The apf team wishes all passengers and travelers happy winter days and a good start to the new year.

In principle, airlines must carry disabled persons and persons with reduced mobility in accordance with Regulation (EC) No. 1107/2006 concerning the rights of disabled persons and persons with reduced mobility when traveling by air. Carriage may only be refused by the company in exceptional cases, e.g. if applicable safety regulations are violated.

In the shipping sector, apf receives a relatively high number of inquiries and complaints regarding transportation services between Greece and Italy. As a rule, this concerns a transportation contract with a specific shipping company. It is clear from the complaints and inquiries that there are regularly deficiencies in the booking or transportation, such as late departure, late arrival, cancellation of the trip, change of port of destination. As it is often not possible to reach an agreement or solve the problem with the company in these cases or no adequate offer is made, it is primarily Austrian citizens who turn to the apf for help.

If, for example, a flight reaches its final destination with a 3-hour arrival delay and there is no extraordinary circumstance, there is a right to a so-called compensation payment. The amount is between 250 and 600 euros...

The Passenger Rights Regulation governs, among other things, the rights of passengers in the event of delays and cancellations. However, certain claims only exist if a single contract of carriage has been concluded. For a multi-segment flight (flight with connecting flight or connecting flights), a consistent reservation number or booking code must be available. This is guaranteed when booking directly with an airline or via a travel agency, but not always when booking via an online portal.

According to apf, passengers are always entitled to compensation of an additional 50 percent of the ticket price if the bus company does not offer a choice between onward travel and reimbursement of the ticket price. We know from experience that this choice is often not mentioned to passengers by bus companies.

Whether it's a longer winter vacation, a short city break or a business trip - passengers should keep this in mind!

The travel group Thomas Cook ceased operations in the night from September 22 to 23. According to its own website, the German subsidiary Condor will continue to operate. (As of 23.09.2019, 8:30 a.m.)

In addition to problems with cancellation, delays, etc., apf also supports passengers with disabilities if something goes wrong. This is because passengers with disabilities are entitled to free assistance from the respective train, bus, ship or flight company or infrastructure operator. This includes assistance with transportation to the means of transport, boarding and alighting, luggage transport and getting to the seat and toilets. In principle, the company must be notified of the need 48 hours in advance.

Sample letters for complaints to airlines are available on the homepage of Agency for Passenger Rights . The sample letters were created on the basis of the EU Passenger Rights Regulation (Regulation (EC) 261/2004) and inform the airline of your rights in the following cases:

• Flight delay
• Flight cancellation
• Flight overbooking / denied boarding
• Downgrade/downgrading

In its ruling of 11.07.2019, the European Court of Justice ruled on the question of whether the airline with which the booking was made and which operated the feeder flight can be held liable for payment if the connecting flight affected by an irregularity was not operated by this airline.

Mr. Moen's flight with Ryanair from Treviso (Italy) to Charleroi (Belgium) had an arrival delay of four hours and 23 minutes.

Unfortunately, there are always cases where passengers are affected twice by flight irregularities, i.e., for example, their original flight was canceled and the alternative flight was also subject to cancellation. There is disagreement as to whether passengers are entitled to compensation again in the event of irregularities on alternative flights. In today's blog post, we explain the legal opinion of the apf in this case.

"EXPERT TALK: YOUR RIGHTS IN THE EVENT OF TRAVEL CHAOS"

In the rail sector, the apf also deals with complaints regarding various claims for damages. You can find more information on this in today's blog post.

The 2018 annual report of Agency for Passenger Rights was published on May 15, 2019...

In Austria, Agency for Passenger Rights is both the arbitration and enforcement body for the Passenger Rights Ordinance in the bus sector. In today's blog post, we explain exactly when the apf can help passengers on bus services.

Time and again, passengers are denied boarding because the airline overbooked the flight. In today's article, we report on a couple to whom this happened.

Mr. Pauel's Germanwings flight from Dublin (Ireland) to Düsseldorf (Germany) on 28 August 2015 had an arrival delay of three hours and 28 minutes.

On 09.03.2019, Agency for Passenger Rights was featured on Ö1 help - das Konsumentenmagazin on the topic of "Delays: What claims rail customers have".
-You can listen to the radio report here.[nbsp]

Sample letters for complaints to airlines are available on the homepage of Agency for Passenger Rights . The sample letters were created on the basis of the EU Passenger Rights Regulation (Regulation (EC) 261/2004) and inform the airline of your rights in the following cases:

• Flight delay
• Flight cancellation
• Flight overbooking / denied boarding
• Downgrade/downgrading

The winter weather is currently causing repeated train delays and cancellations. In accordance with special passenger rights, rail passengers are still entitled to a refund or compensation of the ticket price - even if the irregularity of the train is due to exceptional circumstances. Civil law applies to other damages. The Agentur für Passagier- und Fahrgastreche (apf) informs passengers about their rights in rail transport and supports those affected in the event of a dispute with the company by means of arbitration procedure - always free of charge and commission-free.

A traveler suffered a delay on his journey from Düsseldorf via Munich to Innsbruck, as a result of which he submitted an application for compensation for the delay to the German railroad company. As the ticket was purchased from an Austrian railroad company, the documents were forwarded to them for the sake of jurisdiction. And this is where things started to get difficult....

Unfortunately, flights are often canceled in winter due to weather conditions. You can find out what rights passengers have in such a situation here.