Bad luck seems to be following Mattia Zenere, 31, on his travels lately.
In the past five years, four of his flights have experienced lengthy delays or cancellations, including one setback – on a trip from London to Venice, Italy – that caused him to arrive a full day late.
But there’s a silver lining: Thanks to Europe’s strict consumer protection rules for airlines, the customer service representative at least got his out-of-pocket expenses reimbursed. Mr Zenere also received an additional hardship payment from the airline for three of the disruptions.
“The law really works,” he said.
For US air travelers fed up with it, similar protections could be in store — and the airlines aren’t happy about it. This week, President Biden and Pete Buttigieg, the transportation secretary, announced plans to introduce new rules this year that would require airlines to pay for travel disruptions they cause.
After waves of flight disruptions during the pandemic and the fiasco that forced Southwest Airlines to cancel 16,700 flights over the winter holidays, Biden is betting that Americans will want the kind of protection that Europeans (and non-Europeans flying in Europe) have had for nearly 20 years.
EU legislation is popular — and generous. A flight delayed by more than three hours is considered canceled and the passenger is entitled to between 250 euros ($273) and 600 euros in compensation. The payout is determined by the flight distance, not the ticket price, which airlines have long protested.
Airlines can challenge payments by claiming that a disruption was caused by extraordinary circumstances, such as bad weather, an air traffic controller strike, or an “extraordinary” technical problem with the aircraft. But European courts continue to limit the definition of ‘extraordinary’. This week, it was ruled that even the death of a co-pilot does not prevent an airline from compensating customers for a delay.
Biden’s plan would require cash refunds for significant delays or cancellations. The president also wants travelers to be compensated for meals, hotels, ground transportation and rebooking fees. U.S. airlines are not currently required to offer cash compensation for delays or cancellations; they must compensate passengers who get “bumped” by flights.
That’s not enough, Mr Biden said. “You deserve to be fully compensated. Your time is important. The impact on your life is important.”
European legislation has changed the way airlines plan flights, “With particular attention now to punctuality of arrival,” a spokesman for Eurocontrol, the intergovernmental organization that helps manage European commercial airspace, told DealBook. Yet EU flight data shows that delays are a growing problem as air traffic booms.
Airlines oppose offset laws. “Airlines already have financial incentives to get their passengers to their destinations as scheduled.” Willie Walsh, the director general of the International Air Transport Association, a lobbying group, said in a statement that he criticized the Biden plan. “The additional layer of costs this regulation will impose will not create any new incentive, but will have to be recouped – likely to have an impact on ticket prices.” Steer Group, an independent consultancy, calculated that European airlines incurred a total of 5 billion euros in costs in 2018 to process the large number of compensation claims and pay out the deserving ones. The airline incurred an average cost of 138 euros for each disturbed passenger.
European regulation of air passenger rights has not been a panacea. It can still be time consuming and frustrating to claim money. For example, Mr. Zenere is still fighting with Wizz Air, the airline that postponed his trip to Venice last year. They have paid too little, he said, and still owe him 250 euros for the aborted trip. “I know my rights,” he said. — Bernard Warner
Tell us what you think: What changes would you like to see to make the flying experience smoother? Email us at dealbook@CBNewz.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Elon Musk’s new acquisition. The entrepreneur appointed Linda Yaccarino to replace him as CEO of Twitter. Yaccarino, head of advertising at NBCUniversal, will acquire a company that has struggled to expand its advertising business.
Where’s Ron DeSantis? Florida’s governor banned government agencies from releasing his travel records, prompting critics to warn that he tried to hide damaging information as he geared up for a potential presidential run. Steve Schwarzman, the billionaire co-founder of the investment giant Blackstone and a major Republican donor, recently met with Florida’s governor but is not convinced of his chances of success, according to Bloomberg.
George Santos pleads not guilty. The first-term Republican congressman from Long Island faces 13 counts of fraud, including money laundering, bank fraud, making false statements and stealing government funds. The indictment does not immediately prevent him from serving in the House, and it would take a two-thirds vote to evict him, meaning Republicans would have to join Democrats.
Crashing a plane for YouTube views. A 29-year-old pilot and skydiver has admitted to deliberately crashing a small plane near Santa Barbara, California, as part of a video he filmed for a product sponsorship. He faces up to 20 years in prison for obstructing a federal investigation by cleaning up the crash site.
Zelda’s company
Few video games have been as revolutionary as Nintendo’s Legend of Zelda, the action-adventure series launched way back in 1986. Now, almost 40 years later, the Japanese company has unveiled the latest installment of the franchise, Tears of the Kingdom, in hopes that the game lives up to the great expectation.
It was released yesterday (some fans took the day off to play) and is expected to be a hit. But will it be enough to offset Nintendo’s slowing sales? The company last released a new console, the Switch, in 2017, the same year it released its last Zelda game, Breath of the Wild. Both were hugely successful. But the Switch faces growing competition and gamers are moving away from buying expensive hardware in general. New projects, such as ‘The Super Mario Bros. Movie’, have provided a boost. But Nintendo has no plans to launch a pivotal new console within a year.
Still, the Zelda franchise is a valuable asset with a long history and a fanatical fan base. Here’s a look at the game and its business importance, in numbers:
29 million: Copies of Breath of the Wild, Nintendo’s most popular Zelda game, have been sold.
10.3 million: Number of YouTube views of a four-minute trailer for the new Tears of the Kingdom game, which was painstakingly analyzed by superfans for hints about its imminent release.
$69.99: Tears of the Kingdom’s price tag, a $10 increase over what Nintendo usually charges for new games.
125 million: The total number of Switch consoles Nintendo sold as of March 31, according to the company’s website.
15 million: Number of Switch consoles Nintendo expects to sell this fiscal year, having sold 18 million Switch units in the year to March. “It’s going to be tough to maintain the Switch’s sales momentum into its seventh year,” Nintendo president Shuntaro Furukawa said during a phone call with investors this week, according to Bloomberg.
On our radar: ‘BlackBerry’
Films about Silicon Valley tech giants like Apple and Facebook captured the drama behind the companies and their larger-than-life founders. “Blackberry,” which hit theaters yesterday, is the latest film to tell the story of a pioneering company and the relationships behind the characters who ran it. The telephone, with its tiny keypad, was transformative and such a mainstay of executive life that it became known as the “crackberry.” But the real subject of the film is the relationship between the technologists behind the device and the executives that have turned it into a thriving business. And while the BlackBerry may have exploded spectacularly in the iPhone era, reviewers have found plenty of current relevance in the film. “Perhaps above all, ‘BlackBerry’ highlights the vulnerability and exploitative potential of creatives in a cutthroat market,” wrote Jeannette Catsoulis for The New York Times.
Thank you for reading! We want your feedback. Email your thoughts and suggestions to dealbook@CBNewz.
