For many years, there have been discussions within the European Union regarding the reform of air passenger rights. These rights first came into force in 2005 and have remained largely unchanged since. In the meantime, however, numerous court rulings have expanded their scope in practice. For instance, these rulings established that long flight delays are treated similarly to cancellations.
Since then, numerous proposals to adjust passenger rights have emerged—ranging from massive cuts in compensation payments to a right to free carry-on baggage for all passengers. In short, some voices wanted to significantly restrict these rights, while others sought to expand them.
In recent days, EU transport ministers have agreed on a compromise. This draft text was also approved by Parliament yesterday. However, formal votes in both the Council and Parliament are still pending, meaning the new regulations are not expected to enter into force until 2027. While a press release highlights various improvements, not every change will be positive for passengers.
What the New Passenger Rights Will Change
The exact legal text of the new regulation has not yet been finalized. For certain aspects, it remains to be seen how they will play out in practice. However, several key details are already clear.
New Price Transparency for Carry-On Baggage
An earlier committee proposal suggested requiring airlines to transport one large piece of carry-on baggage (W + H + L max. 100 cm, 7 kg) and one personal item (40 x 30 x 15 cm) free of charge.
This initiative did not succeed. Airlines will continue to be allowed to charge fees for large carry-on bags. However, the EU aims to improve price transparency. Airlines will therefore be required to display fares inclusive of hand baggage by default:
To create price transparency, air fares including allowance for a piece of hand baggage shall be displayed by default before the start of any booking process to facilitate fare comparisons between airlines.
This represents an interesting compromise that, at least on paper, enables a transparent price comparison. The practical implementation will be interesting to watch—for example, whether the proposed 100-cm rule (width + height + length) makes it into the final legal text.
Restrictions on Alternative Transportation?
In the event of a flight cancellation (or denied boarding), airlines are required to offer alternative transportation at the earliest opportunity. This right is being tightened, requiring that an alternative be offered within three hours of the scheduled departure time (where possible).
At the same time, the following limitation is cause for concern:
If an airline fails to offer rerouting within three hours, passengers may organise their own rerouting and claim reimbursement of up to 400% of the original ticket price.
This could mean that passengers with a €20 Ryanair ticket may be left stranded, as booking a last-minute flight across Europe often costs several hundred euros.
Skipping the Outbound Flight Must Not Forfeit the Return Flight
An important update that has not yet received widespread attention: passengers who skip the outbound leg of a journey will still be entitled to take their booked return flight. Until now, this policy was primarily limited to low-cost carriers (and recently introduced by the Lufthansa Group in their updated conditions of carriage). Most traditional airlines have historically maintained that the remainder of the ticket is forfeited if the outbound flight is not used.
The agreement also introduces several new rights, such as the prohibition of denying boarding because a passenger didn’t take an inbound flight (‘no-show’).
Clearer Rules for Extraordinary Circumstances
When extraordinary circumstances occur, airlines are not liable for compensation payments (though the rights to alternative transportation, meals, and accommodation remain in place). Numerous court rulings have previously attempted to define what exactly constitutes such circumstances and what legal consequences follow.
In the future, these rules will be more clearly defined in the regulation:
- A clearer definition within the regulation of what constitutes extraordinary circumstances, including concrete examples of what qualifies and what does not.
- If airlines claim extraordinary circumstances, they must provide a detailed and understandable explanation of the event.
- Once extraordinary circumstances occur, airlines can only claim them for the affected flight plus up to three subsequent connecting flights of the same aircraft. This remains subject to a direct, provable link, which the airline must demonstrate.
Additional Changes
The current draft contains several other notable changes, including:
- The right to financial compensation remains largely untouched. Compensation of €250, €400, or €600 is still payable for delayed or cancelled flights.
- Following a flight delay, airlines will be required to inform passengers of their right to compensation within 96 hours. A proposal to send a direct link to a pre-filled compensation form was not approved.
- Passenger rights also include access to meals and refreshments. These are currently not defined in detail, other than being reasonable relative to the waiting time. In the future, the rules will be more precise: refreshments must be provided every 2 hours of delay. A hot meal must be provided after 3 hours, with subsequent meals every 5 hours (up to 3 meals per day).
- Families and passengers with reduced mobility (along with their companions) are entitled to free seat assignments next to each other, without additional fees.
- Feasibility is being assessed regarding extending these rules to non-EU airlines landing in the EU. Currently, they apply to all EU airlines (regardless of departure or destination) and to non-EU airlines only for departures starting within the EU (plus Switzerland, Norway, and Iceland).
- Airlines will be required to make boarding passes available without obliging passengers to use a proprietary app or complete a registration process (this is not listed in the official press release, but according to other sources, it forms part of the agreement).
An interesting indirect consequence: the new EU regulation is likely to strengthen the rights of passengers traveling on Swiss airlines or departing from Switzerland. While Switzerland applies the EU regulation, it currently does not recognize many of the landmark European court rulings that have shaped current compensation and care practices.
Conclusion
Since drastic cuts to compensation payments were discussed during the negotiation process, passengers can largely breathe a sigh of relief. The high level of consumer protection for air travelers remains untouched. Most of the proposed adjustments are practical and introduce notable improvements.
The compromise regarding carry-on baggage also appears reasonable. However, the potential restriction on alternative transportation compensation leaves some questions open.
Source: EU Press Release