Court Rules Passengers Responsible for Checking Flight Changes
Translated & summarized from Ice by baba
An Israeli court ruled that passengers are responsible for checking flight updates, even those sent late at night, dismissing a lawsuit against Arkia. The passenger claimed an eight-hour delay, but the court calculated the delay from the last notification, finding it to be under the compensation threshold. The ruling establishes a precedent for passenger responsibility in verifying flight schedule changes.
The story in 5 lines · by baba
- Passengers are responsible for checking flight time updates, even if sent late at night, a court ruled.
- A lawsuit against Arkia was dismissed because the delay was less than eight hours from the last notification.
- The court used the last updated flight time as the basis for calculating delay duration.
- Arkia provided an SMS and email notification the night before the flight was delayed.
- The ruling clarifies passenger responsibility for verifying flight schedule changes.
A small claims court in Afula has dismissed a lawsuit against Israeli airline Arkia, establishing a precedent that passengers are responsible for checking flight time changes, even if notifications are sent late at night. The ruling, reported by Bizportal, addresses a surge in complaints against Arkia regarding flight delays, cancellations, and unannounced changes.
The plaintiff and his family had booked a flight to Barcelona, initially scheduled for 9:00 AM. However, the flight was repeatedly postponed, eventually departing at 7:15 PM. The passenger sued Arkia for compensation, citing a delay exceeding eight hours, reimbursement for car rental costs, and emotional distress.
The core legal dispute centered on when to measure the delay. Israeli Aviation Services Law (Tibi Law) considers delays over eight hours as flight cancellations, entitling passengers to automatic compensation. The passenger argued the delay should be calculated from the original early morning time, while Arkia contended it should be measured from the original ticketed time. Senior Registrar Maya Blau ruled that the starting point for calculation is the last updated time provided to the passenger.
Arkia demonstrated that they sent an SMS and email around 10:40 PM the night before the flight, informing passengers of a postponement to 1:30 PM. Consequently, Blau dismissed the passenger's claim that it was unreasonable to expect him to check messages overnight. The ruling stated that passengers have a duty to verify updates before heading to the airport, especially for flights whose times have already been changed.
The actual delay from the last updated time (1:30 PM) to the actual departure (7:15 PM) was five hours and 45 minutes. This duration qualifies for assistance services like food and drinks but does not meet the eight-hour threshold for financial compensation. Other claims, including car rental cancellation and emotional distress, were also denied. Arkia provided a single meal voucher, which the court deemed sufficient for the delay duration under the law.
The ruling highlights an ambiguity in the Tibi Law regarding the measurement of delays with multiple schedule changes. While this case used the last notification time as the basis, other courts have previously used the original ticket time or required airlines to prove passengers received timely updates.
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