Passengers not only have to consider many details of the journey and ensure they have their documents with them, but they also have to stay alert in case of unexpected situations. A single decision could prevent you from reaching your destination and even receiving compensation.
The 2024 Court Ruling That Still Affects Your Rights in 2025
On 25 January 2024, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) clarified how Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 applies to long delays. The Court addressed a common question: if a flight is announced as heavily delayed, can a passenger decide not to take that flight and still claim the standard €250–€600 compensation for a delay of more than three hours? The CJEU said that in many cases the answer is no. The ruling explained that this lump-sum compensation is meant to cover serious “loss of time” suffered by passengers who are actually affected by the delay, and that simply choosing not to travel on the delayed flight may remove that entitlement. This interpretation remains in force in 2025 and has not been overturned.
Was Your Flight Disrupted? Turn your delayed, cancelled or overbooked flight into a compensation up to €600!
Two Different Decisions Lead To One Judicial Solution
A delay exceeding 3 hours was announced for two Laudamotion flights from Düsseldorf to Palma de Mallorca. Worried that this delay would cause them to miss a business meeting, two passengers chose not to board their delayed flights. The first passenger’s flight ultimately arrived 3 hours and 32 minutes late, but the passenger decided not to show up at the airport, and not to check in for his flight. Meanwhile, the second passenger independently booked an alternative flight and reached the destination less than 3 hours later than the original flight’s scheduled arrival time.
Legal Approach to the Situation
The first passenger submitted his claim to a German court since his original flight was delayed by more than 3 hours. As a result, the German Federal Court of Justice has sought clarification from the Court of Justice of the EU.
The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) ruled that the passengers were not entitled to compensation in both cases. The very principle of The Air Passengers Rights Regulation 2004 (Regulation (EC) No 261/2004) for both cancelled and long delays (over 3 hours) is to compensate passengers for disruptions they have suffered due to time lost.
However, a passenger who did not go to the airport has not likely suffered such a loss of time. Moreover, when a flight is affected by a long delay, the intention is that it still will be completed; so accordingly, a check-in must be carried out.
Therefore, within the limits of the Regulation, it is too difficult to assess whether the passenger has suffered any damage for which compensation is due. Consequently, in the case of a delay (as opposed to a cancellation), the passenger must still appear at the airport and check-in for their trip.
It is also stated that if they did not fly and experienced any loss as a consequence (such as missing a business meeting, as in this example), the passenger may seek compensation for damages through the general procedure (based on national or international law), but not under Regulation EC261/04.
One More Scenario
Consider a scenario involving connecting flights: the circumstance where the airline reservation number remains identical for both flights and one of them is delayed and you miss the connecting flight. The airline gives you an alternative flight even if it is genuinely not appealing and you turn it down.
It is important to bear in mind that compensation applies only when passengers wait and use the provided alternative flights. Since they have chosen not to wait for the alternative flight, EC261/04 compensation is not applicable in this case as well. Additionally, airlines do not have to cover any expenses of newly purchased flight tickets.
Was Your Flight Disrupted? Turn your delayed, cancelled or overbooked flight into a compensation up to €600!
Missed Connections, Future Rules, and What To Do Next
It’s a whole different situation if your flight is cancelled less than 14 days before the scheduled date of your flight.
If you have any concerns or questions about the Regulation or its guidelines, feel free to contact Skycop at https://www.skycop.com/contact-us/
