The Ombudsman Marcin Wiącek has sent a letter to the President of the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection in connection with further reports of so-called airline overbooking. This refers to situations when carriers sell more tickets than there are seats in order to avoid the risk of flights with empty seats.
In a letter to the president Office of Competition and Consumer Protection Tomasz Chróstny Ombudsman Marcin Wiącek stressed that the mass nature of air transport may lead to marginalization of passenger protection as a cost hindering the development of carriers' activities, therefore the situation of this group of consumers may require a comprehensive analysis. The Ombudsman asked the head of the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection whether he sees a need and possibility of a general examination of the issue of passenger rights in air traffic to and from Poland in the context of consumer protection.
Więcek drew attention to the fact that the so-called overbooking (selling more tickets than seats for a flight) is a way for airlines to minimise losses related to the risk of flights with empty seats. Passengers indicate difficulties in exercising their rights under EU regulations, which impose specific requirements on carriers; this includes full compensation for passengers who are denied boarding.
Read also: Overbooking – what is it and what are the passenger’s rights in this case?
Ryanair's unfair practices
The Ombudsman reminded that airlines should offer a change of travel plan on comparable terms and at the earliest possible date. They are also obliged to take appropriate care of the difficult situation of passengers and inform them in time, for example, about planned changes. The Ombudsman pointed out that the protection of the rights of airline passengers is also an element of the consumer rights protection system; therefore, he asked the President of the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection to look into these problems – it was emphasized in the announcement.
This is about the situation described by the media in which Two people were not allowed to board the Ryanair flight. The reason was the provision of a smaller aircraft than expected, because the aircraft that was to perform the flight was delayed. According to the Ombudsman, the compensation system specified in the Regulation of the European Parliament of 2004 establishing common rules on compensation and assistance to passengers in the event of denied boarding and of cancellation or long delay of flights, proved to be “inadequate and inadequate” in this case.
The carrier assured that passengers stranded at the airport were transferred to the next available flight or received a full refund. Passengers were offered a flight on the fourth day after the original date. “The EU legislator did not specify the time limits for the earliest possible date, but the offer of a flight after three days led to the complete cancellation of the trip by one of the passengers and a significant shortening of the stay by the other,” the Ombudsman reported.
The announcement stated that one of the passengers wanted to file a complaint via the website, the address of which was provided to her at the airport. However, it turned out that the electronic forms developed by the carrier they do not provide for the possibility of filing a complaint in the event of denied boardingonly concern flight cancellations or delays. In addition, the passenger indicated that she also had no possibility of contacting Ryanair to obtain a certificate for the insurer.
As reported, according to airline employees, purchasing more expensive tickets guarantees the flight, as “seen, for example, by a passenger on a Ryanair flight from Krakow to Rhodes in June 2024.” The statement of the staff from the press article was quoted: “You could have paid more for the ticket, you would have flown.”
The Commissioner for Human Rights appeals to the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection
Actions to protect the collective interests of consumers, for which the Commissioner for Human Rights requests the President of the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection, “may consist, among others, in initiating explanatory proceedings in order to initially determine whether there has been an infringement justifying the initiation of proceedings concerning practices infringing the collective interests of consumers, including through conduct of an entrepreneur contrary to the law or good practices, consisting in violating the obligation to provide consumers with reliable, true and complete information and significantly distorting or likely to distort the market behaviour of the average consumer before concluding a contract concerning a product, during its conclusion or after its conclusion – Art. 24 sec. 2 points 2 and 3 of the Act of 16 February 2007 on the protection of competition and consumers” – it was stated in the press release of the Commissioner for Human Rights.
The announcement emphasised that the fact that Ryanair DAC is an Irish company does not mean that its activities cannot fall within the scope of the Competition and Consumer Protection Act. It regulates the principles and procedures for counteracting practices that violate the collective interests of consumers, if they cause or may cause effects in Poland.
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