A Netherlands-based firm that helps travelers and companies claim compensation afforded by a 2005 European Union regulation that forces airlines to pay damages to heavily inconvenienced passengers is embarking on a European expansion.
European Regulation 261 covers denied boarding, lengthy delays and flight cancellations for flights touching the European Union—entitling passengers to compensation of ?250 for flights under 1,500 kilometers to ?600 for flights over 3,500 kilometers. Airlines have called the regulation flawed and excessive
(BTNonline, Feb. 17, 2005).The company, EUClaim, plans to launch in the United Kingdom within weeks, followed by Germany early next year. "We will start accepting claims in central Europe within eight weeks, but formally we'll open up in January. The Nordic countries and southern Europe will follow in the first four months of next year," EUClaim founder Hendrik Noorderhaven said last week.
For corporations, such as client Philips Electronics, EUClaim runs passenger name record checks against a database of flights determined to be subject to compensation and alerts travel managers to claims.
Noorderhaven said EUClaim guides clients through the labyrinthine claims process, running analysis to prove claimants were on flights subject to regulation, filing the appropriate documents with carriers and sometimes refuting airline resistance to claims with analytical evidence. Since launching earlier this year in the Netherlands, Noorderhaven said he has accepted "thousands" of passenger claims, nearly 70 percent of which are deemed applicable to the regulation and subsequently processed. Passengers receive 73 percent of the claim amount, with the remaining portion going to EUClaim.
"You file a claim with us, our computer makes a quick analysis and we produce a document for the airlines, saying this customer was on this plane that was rescheduled or delayed or was denied boarding," Noorderhaven said. "Several letters come out and we send one to the airline and ask them to pay according to the legislation."
Philips Electronics global commodity manager for air travel Peter Sijbers signed a contract with EUClaim in June. "Whenever our passengers are bumped off a flight or there are delays, all our passengers go to EUClaim to claim what is rightfully theirs," Sijbers said.
Though airlines tend to view Noorderhaven as an "ambulance chaser," he likens the service to "an accountant who files tax forms. Sure, you could do it yourself, but you won't get back all the money you're entitled to," he said.
Noorderhaven said airlines generally are resistant to pay compensation and cite "extraordinary circumstances," as defined in a clause in the European regulation. "The airline without exception will claim 'extraordinary circumstances,' and they won't pay," Noorderhaven said. "Then we send a second letter and tell them to pay, and we give them the proof. They have to prove it's extraordinary circumstances or pay."
According to the EU regulation, extraordinary circumstances exist "where the impact of an air traffic management decision in relation to a particular aircraft on a particular day gives rise to a long delay, an overnight delay or the cancellation of one or more flights by that aircraft, even though all reasonable measures had been taken by the air carrier concerned to avoid the delays or cancellations."
Noorderhaven said the service would best be offered by travel management companies, and said EUClaim is in discussions with several to offer it to clients. "We're talking to TMCs to proactively make a run," he said. "We'll say, last week these flights were accepted, and did you have any customers on that flight? We believe that will be the future of this."
Sijbers, however, said TMCs are "struggling with the idea. On one hand, they feel it's an additional service offering to corporations. On the other hand, we know there are backhand agreements with the airlines, so they are in a bit of a squeeze in this."
Although Philips manages the reclaim effort on behalf of its travelers, individual corporate travelers also could file claims with the company.
"We run into the same thing with air miles: who owns the air miles? The company or the employee?" Noorderhaven said. "The law says it's the ticket holder that's entitled to compensation. If a company has no internal employee arrangement that they're entitled to damages incurred, then the employee can just claim with us. A company like Philips, which has an internal arrangement, we pick up the reservation number and recognize them as Philips. Then, we say the money gained here can only be reimbursed to Philips."