Originally Posted by
stifle
I have won compensation on a case where I argued, amongst other things, that rain at LHR was not extraordinary. BA conceded and settled a day before the court deadline.
It is not reasonable, but the law expects them to, and in that respect, the law is an arse.
The EU261 regulation, as passed, made no reference to delays incurring compensation. Delay compensation in the EU was created out of whole cloth in an outlandish exercise in judicial lawmaking by the ECJ. I do not believe the lawmakers ever envisaged that passengers should receive windfalls of cash if a pilot happens to fall ill at an outstation.
For better or worse EU261 has evolved considerably since its inception and I think it is now recognised that delays and cancellations can cause identical inconvenience justifying identical compensation. Of course it doesn't quite work like that, as delays are in many ways still treated less favourably than cancellations (e.g. you have to be delayed by 5 hours before the right to re-routing/refunds etc. kicks in, and you have to actually travel on the delayed flight to get compensation) but that is the gist of it.
This has been recognised by the incorporation of the
Sturgeon case, along with several other precedents, into UK261 earlier this year. There is therefore now a clear statutory basis for such compensation, and I can't see the artificial distinction between a delay and a cancellation being resurrected if or when either the British or EU version is replaced.
Originally Posted by
stifle
But we are where we are – and where we are, of course, is that the cost of said monetary showers is passed on in inflated airfares.
I haven't seen any evidence that the cost of EU/UK261 has had a material impact on airfares. Airfares are priced based on demand, not a basic cost-plus model. Sure, it'll have an impact on profits but the industry is still growing at a voracious pace, limited only by the availability of aircraft and airport capacity.
Ryanair purported to separate out the cost of EU261 compliance in much the same way that easyJet included an "administration" fee, and Lufty is now adding a SAF surcharge. But all of these are essentially arbitrary distinctions or divisions used to make a political point - the only figure that people really look at is the total they need to pay. Airlines know this and will play games such as offering flights for "free" or for £1 (whilst adding on a hefty YQ) to make sure they remain competitive.