Travellers rights after the volcano eruption in Iceland 
 

European Consumer Centre gives passengers advice on their rights in case of flight cancellations due to “extraordinary circumstances”, such as the recent event of volcano eruption.

According to EU Regulation no.  261/2004, passengers shall be offered the choice between:

- reimbursement of the full cost of the ticket (for the part or parts of the journey not made);

- re-routing, under comparable transport conditions, to their final destination at the earliest opportunity or at a later date at the passenger's convenience.
 

Moreover, passengers shall be offered free of charge assistance in relation to the waiting time (meals, refreshments, two telephone calls, telex or fax messages, or e-mails and - if relevant - hotel accommodation and transport between the airport and place of accommodation)

However, passengers are not entitled to receive compensation, because the flight cancellation was due to extraordinary circumstances.

Regarding Alitalia flights, until May 31 all passengers affected by cancellations who are unable to reschedule their flights or unwilling to accept rerouting on alternative flights can ask for a full ticket refund without penalty. Passengers should turn to either their Travel Agency (in case of tickets purchased through Agencies) or to Alitalia customer service, by calling the toll free number 800.650055 or sending an email to assistenza@alitalia.it, specifying their personal data, together with the cancelled flight number and scheduled date of departure.


Moreover, the European Commission has provided consumers with:

- a press releases to help volcanic ash crisis passengers claim their rights(http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.doreference=IP/10/492&format=HTML&aged=0&language=EN&guiLanguage=en)

- a list of useful links:

• Links to Airlines Associations:

http://www.iata.org/membership/Pages/airline_members_list.aspx Association of the airlines wordlwide. Direct contact of the Head Offices are provided By clicking on the link you're redirected to the main airline web site

http://www.aea.be/about/memberairlines/index.html Association of European airlines. Direct contact of the Head Offices are provided. By clicking on the logo you're redirected to the main airline web site

http://www.eraa.org/airlines.php Association of European Regional airlines. Some are already included in IATA website, some are not.  By clicking on the link you're redirected to the main airline web site

http://www.elfaa.com/members.htm  Association of european low cost airlines.  By clicking on the logo you're redirected to the main airline web site

http://www.iaca.be/index.cfm?E9B31D6E-65B8-CEEE-A4A1-D03907F4E828 International Air Carrier association. Some of them are not included in previous links. By clicking on the logo you're redirected to the main airline web site
 

• Link to a list of the National Enforcement Bodies in each Member State:
  http://ec.europa.eu/transport/passengers/air/doc/national_enforcement_bodies.pdf
  
   

• Links to a list of notified small claims procedure:
  http://ec.europa.eu/justice_home/judicialatlascivil/html/sc_information_en.htm?countrySession=21&

The document of most frequent questions and answers on passengers rights is currently being updated by the EC.

Regarding package holidays, the European Commission, apart from giving a link to a Travel Agents' and Tour Operators' Association (http://www.ectaa.org/Home/Links/tabid/85/Default.aspx#512), has created a proper claiming form, which can be downloaded by clicking here (english version)
 

Finally, here you can find also an excel document containing information on the principal ADR Bodies in EU

For further information:
ECC-Net Italia
info@ecc-net.it
Tel 0644238090