviators (for example, they did not de-ice the plane or the runway on time) - then yes. You can demand compensation from her for expenses (for paying for a hotel while waiting for the next flight, a “missing” day of rest in a hotel, money for those days that you were not paid, etc.). If the carrier acted impeccably, no. But! The airline must provide hot meals, hotel accommodation and everything that is required in case of a long flight delay in any case.

IF THE DEPARTURE IS TODAY AND YOU DO NOT KNOW THE SITUATION AT THE AIRPORT...

1. Before leaving for the airport, check the departure information for your flight on the online board on the Internet.

2. Register in advance for your flight on the airline's website. There are now problems with check-in at airports, and if you already have a boarding pass, then you must be allowed into the departure hall, and there is a high chance of taking off on the next flight.

IMPORTANT!

Most passengers do not know about this secret: if you purchase a ticket from an airline that is registered in the European Union, then transportation will be carried out in accordance with the rules of the Montreal Convention of May 28, 1999. This document establishes the general rules for compensation and assistance to passengers in the event of denied boarding and cancellation or long-term delay of a flight. Thus, the minimum compensation payment is 250 euros for a flight of less than 1,500 kilometers with a flight delay of just over two hours. If you fly further, the compensation amount will be 400 euros. If the flight is over 3.5 thousand kilometers - 600 euros.

Is it possible to cancel the tour?

Impressed by what is happening at airports now, you decided not to risk it and return your tour package and air tickets. The question is whether you will get your money back. In the case of the current bad weather - no. You can demand a 100% refund if the traveler can prove that there was a real threat to his life and health.

It is difficult to prove this in practice. A strong argument for the court may be the conclusion of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs that at the start of the tour an unfavorable or dangerous situation has developed in the country or region and Russians are not recommended to visit this country. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs rarely issues such documents.

The general rule for refunds for purchased tours is this: the tour operator must return everything to you except for the expenses actually incurred by him. If there are, say, a few days left before departure, these expenses already make up a large part of the cost of the trip.

Is it possible to reduce losses from a vacation ruined by a flight delay?