More and more passengers are wondering about theirs Rights in this situation of uncertainty of the last few weeks. In Italy, this question has been asked since 31 January 2020, the day in which air traffic to and from China was blocked.
In Europe, the decrease in passengers calculated in these first two months of 2020 is between 16 and 20 million passengers. From now until the end of the year the damages for the solo Malpensa airport they hover around the 2 million less traffic only to China – without calculating the waivers that have exploded in recent days towards all destinations. In the last few days in Italy the 90% of waivers on routes that go from the South to the Lombardi and Piedmontese airports.
According to the regulation, in case of flight cancelled passengers will be entitled to reimbursement of the ticket or at rerouting on another flight, with further compensation for the discomfort right away ranging from a minimum of 250 euros to a maximum of 600.
There is no compensation in exceptional cases Which:
- decisions relating to air traffic management
- political instability
- adverse weather conditions
- security risks
- health emergencies (both for voluntary renunciation and for flights canceled by the airline)
"The main airports affected are certainly Malpensa and Fiumicino from where almost all flights from China departed and arrived" - he tells us Kathrin Cois, head of communication for RimborsoalVolo – “The airlines have acted more or less decisively even in advance of the government's decisions, it must be remembered that passengers are still protected and in cases of missed departure they are fully entitled to request a full refund of the expenses incurred for the purchase of the ticket”
TICKET REFUND
- If the passenger opts out voluntarily on the fly is not expected no refund of the cost of the ticket. However, you can proceed with the refund request airport fees by contacting the airline directly.
- If the flight was deleted you can proceed with the request of the rreimbursement of the airfare only (which also includes airport taxes) always through the airline.
News for Alitalia passengers who are in areas considered at risk. The company has announced that passengers subject to mobility restrictions by the Italian authorities in possession of tickets purchased by 22 February 2020, with travel dates between 23 February and 8 March 2020, "can request a voucher for an amount equal to the value of the ticket purchased, which can be used until 30 June 2020 for the purchase of other tickets to any destination operated by Alitalia, or have the right to have their miles re-credited in the event of renunciation of any MilleMiglia award tickets".
CONNECTIONS FROM AND TO CHINA
British Airways and Air India were the first two companies to to interrupt connections to and from China. Lufthansa, Together with British, guarantees the refund of the air ticket for all passengers on the 54 weekly flights canceled until the end of March.
Some companies, on the other hand, only have reduced connections with China for economic rather than health issues due to the sudden collapse in bookings. Among these we find the two Americans American Airlines and United Airlines and, to follow, Air Canada and Finnair.
COUNTRIES THAT HAVE INTRODUCED RESTRICTIONS AND BANS
To date, El Salvador, Iraq, Jordan, the Seychelles, Mauritius, Cape Verde and Kuwait have banned the entry of citizens from Italy. Restrictions on entry will instead be applied to Turkmenistan, Vietnam, Nicaragua and Taiwan.
India, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan have established mandatory quarantine while Iceland, Germany, France, Malta, United Kingdom, Martinique invite those arriving from areas at risk to put themselves in voluntary quarantine.
Possible health and/or thermal checks in: Belarus, Colombia, Ivory Coast, Senegal, Zambia, Georgia, Democratic Republic of Congo, Cyprus, North Macedonia, Lebanon, Tanzania and Zanzibar, Argentina, Montenegro, Mongolia, Latvia, Cuba, Morocco, Turkey, Ireland, Greece , Algeria, Ukraine, Czech Republic, Armenia, .
