How long can charter flights be delayed. The Russians staged a charter nightmare. Where to find information about delays of regular and charter flights

Impressions from a long-awaited vacation may be blurred through no fault of yours. Reports of long flight delays and outraged passengers whose rights have been violated appear regularly. It is important not to forget that the procedure for both tourists and airlines is clearly regulated. About how to behave and what you can count on if you find yourself in an unpleasant situation, we will learn from the head of the legal department of Persona Grata Legal Agency LLC Irina Dotsenko.

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In accordance with paragraph 99 of the Rules for Air Transportation, in the event of a break in transportation due to the fault of the carrier, as well as in the event of a delay or cancellation of a flight due to adverse meteorological conditions, for technical and other reasons, changes in the route of transportation, the carrier is obliged to arrange for passengers at the points of departure and intermediate points for the following services:

1. Provision of rooms for mother and child to a passenger with a child under the age of 7;
2. Two phone calls or two emails when waiting for a flight to depart for more than two hours;
3. Provision of soft drinks while waiting for the flight departure for more than two hours;
4. Providing hot meals while waiting for the departure of the flight for more than 4 hours and then every 6 hours during the day and every 8 hours - at night;
5. Accommodation in a hotel while waiting for the departure of the flight for more than 8 hours during the day and more than 6 hours - at night;
6. Delivery by transport from the airport to the hotel and back in cases where the hotel is provided without charging an additional fee;
7. Organization of luggage storage.

These services are provided to passengers at no additional charge. The flight departure waiting time starts from the flight departure time specified in the ticket.

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It is quite realistic to receive compensation from the airline in the event of a flight delay and failure to provide the services required by law.

And here is what you need to do for this:

Firstly, the passenger needs to contact the airline representative at the airport (airport employee at the information desk) and obtain a document confirming the flight delay (as a rule, the flight delay is noted on the itinerary receipt or boarding pass). Next, you need to collect all checks confirming the expenses you incurred due to the flight delay, and upon arrival at your destination, send a claim to the airline demanding compensation for moral damage. If the airline refuses to satisfy your requirements on a voluntary basis, you can go to court.

According to the Federal Law of April 3, 2017 N 52-FZ, Russia joined the 1999 Montreal Convention on the Unification of the Rules for International Air Transportation, which has already been ratified by more than 120 countries. What will change for air passengers?

Rospotrebnadzor reports that bringing air legislation in line with the norms of the Montreal Convention will significantly improve the rights of consumers of services in the field of passenger air transportation by raising the upper limit of compensation paid for violations of transportation rules.

If, according to the Air Code of the Russian Federation, the company's liability for damage due to a flight delay is 1875 RUB for each hour of downtime (but not more than 50% of the ticket price), then under the new rules, compensation will be limited not to half the cost of the ticket, but to the amount of 332 thousand .RUB.

The amount of compensation for the loss of luggage by the carrier currently cannot exceed 600 RUB per 1 kg (for luggage) and 11 thousand RUB for hand luggage if the cost of luggage cannot be accurately determined. According to the Montreal Convention, the carrier's liability in case of destruction, loss, damage or delay is limited to about RUB 78,000 per passenger.

The amount of compensation in case of damage to the life and health of a passenger under the Air Code of the Russian Federation cannot exceed 2 million RUB. The Montreal Convention raises the specified limit by almost 4 times and provides that in respect of harm to the life and health of a passenger, if it does not exceed the amount of about 7.8 million rubles, the carrier cannot exclude or limit its liability.

As a result of the long delay, the rest time at the resort has been reduced. To whom should tourists address the claim?

In the event that the flight is charter, the claim is sent to the tour operator. If we are talking about a scheduled flight, the claim can be sent to either the tour operator or the carrier.

What are the chances of getting compensation for a delayed flight?

