A Dutch court ruling ordering an airline to pay compensation to passengers who suffered long delays during a 2007 flight has set a new precedent in passenger rights.

The ruling by a Haarlem court stipulates that all Dutch passengers who have suffered delays of more than three hours on European flights over the past five years can claim up to 600 euros in compensation. European airlines fear they could face between three and five billion euros a year in claims. 

The ruling is the first following the introduction of new legislation cracking down on airlines passed by the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg in November. For years airlines used loopholes to circumvent legislation ordering them to compensate passengers suffering from overbooking or delays as required by the European Commission. 

No more loopholes
The Dutch ruling is a precedent because it is the first based on the new European Court of Justice legislation, which did away with the loophole.

In order for a Dutch passenger to receive compensation he or she must file suit in the Netherlands. "And that is what has just happened," says today's de Volkskrant. The paper quotes the lawyer of the two plaintiffs, who suffered a delay of more than 24 hours in a 2007 flight with the Dutch airline Martinair. Lawyer Peter Meijer describes the ruling as a "breakthrough" in the rights of airline passengers. 

Martinair argued that it did not intend to reimburse the passengers because of 'extraordinary circumstances', namely technical problems. However the Haarlem court pointed to the recent ruling by the European Court of Justice that technical problems did not constitute 'extraordinary circumstances'. 

Meijer alone has hundreds of similar cases which he now intends to bring to court. Thousands more are in the hands of Dutch insurance companies and other lawyers. The possibility that courts in other European Union countries will rule in a similar fashion is a nightmare scenario for airlines. 

Unfair, says Dutch MEP
Several weeks ago Radio Netherlands Worldwide wrote that European airlines were in a state of near panic as a result of the November ruling by the European Court of Justice. The Dutch Christian Democratic Euro-parliamentarian Corien Wortmann told Radio Netherlands Worldwide that the 600-euro reimbursement for delays of more than three hours - which can be claimed retroactively for five years - "could possibly cost the airlines billions of euros." The MEP says the ruling is not fair for Dutch airlines because the Netherlands has a stricter transport inspectorate which is more likely to enforce the regulations. 

Ms Wortmann also finds the possibility of filing a suit five years retroactively as going "too far". She says the ruling does not say anything about whether extreme weather conditions constitute 'extraordinary circumstances'. "And every judge can interpret this differently."