Thousands of travelers are affected daily as the SAS pilot strike is now a fact. Here are your rights as a passenger with a canceled flight.
Monday's strike notice means that up to 30,000 passengers are affected each day when many scheduled flights are canceled. According to SAS, this is about half of the airline's departures.
On its website, SAS states that the work of rebooking tickets is already underway. However, getting your trip rebooked to the same date will be difficult, the airline writes, as the number of available seats is limited during the summer season. All affected travelers will receive information via text message, SAS announces.
The airline is also urging travelers not to go to the airport if a new booking has not been confirmed.
Refund within a week
As a consumer with an already purchased flight ticket, you have the right in this situation to either have your trip rebooked or demand a refund.
– Regardless of the reason why a flight is canceled, you always have the right to choose between a refund or rebooking according to the EU regulation on air passenger rights, says Nora Shoki, legal advisor at ECC Sweden, which is part of the Swedish Consumer Agency.
Travelers who choose a refund should receive their money back within seven days of requesting a refund. The airline may offer you credit, such as a voucher or credit, which you do not have to accept.
Don't rebook yourself.
If you choose to rebook instead, the airline will rebook your trip as soon as possible or to a date that suits you, at no extra cost. The airline has the option to rebook your trip with another company.
The Swedish Consumer Agency recommends that travelers not rebook their trip on their own without first contacting the airline.
– You have the right to be rebooked as soon as possible, and it is a good option if you are already abroad and are about to return home, says Nora Shoki.
If your cancelled flight is part of a package holiday, as a consumer you should instead contact the package tour operator who will either arrange a replacement flight or provide a refund.
Save receipts
In addition to the right to a refund or rebooking, you as a consumer can claim compensation for a cancelled trip that you were informed about less than 14 days before departure. The amount is then determined based on the length of the trip.
– You are entitled to the compensation amount as long as the airline does not argue that the flight was canceled due to extraordinary circumstances, says Nora Shoki, who does not see today's announcement from SAS as such a circumstance.
– An assessment is made on a case-by-case basis. However, when an airline's own pilots go on strike, it is unlikely to be considered an extraordinary circumstance and therefore the starting point is that the passenger should be entitled to compensation.
The Swedish Consumer Agency also urges all passengers to save receipts for expenses that may be linked to a cancelled trip.
– The consumer can claim damages if they have additional costs due to the cancelled flight. In that case, it is important to be able to show receipts for, for example, food or a hotel night, says Nora Shoki.
Source: TT-Aftonbladet