By virtue of paragraph 1 of Art. 28 of the Law of the Russian Federation "On Protection of Consumer Rights", the passenger has the right to demand full compensation for losses caused to him in connection with the violation of the terms for the provision of services. In accordance with Art. 15 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, a person whose right has been violated may demand full compensation for the losses caused to him, unless the law or the contract provides for compensation for losses in a smaller amount. Damages are understood as expenses that the person whose right has been violated has made or will have to make in order to restore the violated right.

Based on Art. 15 of the Law of the Russian Federation "On the Protection of Consumer Rights", the moral harm caused to the consumer as a result of the seller's violation of the consumer's rights provided for by the laws and legal acts of the Russian Federation regulating relations in the field of consumer rights protection is subject to compensation by the tortfeasor in the presence of his fault. The amount of compensation for moral damage is determined by the court and does not depend on the amount of compensation for property damage.

Situations when both charter and regular flights to popular tourist destinations depart late are not uncommon. I hope that my answer will be useful not only to those who buy a full tour package, which already includes the cost of the flight, but also to those who book tickets on their own.

In accordance with Art. 9 of the Federal Law "On the basics of tourism activities" the tour operator is responsible for the actions of suppliers who provide services included in the tourism product. However, in accordance with the same article, the tour operator is not responsible for the actions of service providers, if there are special legal acts that directly provide for their responsibility. In this case, there are such acts, these are the Air Code and the Federal Aviation Rules, which provide that in the event of a flight delay, the air carrier is responsible for all property and moral damage caused to the passenger.

If you booked and bought tickets on your own, you will need to prove that your rights have been infringed. To do this, you need to create a package of documents:
air ticket with a note about the flight delay (or its cancellation);
a certificate indicating the reason for the delay in departure;
documentary evidence of all independent costs: checks, invoices, etc.;
a ticket that had to be purchased due to being late for a scheduled connecting flight.

After that, submit a claim to the airline in writing, attaching copies of documents confirming the right to compensation. If the appeal was ignored or the perpetrators refused to compensate for the costs, you can sue them.
And who will answer to the tourist if, for example, due to a late departure, he actually lost a whole day of paid rest, or, as we see from the letter, two whole days?

According to the law "On the basics of tourism activities in the Russian Federation", the terms of the tour are an integral part of the contract. And any change in travel dates must be agreed with the tourist. So you can send a claim to the tour operator - most likely, it will be satisfied. But even here there are nuances. Travel time is agreed on dates, not hours. And if the tourist arrives at the place of rest not in the morning, as expected, but in the evening - having lost the light part of the day, but still on the date specified in the contract, it will not be possible to receive compensation.

A tourist, buying a tourist product with air travel included, draws up a deal with a number of documents. One of these documents is an agreement between him and the air carrier (ticket), which regulates all aspects of the provision of air transportation services. It states that the airline is responsible for any flight delay. The same provision is spelled out in the regulatory document on flight delays - the Federal Aviation Rules, approved by order of the Ministry of Transport of the Russian Federation of June 28, 2007 No. 82.
However, there is a Decree of the Plenum of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation of June 28, 2012 "On the consideration by courts of civil cases on disputes on the protection of consumer rights", which clarified the responsibility of the carrier and operator for the services they provide:
paragraph 50 When applying consumer protection legislation to relations related to the provision of tourist services, the courts should take into account that the responsibility to the tourist and (or) other customer for the quality of fulfillment of obligations under the contract for the sale of the tourist product, concluded by the travel agent as on behalf of the operator, and on its own behalf, the tour operator bears (including for failure to provide or improper provision of services included in the tourist product to tourists, regardless of who should have provided or provided these services), if federal laws or other regulatory legal acts of the Russian Federation do not it was established that a third party is responsible to tourists (Article 9 of the Federal Law of November 24, 1996 No. 132-FZ “On the Fundamentals of Tourism Activities”).

In this regard, draw the attention of the courts to the fact that, for example, in cases and disputes arising in connection with the implementation of charter air transportation of passengers as part of the execution of a contract for the sale of a tourist product, the tour operator is recognized as the proper defendant and the executor of the contract of transportation with the consumer, which in accordance with paragraph 2 of Article 638 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation, without the consent of the lessor, under a lease (charter for a time) of a vehicle, on its own behalf, conclude transportation contracts with third parties.

