The Ministry of Consumption has expressed its disagreement with the political agreement reached in the European Union to update the regulation on air passenger rights. It considers that the text lacks sufficient ambition, which is why Spain has opted to vote against it, despite the fact that the thresholds and deadlines for claiming compensation for delays are maintained and charging a surcharge to families and dependent persons for securing adjacent seats is prevented. However, the pact ultimately renounces the protection of the right to board with hand luggage at no additional cost.
"The Government of Spain has been the European Executive that has most clearly spoken out in favor of passenger rights and, in this regard, we have pushed for the EU to approve a more protective and ambitious regulation than what has finally been adopted. For this reason, we have voted against it," sources from the Ministry explained to Europa Press.
"The gratuity of hand luggage is a recognized right for passengers, as has been defended by dozens of court rulings in Spain, and as indicated by a ruling of the CJEU, on which the Ministry of Consumption based its sanctions against five 'low-cost' airlines for, among other infringements, charging passengers for this luggage," it added.
The department headed by Pablo Bustinduy also emphasizes that the agreement does not update the amounts of compensation for flight delays or cancellations.
"These amounts have been stable for 20 years and the Government of Spain considers an update necessary or, at least, the inclusion of mechanisms for their periodic review," it claimed.
Consumption's position responds to the joint text agreed upon by the negotiators of the Council (governments) and the European Parliament, which specifies the reform and has received the "green light" from the conciliation committee representing the Twenty-Seven, the first step to complete the formal procedure to ratify the agreement.
The support of the Member States has been achieved despite the negative vote of Spain and Latvia and the abstentions of Finland and Austria, as official sources have indicated to Europa Press.
On Monday afternoon, the European Parliament's conciliation committee is scheduled to put the text to a vote and could potentially reject it, although various EU and parliamentary sources consulted by Europa Press consider the document to be solid, having been jointly drafted by the teams of both colegislative institutions.
Among the central elements of the reform, the maintenance of compensation thresholds for delays, cancellations, or denied boarding, which the Twenty-Seven attempted to lower, stands out, as does the guarantee that, from three hours of delay onwards, the passenger retains the right to claim.
The new regulation, which will apply twelve months after its processing is completed, sets a compensation of 250 euros for delayed flights on routes up to 1,500 kilometers, 400 euros for intra-EU flights or those between 1,500 and 3,500 kilometers, and 600 euros for the rest of the routes.
Furthermore, it is recognized that passengers will be able to board without extra charge with a carry-on bag that can be placed under the seat, but the EU refrains from enshrining the right to also bring a cabin suitcase at no cost, despite a ruling by the Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU) supporting it.
In return, the agreement mandates that the price shown to the consumer must include by default the cost of boarding with a cabin suitcase, in the interest of "transparency," allowing those who travel without one to obtain a discount at the time of purchase.
Other aspects of the text, according to negotiation sources, aim to strengthen user guarantees when they accept a voucher instead of a cash refund, by making it clear that these vouchers cannot have an expiration date or onerous conditions.
Similarly, surcharges for administrative procedures for name changes or spelling errors are prohibited, and airlines must send affected passengers by email all the necessary information to understand their rights and the steps to request the compensation they are entitled to.
In the family sphere, the new framework establishes that companies cannot charge supplements to ensure that minors sit next to their parents. It must also be guaranteed that, if they travel with a stroller, they can hand it over at the plane's boarding gate and collect it at the same point at the end of the journey.
Likewise, people with reduced mobility who miss a flight due to not having received the necessary assistance to reach the boarding gate will be entitled to claim specific compensation for this reason.