The European Parliament and the Council met on Tuesday 2 June for final interinstitutional negotiations (trilogue) on air passenger rights, followed by a meeting of the Conciliation Committee.
The discussions took place in several stages. During the first stage, the co-legislators reached an agreement on the specific situation of Gibraltar. The Member States were consulted following this initial stage.
Following the second phase of the trilogue, the European Parliament was also consulted. The sensitive issue of compensation amounts was addressed during the third phase of negotiations. At the time of going to press, the Conciliation Committee had not yet begun its proceedings. The issues of standardised pre-filled forms and the thresholds entitling passengers to compensation therefore remained unresolved.
The main sticking point concerned the amounts of compensation awarded to passengers in the event of a flight delay of more than three hours. As a sign of the political sensitivity of the issue, the President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, took part in the interinstitutional negotiations leading up to the conciliation committee.
In practice, only 38% of passengers receive compensation, according to a study commissioned by the European Commission in 2020. This legal uncertainty fuels the system of ‘claim agencies’, which are independent of airlines and whose business model relies on sending forms to travelers. However, the majority of them are unaware of the remedies to which they are entitled.
The aim, for the Council and the Parliament, was therefore to ensure that these forms were systematically sent to all passengers, without imposing an excessive administrative and financial burden on carriers. Since the start of negotiations, the European Parliament has maintained a firm stance on retaining current levels of compensation. This approach is also supported by certain capitals, which consider that the compromise drawn up by the Cypriot Presidency of the Council of the EU constituted too significant a setback for passengers’ rights (EUROPE 13876/6).
Some Member States, however, felt that the burden on airlines should not be too heavy, given the geopolitical context marked by soaring energy prices. This argument was contested by consumer organisations (EUROPE 13874/10).
Among the options considered to break the deadlock in the negotiations was a sliding-scale mechanism, whereby the amount of compensation would increase in line with the length of the delay. However, a reduction in the compensation amount from €250 to €83 for the shortest delays was difficult for the European Parliament to accept.
The rapporteurs had, moreover, made it clear that a breakdown in negotiations remained a possibility (EUROPE 13870/6).
According to a document seen by Agence Europe, the introduction of a ‘label’ for airlines was also under discussion. The idea was that travelers would be able to clearly identify which airlines comply with European regulations and, as a result, have a better understanding of their rights.
The official deadline for reaching an agreement was set for 15 June. In reality, Tuesday’s meeting seemed to be the last opportunity for the co-legislators to reach an agreement, in order to allow sufficient time for the legal finalisation and translation of the text. (Juliette Verdes)