Many travellers to and from the Middle East who have had their plans thrown into disarray due to the US and Israeli attack on Iran and its response are scrambling to work out what rights they have and what they should do next.
At least 13 flights between Ireland and the Middle East on Sunday were cancelled, with the DAA, the authority that runs Dublin Airport, warning of further disruption in the days ahead.
The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) has upgraded its travel advisories for the region and it is advising against non-essential travel to Bahrain, the UAE, Kuwait, Qatar and Saudi Arabia. This is the department’s second-highest warning level. It is also warning Irish citizens not to travel to either Israel or Iran, the highest alert level it has.
Minister for Foreign Affairs Helen McEntee has encouraged Irish citizens in the region or transiting through it to register on the Citizen Registration platform and said she “strongly urged citizens not to pursue anything other than a shelter-in-place strategy for now”.
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The updating of the DFA warnings is significant and means that if and when flights and holidays are cancelled as a result of the conflict, it will make claiming money back from travel agents and airlines easier.
Aside from that, passengers have specific consumer rights under European law and while it applies to all passengers departing from an EU or European Economic Area (EEA) airport, crucially, it also applies to passengers departing from an airport outside of the EU or EEA but arriving at an EU or EEA airport on an EU or EEA-licensed carrier.
If a passenger is denied boarding, or their flight has been cancelled or delayed, an airline must provide them with a written notice setting out the rules for compensation and assistance.
Under EU Regulation 261, airlines are obliged to offer passengers affected by cancellations a full refund or a rerouting on the next available flight or at a later time that suits the passenger.
If a passenger opts for a refund the airline’s responsibility to them ends there and then.
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If they ask to be put on the next available flight then the airline must provide care and assistance until that passenger can be accommodated on an alternative flight. That means airlines must provide passengers trying to get home with meals and refreshments and, if necessary, it will have to cover the cost of hotel accommodation and transport between hotels and airports.
The scale of the disruption this weekend, with Dubai International Airport – the busiest transit hub in the world – completely closed, is such that staff in many airlines might be hard to find, while ferrying passengers to and from hotels might not be possible.
Passengers who cannot make contact with an airline or cannot access the legally mandated care and assistance may have to make their own reasonable arrangements.
Anyone in this position should retain all receipts because they will be needed to claim back reasonable expenses, which should cover modestly priced hotels and restaurants.
Once they get home passengers should send copies of all receipts to the airlines on which they booked flights. Submissions should also include booking references, passenger names and original and new flight details.
If passengers have not got their money back within a month, they can complain to the Irish Aviation Authority.
Compensation is unlikely to be paid by any airline as the circumstances for cancellations and delays will be considered extraordinary and beyond their control.
The Competition and Consumer Protection Commission warned of “widespread disruption” over the weekend and in the days ahead, and its spokeswoman Grainne Griffin advised travellers to be fully aware of the advice given by the DFA.
She said anyone with doubts about where they stand could visit the Irish Aviation Authority website, where a detailed breakdown of passenger rights can be accessed.
“And for any consumers who are already on holidays in the Middle East we would recommend that they download the Department of Foreign Affairs travelwise app, which allows consumers to register to receive assistance from the department during a crisis.”
