EU261 compensation eligibility question after Lufthansa flight cancellation/delay

[KiwiFlyer79]

My husband and I recently flew Lufthansa Premium Economy from the US to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia via Frankfurt. No issues on the way over but on our return journey after checking in at Riyadh and waiting for an hour in the gate lounge, we received a flight cancellation text just after midnight. No explanation just cancelled.

Eventually airport/Lufthansa staff came up and explained the process but in the meantime we had received automatically generated rebooking on flights two days later. We frantically looked for options to get back sooner but nothing really gained much time so we gave in to the process.

Lufthansa put us up in an airport hotel which was very pleasant and two days later we returned to the airport and made both of our flights without issue back to the US.

I contacted the airline for reimbursement of minor expenses relating to the first night getting back to the airport hotel and submitted a claim for compensation under EU261 under which we satisfied all relevant criteria. However, Lufthansa came back denying the compensation claim saying that our final destination was the US and therefore EU261 did not apply (we are talking about about 600 Euros pp). I have read and reread EU261 and nowhere does it state that the final destination of your total itinerary negates the ability to claim for compensation. The facts are our flight was operated by an EU carrier, was cancelled without reason and we were delayed for 48 hours from a destination originating outside of the EU but terminating inside the EU.

I replied to Lufthansa and stated we had met all the criteria and their interpretation was not in line with the regulations. They have told me to lodge a claim through Alternative Dispute Resolution via Schlichtungsstelle Reise & Verkehr e.V..

Has anyone had a similar situation where the EU airline denied the claim on the basis you had an onward second flight travelling to a destination outside the EU and directed you to this organisation? From what I can see it is legitimate and a government based organisation but I don't want to get involved in some third party company that tries to take a huge chunk of any final compensation granted.

I'm disappointed with Lufthansa response in equal amounts as I was with their sub-par Premium Economy offering. Never again.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

Unfortunately Lufthansa has correctly applied the law as it currently stands (judgment issued in 2022).

A ‘flight’ is considered as a whole, origin to destination. Even if that includes a stop or transit in the EU. Passengers originating and ending outside the EU are therefore not covered by EU261.

You can find some more detail in this thread: EU261 refused by Lufthansa due to trip between non EU countries - FlyerTalk Forums

 

[KiwiFlyer79]

Unfortunately Lufthansa has correctly applied the law as it currently stands (judgment issued in 2022).

A ‘flight’ is considered as a whole, origin to destination. Even if that includes a stop or transit in the EU. Passengers originating and ending outside the EU are therefore not covered by EU261.

You can find some more detail in this thread: EU261 refused by Lufthansa due to trip between non EU countries - FlyerTalk Forums

Thank you. I wish that detail was included in the actual language of the regulation because it definitely does not read that way. I've read the link you included. Very informative and much appreciated. Merry Christmas!!

 

[MEL_Traveller]

Thank you. I wish that detail was included in the actual language of the regulation because it definitely does not read that way. I've read the link you included. Very informative and much appreciated. Merry Christmas!!

It’s like a lot of regulations… a lot was undefined and it was up to the courts to interpret. This has happened over 20 years.

The courts have ruled that connecting flights outside the EU, even if not operated by an EU carrier, can be eligible for compensation. This means a flight HEL-HKG-SYD, where the HKG-SYD is operated by Cathay pacific, will be subject to compensation if Cathay’s flight is delayed.

The court takes the whole journey into account… the origin (EU) through to the conclusion (SYD). Airlines tried to argue that the connecting flight was a separate flight… but the courts said ‘no, they have to be considered as one’.

Unfortunately… the byproduct of this approach is that the reverse is also true. If the whole journey doesn’t start or end in the EU, there’s no cover, even if the connecting flights themselves, if treated separately, would be eligible.

Of course the above doesn’t apply if you have a stopover in the EU… as in more than 24 hours. In that case flights are treated separately.