A passenger whose flight has been cancelled or delayed may demand payment of compensation provided for in the regulation (261/2004) governing air passenger rights in the national currency of their place of residence, the Court of Justice of the European Union said in a ruling handed down on Thursday 3 September (case C-356/19).
Benefiting from the claim assigned to it by Ms X, the company Delfly, established in Warsaw, seeks payment in zlotys of the equivalent of the compensation of €400 to which Ms X is entitled to after her flight between a city A, situated in a non-Member State, and a city B, situated in Poland, operated by Smartwings Poland (formerly Travel Service), was delayed for more than three hours.
According to Smartwings Poland, the claim should have been expressed in euros.
The Court ruled in favour of Delfly in the case brought by the Polish courts. It recalls that EU law aims to ensure a high level of protection for passengers and must therefore be interpreted broadly.
According to the European court, the regulation on air passengers' rights applies to all passengers on an equal footing, whatever their nationality or place of residence, the relevant criterion being the place where the airport of departure of those passengers is situated.
As regards the conversion of compensation in euros into the national currency of an EU country, the Court considers that it is for the national law of the Member State to determine the detailed rules, such as the applicable exchange rate, in accordance with the principles of equivalence and effectiveness.
See the judgment of the Court: https://bit.ly/2Doxeqw (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)