Airlines Want to Scrap Europe’s Generous Compensation Rules
- European carriers are seeking to ‘reform’ EU261 rules
- Airlines say EU rules incompatible with mass groundings
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Europe’s top airlines are seeking to overturn European Union compensations laws after being compelled to pay out more than 10 billion euros ($12 billion) in refunds during last year’s coronavirus lockdowns.
The EU261 rule, which sets out reimbursements for flight cancellations and delays, was onerous even before the pandemic struck, executives said at the Airlines 4 Europe’s annual meeting Thursday. They argued that it isn’t compatible with the mass groundings forced on companies during the crisis.