The European Disability Forum, Europe’s leading disability organisation, published a report on Wednesday 19 April, calling on the European Commission to revise the regulation of the rights of disabled persons and persons with reduced mobility when travelling by air.
This call follows indications that this revision will not be part of the wider package of revision of passenger rights planned for July (see EUROPE 13023/27).
“Our report clearly shows the waking nightmares lived by persons with disabilities when they simply try to do what millions do daily“, said Gunta Anca, EDF’s Vice-President, in a statement.
The EDF thus calls for: - an eradication of common cases of denial of boarding; - the right to a swift and fair compensation if the air carrier still denies boarding; - obliging the air carrier to provide a ticket free of charge if they request an accompanying person, as is the case in other transport modes; - establishing the companies’ full liability for damaged and lost mobility equipment.
The report also includes illustrative stories to highlight the numerous obstacles and episodes of discrimination that persons with disabilities face while travelling. It will be presented to the Commission in May.
To read the report: https://aeur.eu/f/6e4 (Original version in French by Anne Damiani)