Thus, the new regulation actually divided the responsibility between the carrier and the tour operator for different types of transportation. For scheduled transportation, the carrier is responsible, as provided for in the Air and Civil Codes. But the charter is run by the tour operator and make claims
now it will be necessary to go to him, as stated in the second paragraph [clause 50 of the Resolution], but the documents that must be submitted to the tour operator will remain the same as for self-booking.
In this regard, the question arises: who then will be responsible for ensuring proper conditions for passengers while waiting for the departure of a delayed flight? So let us recall that the obligation to provide accommodation and hot meals to passengers lies with the air carrier in accordance with the Federal Aviation Rules, and no one has removed it from him and is unlikely to remove it. The carrier still performs this function, and the operator will be responsible to the tourist, since charter transportation is part of the tourist product.

So do not be afraid and demand money for your ruined vacation, because you earned it for a whole year.

A flight delay is an unpleasant but relatively common situation that can happen at the very beginning of a trip. The reasons are quite varied: bad weather conditions, technical problems in the aircraft, heavy loading of the airport airspace, internal problems of the airline, etc. No matter what caused the flight delay, there is no need to be scared or confused. Below we will look at what to do if your flight is delayed.

Passenger rights in case of flight delay

Whether you are flying on a charter or regular flight, a major air carrier, or the same, the passenger's rights in case of a flight delay are the same.

It must be remembered that all issues during a flight delay must be resolved with representatives of the airline, and not with airport services. In turn, in case of problems with the departure at the scheduled time, the airline is obliged to immediately notify you of the reasons and timing of the flight delay.

Where to apply?

Unfortunately, when it comes to respecting all the rights of passengers, airlines are far from always showing their proactivity, so you should know all the rules yourself and feel free to remind the representatives of the carrier at the airport about them.

Where can I find an airline representative? The right person may be at your flight check-in counter, at your airline's sales office at the airport, or at the boarding gate itself. If the search was unsuccessful, feel free to call the airline number indicated on your ticket.

Watch the clock

• Families with small passengers under 7 years old are entitled to access to an equipped and comfortable room for mother and child, even if the flight delay is insignificant in time.
• With a 2-hour flight delay, you can make 2 free calls or send 2 e-mails. In addition, you should have access to soft drinks.
• A flight delay of more than 4 hours already implies the provision of hot meals by the airline. Usually this is a coupon for a certain amount for ordering food at one of the airport restaurants. You must receive this service every 6 hours during the day and every 8 hours at night.
• If the flight delay time reaches 8 hours (or 6 hours at night), the airline is obliged to accommodate you in a hotel, arrange transportation there and back, and also provide free luggage storage at the airport's storage room. If for some reason you are not satisfied with the conditions of accommodation in a hotel (for example, it is unacceptable for people who do not know each other to stay in the same room), you can independently find a hotel room, remembering to keep all documents confirming personal expenses. This will help you later claim compensation for your flight delay.

Filing a claim and compensation for a flight delay

Plane delays are not pleasant not only due to unplanned waiting, but can also entail certain losses: a missed business meeting, being late for a connecting flight of another airline, a paid but not used hotel reservation. In this case, any victim has the right to file a flight delay claim and receive compensation. However, it should be borne in mind that this rule is valid only when the flight delay arose due to the fault of the airline itself. For example, bad weather conditions or an overcrowded airport will not be a reason to claim compensation.

In order to competently draw up a claim, you need to collect as many documents as possible confirming the fact of the aircraft delay. Immediately after the announcement of the delay, ask the representatives of the company to make a note about this on your ticket, and when boarding the plane - the actual time of departure. Keep all receipts showing your personal expenses during the flight delay.

