According to a recent survey conducted by AirHelp, almost half of U.S. air passengers feel mistreated by airlines. According to this survey, which included more than 2,000 respondents, almost one tenth of all travelers who experienced flight disruptions reported being stranded at the airport when their flights were delayed, and more than one in every 10 passengers reported having missed a relationship milestone or special event due to a flight disruption.
According to EU regulation EC 261, which protects U.S. passengers on flights on European airlines flying to the EU, and any flight departing from an EU airport, airlines must provide passengers affected by lengthy delays of more than three hours, flight cancellations, or boarding denials due to overbookings with compensation of up to $700, in addition to meals and drinks for all delays of more than two hours. Also, if necessary, due to a flight delay or cancellation, airlines are obligated to provide passengers with a hotel room and the transportation there.
"My flight was delayed then cancelled and I wasn't told why. They rebooked on a different flight that left one day later. I was not offered any assistance for the extra time I had to stay in Switzerland. I had nearly a full 24 hours to stay, and had to take a tram for $30, a cab the next morning back to the airport for $120," one air passenger reported to AirHelp. "They didn't offer me a hotel voucher or any food either. When I asked them where I was going to stay that night or what I should do, they told me 'that's not my problem.' I'm 15 years old and was travelling alone."
AirHelp's survey also found that less than 65 percent of passengers feel airlines are trustworthy, with more than four out of every ten passengers saying that they have felt the airlines were dishonest with them about the cause of flight delays or cancellations.
"For years, there has been an oversupply of airlines flying along the same routes which leads to price wars, especially on holiday routes,” said AirHelp CEO Henrik Zillmer in a written statement. “Therefore, airlines reduce customer service offerings in order to maximize profits, frequently leading to the mistreatment of air passengers. As a result, passengers are sometimes faced with rude staff, and are experiencing extreme delays and disruptions that the airlines can avoid or eliminate.
Our survey results show that almost half of all air passengers in the United States feels that they are being treated badly by the airlines. The airlines have a duty to act in a customer-oriented manner in order to regain the trust of their passengers."
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