Flight affected by the British Airways pilot strike? Please follow these recommendations
Sunday, August 25, 2019
British Airways pilots will go on strike on 9,10 and 27 September. The reason for the industrial action remains the company’s pay structure. Balpa, the union representing the pilots, accounts for 90% of the airline’s pilot roster. Please follow the recommendations below to ensure that you receive the refund of your ticket and the compensation you may be entitled to.
Balpa has stated that the pilots have endured considerable changes year after year to support the airline. "Over recent years BA pilots have made sacrifice after sacrifice to assist the company such as taking a pay cut, productivity increases, closing the final salary pension scheme, giving up annual leave days, a new rostering system, and reducing flying pay," the union said.
Was your flight delayed or cancelled due to the strike? These are our recommendations:
- Keep a copy of all your travel documents (booking confirmation, e-ticket, boarding pass, etc.)
- Ask for a delay or cancellation statement from the crew or customer service representative
- Keep your itemised receipts for any additional costs you’ve incurred in
- Keep the message or notification you’ve received in which the airline informs you of your disruption
- If you’ve booked your own replacement flight, make sure to keep the receipt of the new flight
What can I claim if my flight has been affected by the strikes?
You can request a full refund, as per EU 261/2004. British Airways have stated that they will allow affected passengers to rebook your flight for another time in the next 355 days or use the value of your fare to fly to a different destination.
The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has stated that the strike should be considered as a circumstance under the airline's control, therefore, and as per EU 261/2004, your passenger rights are protected. That means that you are entitled to:
- A full refund of all the flights in the booking that may be affected (same journey) if you’ve decided not to travel to your final destination with BA
- A replacement flight to get to your destination and fulfil what’s stipulated in your original booking
- You are also entitled to a flight back to the airport you originally departed from if the disruption has left you stranded in the midst of a journey
- If you have been notified of your flight’s disruption less than 14 days prior to the departure day, you may also be entitled to receive monetary compensation of up to €600 (around £530). Conditions apply so check your flight for free with our claim calculator to find out if you have the right to claim compensation.
International Airline Group in trouble regarding flight delays and cancellations due to strike
International Airlines Group (IAG), the owner of British Airways, tried fervently to stop the industrial action. The parent company sought an injunction in the High Court to prevent the strike from happening. IAG’s request was overturned and then rejected by the Court of Appeal.
IAG has been recently involved in severe trouble regarding strikes, flight delays and flight cancellations. They also own the Spanish airlines Vueling and Iberia, both of whom have been affected by strikes at Barcelona’s El Prat airport. Over there, the workers are fighting to receive a fixed contract instead of the zero-hour agreement that they have at the moment.
IAG achieved a pre-tax profit of €3 billion (£2.7bn) in 2018, up 9.8% when compared to the previous year. British Airways made up £1.96bn of the consortium’s profit, up 8.7%.
British Airways flight delayed or cancelled because of the pilot industrial action? Claim your compensation!
As mentioned above, the CAA has stated that these type of strikes are to be considered as events under the sphere of influence of the airline. Therefore, you may be entitled to receive compensation if you meet the criteria established in EC 261/2004. Assessing your case might be tricky since different criteria apply for flight cancellations and delays.
Submit your claim under our no win, no fee basis and our team will quickly assess your case and inform you if we can proceed to claim your compensation. The best of all is that our 25% win fee covers all possible legal costs associated with claiming your compensation! Even if we have to go to court for it.
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