To receive compensation for the flight delay, the claim with all the attached evidence must be submitted to the airline within 6 months after arrival. If there is no response within 30 days, you can immediately apply to the court.

The amount of compensation is 25% of the minimum wage for each hour of delay, but not more than 50% of the cost of your ticket.

Now you know everything about what to do if your flight is delayed. We wish you pleasant travels!

https://www.site/2017-06-08/eksperty_obyasnili_s_chem_svyazany_zaderzhki_charternyh_reysov

“Neither tour operators nor air carriers were ready for such a demand”

Experts explain why charter flight delays are connected

Igor Grom

In recent weeks, information about delays in charter flights has appeared almost daily. The problem has already affected several thousand tourists: people wait for hours at airports for flights to resorts, mainly to Turkey and Greece. The charter program of the VIM-Avia airline was actually disrupted, and there were also delays, for example, at Pegas Fly, Rossiya, NordStar. Experts note that tour operators and airlines were not ready for the explosive demand for foreign destinations. The Federal Air Transport Agency instructed airlines to solve the problem with massive flight delays until June 20.

“This year, the demand for foreign tourism has grown significantly, and we expect it to reach the pre-crisis level. Neither tour operators nor air carriers were ready for such a demand.

However, the early booking was very successful. But now we see the reverse side of this coin,” Mikhail Maltsev, Executive Director of the Ural Tourism Association, told the website.

Natalia Khanina

According to Yekaterinburg Koltsovo Airport, the number of passengers on international flights in January-May 2017 increased by 70% compared to the same period last year. If you look at the indicators only in May, the increase is even more significant - 81.5%. For comparison: the number of passengers on domestic flights increased in January-May by only 10%.

Headquarters in Rostourism headed by Mutko will solve problems with VIM-Avia charters

The most serious problems arose with the VIM-Avia airline, which explained the disruption of the charter program by a banal lack of boards and a sharp increase in passenger traffic. Thus, three aircraft of the airline failed to return from maintenance in time, which eventually led to the rolling nature of delays and transfers of the company's flights, and the company decided to cancel part of the charters. Transport prosecutor's offices in the regions announced an inspection of the airline. Yesterday, the Rostourism hosted the first meeting of the operational headquarters under the leadership of the Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation Vitaly Mutko regarding the problems of VIM-Avia. Following the meeting, the department made a statement that, first of all, attention will be paid to sending tourists to the southern resorts of Russia. For those tourists who were going to fly to Turkey, Bulgaria or Cyprus, the Federal Tourism Agency is considering the option of adjusting the flight program in the direction of China, the Federal Tourism Agency explained.

In addition to VIM-Avia, tonight, for example, a flight from Yekaterinburg to Vietnam was delayed for 16 hours. Prior to this, many hours of delay were, in particular, at Rossiya and NordStar.

As Mikhail Maltsev explained, in recent years, almost every major tour operator from the TOP-10 has either acquired its own airline or signed a contract with an airline engaged in charter flights. “This is very costly, and due to significant lease payments, they simply do not have the opportunity to have reserve aircraft, unlike large air carriers like Aeroflot or Ural Airlines, which mainly operate regular flights. And in the event of some technical difficulty with the aircraft, even if the backup aircraft is not at the point of departure, it can quickly arrive at the required airport, pick up people, and thus the problem will be solved in a short time with minimal costs, ”says Maltsev .

Meanwhile, today, June 8, Rosaviatsia issued an official announcement that until June 20, charter airlines must adjust their transportation program to address problems with delays and flight cancellations. The head of the Federal Air Transport Agency, Alexander Neradko, pointed to the discrepancy between the programs of charter airlines and their real capabilities. “Over the past five months of 2017, there has been a significant increase in passenger traffic, which is 22% of the volume of the same period last year. At the same time, charter airlines increased their performance by one and a half to two times. Such an increase in traffic volumes was not supported by the availability of an appropriate fleet of aircraft and aviation personnel, ”concluded the Federal Air Transport Agency.

