I could have made that connection!
Jul 10, 2019, 3:55 am
#16
Join Date: Jul 2017
Programs: Miles & More, BA Executive Club
Posts: 751
EU261/2004 does apply here. Fortunately for you because you were on a connecting flight and you encountered IIROPS, then the threshold is as low as 1 hour (but you only get €125 instead of €250 for two hours). As you got to your destination between 2-4 hours after then you are entitled to compensation. Please apply to LH and insist if they fob you off. I’m sure they will tell you the inbound was held due to ATC restrictions, which is their usual excuse and then doesn’t mean they have to pay out and hope you go away. They have to prove to you it’s an ATC restriction, if they don’t then contact your consumer protection authority and take things from there.
Jul 10, 2019, 7:54 am
#17
Moderator: Lufthansa Miles & More, India based airlines, India, External Miles & Points Resources
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: MUC
Programs: LH SEN
Posts: 48,162
The hard part is, you never know if you will need a G to K/L transfer or not. If your flight arrives in K/L and leaves K/L, all good. Same for G/G connections but like I had last time, arriving H via bus from remote stand, leaving K via bus to a remote stand... that is stressful.
Jul 10, 2019, 8:26 am
#18
Join Date: Sep 2012
Location: AGH
Posts: 5,971
Jul 10, 2019, 9:09 am
#19
Senior Moderator, Moderator: Community Buzz and Ambassador: Miles & More (Lufthansa, Austrian, Swiss, and other partners)
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: 150km from MAN
Programs: LH SEN** HH Diamond
Posts: 29,512
EU261/2004 does apply here. Fortunately for you because you were on a connecting flight and you encountered IIROPS, then the threshold is as low as 1 hour (but you only get €125 instead of €250 for two hours). As you got to your destination between 2-4 hours after then you are entitled to compensation. Please apply to LH and insist if they fob you off. I’m sure they will tell you the inbound was held due to ATC restrictions, which is their usual excuse and then doesn’t mean they have to pay out and hope you go away. They have to prove to you it’s an ATC restriction, if they don’t then contact your consumer protection authority and take things from there.
Jul 10, 2019, 3:00 pm
#20
Join Date: Jul 2017
Programs: Miles & More, BA Executive Club
Posts: 751
I imagine that LH will give this as an excuse to avoid paying out money and hope the OP just walks away, knowing that it exempts them from paying out. Weather would be hard to argue in this case although wouldn’t surprise me if that is the cat they pull out of the bag either.
Aug 27, 2019, 6:54 pm
#21
Join Date: Sep 2013
Programs: SPG Plat, AS MVP Gold
Posts: 2
My wife and I recently had a similar experience flying LH from SEA --> FRA --> OSL, but missed our 1 hour 40 minute connection not because our incoming flight was delayed but because we had to transfer from B to A and passport control / security were incredible messes. After getting through security and running through the A terminal to A38, we were told it wasn't possible to board even though the gate was still open (10 minutes before scheduled departure). We presume our seats had been given away since we were inside LH's 15 minute window. They put us on standby for the next flight 2 hours later, but we didn't end up getting on a plane until the last flight of the night to Oslo around 9 pm, along with 10 or so other travelers that had been in our same position.
LH thus far has been very unhelpful, since their presumption has been we wasted time getting to our connection and that it's the airport's fault security was backed up. Do we have any leg to stand on for compensation under EU261/2004? We haven't been able to find a definitive answer for this scenario.
Either way, LH customer service did not impress us between this and their responses to issues with our reservation/seats disappearing for the return flight, though thankfully we clear it up in advance of the flight. Their responses all came back to the suggestion we not miss our connection in the future. Great advice.
LH thus far has been very unhelpful, since their presumption has been we wasted time getting to our connection and that it's the airport's fault security was backed up. Do we have any leg to stand on for compensation under EU261/2004? We haven't been able to find a definitive answer for this scenario.
Either way, LH customer service did not impress us between this and their responses to issues with our reservation/seats disappearing for the return flight, though thankfully we clear it up in advance of the flight. Their responses all came back to the suggestion we not miss our connection in the future. Great advice.