“The case has reached such a stage that it is necessary to decide whether Transavia should pay our man 53,960 ISK for a canceled flight on July 24, 2019,” says Ómar R Valdimarsson, the lawyer for a man who bears complaint. against the airline Transavia Airlines concerning the reimbursement of fares for flights to the Netherlands canceled in 2019.
The case has already gone to trial against the airline, which had it reopened. There will be a hearing in the case in the Southern District Court on March 8.
Omar, who is pursuing the man’s case under the banner of the forum advantages of vol.est indicates that an interim judgment was rendered in the case in September 2022:
“The case got so bad that our customer found that his flight was canceled without notice in July 2019. We then sent Transavia a formal notice in September of the same year. This letter never receives a response, so we pursue the matter. Dealing with these issues takes a lot of time, as we have to translate the policy into Dutch and have it published in the Netherlands. So finally the case was registered last September. Transavia does not show up and the case is judged as an open case.”
Ömar then explains that when he started claiming legal costs from the airline and tried to collect the debt, Transavia had the case reopened.
“The conditions for reopening are relatively lenient, so it will pass, without any particular opposition”, specifies Ómar. He adds that Transavia faces a heavy burden of proof in this case:
“Transavia has to prove that the company has done everything in its power to ensure that our client reaches the end of the road. So the burden of proof is quite strict. And it is absolutely incredible that they decide to make this trip for other people’s money.”
The burden of proof is mentioned in the policy of the case, but it is stipulated in the EU regulation of 2004. According to the provision, the air carrier must prove that the flight was canceled due to uncontrollable circumstances which could not have been avoided. even if all the measures had been taken the necessary measures.
The policy points out that the European regulation in question aims to ensure sufficient protection for passengers as consumers of air services. The essential principle according to her is the passenger’s right to compensation in the event of cancellation or significant delay in the departure time of the flight.