Flight delays- This is a common occurrence in the work of air carriers. Passengers who have to fly frequently face this all the time. The reasons for this phenomenon can be completely different - from non-flying weather to technical problems.

To date, the legislation of most countries, including Russia and Europe, stipulates the liability of airlines for a flight delay. Liability arises even in cases where the cause does not depend on the carrier.

Passengers who find themselves in such a situation are provided with a place in a hotel, meals, communication services, and drinks. But most importantly, such passengers are entitled to a cash payment.

List of documents for monetary compensation

In order to receive payment for a flight delay, you must submit a claim to the carrier in writing. Documents (copies) confirming the right to monetary compensation are attached to it. These are the following documents:

• Flights with a mark from the airport services about the fact of a flight delay. It can also be certificates that are assured by representatives of the airport or airline.
• Receipts, cash receipts, which confirm the amount of expenses incurred.

You need to know that if the flight was delayed on a domestic flight and the carrier company, respectively, is Russian, then all claims will be accepted for consideration in accordance with the legislation of the Russian Federation. If the carrier is an airline of another country, but the flight is delayed on the territory of the Russian Federation, claims are also considered according to Russian law. But if the flight is delayed on the territory of another country, the situation will be considered according to the laws of the country where the incident occurred. In this situation, it does not matter whose airline.

Cash compensation for a flight delay in the EU

In the European Union, the regulation of relations between a passenger and an airline is prescribed in Regulation No. 261/2004 of the European Parliament and the Council of the EU. According to the text of this document, the airline pays compensation for a flight delay, its amount depends on the time of delay and the distance of the flight.

Cash compensation for a flight delay in Russia

In Russia, such situations are dealt with by Article 126 of the Air Code of the Russian Federation. According to the article, the passenger can file a claim within six months from the date of arrival. This can be done by registered letter, with a full list of attached documents, or in person. It is better to keep a copy of the claim and receipts proving the sending of papers for litigation. You should go to court if the perpetrator refuses to pay compensation or if there is no response to your appeal.
The court will need documents: a statement of claim, a ticket with a note about the cancellation of the flight (or its delay), a written claim to the air carrier, documents confirming the cost of food, accommodation, cellular communications.

Regular flights and charter. Is there a difference in liability for a delayed flight?

The question often arises, are there any differences in the actions of injured passengers if the flight was a charter one? First you need to understand what is the difference between a charter and a scheduled flight.
Regular flights - regular flights on a fixed schedule. In the case of international flights, all disputes are governed by intergovernmental regulations. At any ticket office, you can find instructions for booking, selling tickets, as well as for flight cancellation situations.

Charter flights- these are flights that are organized according to a charter agreement between the airline and the tour operator. These flights often do not have an exact departure schedule (accuracy up to 3-5 hours). Air tickets for charter flights are bought from a tour operator (charter owner), you cannot buy such tickets at ticket offices.

air ticket- this is an agreement between the passenger and the airline that the carrier is obliged to deliver the passenger and his belongings safe and sound, and the passenger, accordingly, pay for these services.

The Air and Civil Code of the Russian Federation stipulates that the airline is responsible for the cancellation or delay of a flight. Thus, there is no difference which flight is delayed or delayed. In the event of a flight delay, the carrier must provide the passenger with a set of services prescribed by law, and in some cases also pay compensation.

What is a Russian airline obliged to do in case of a flight delay in the Russian Federation?

If the flight was delayed by more than 2 hours:

1. The airline is obliged to provide the opportunity to make a phone call (including abroad) or two messages by e-mail.
2. Required to provide refreshments.

If there is a flight delay of more than 4 hours:

1. Hot meals are provided.
2. Further, hot meals should be provided every six hours during the day and eight hours at night.

If the flight is delayed by more than 6-8 hours:

1. Hotel accommodation during the day if the flight delay is 8 hours, at night if 6 hours.
2. Free transport from the airport to the hotel.

All of the above services are provided free of charge, regardless of whether the charter or regular flight is delayed.