Take a selfie or miss air delay pay-outs

Air passengers are being advised to take photos of themselves at the boarding gate with the number of the flight after an appeal court decision said passengers must be able to prove they were on a delayed flight to claim compensation.

It comes after low-cost airline XL Airways France challenged a family’s right to compensation for a five-hour delay on a flight from Miami to Paris. The move was described by Morgan Bour­ven of consumer rights group UFC Que Choisir as an “astonishing blow for passengers”.

The family of three lodged a claim for €600 each and included copies of electronic reservations and proof of delay but it was rejected by the company and then by a lower court.

This was backed by the Cour de Cassation appeal court, saying electronic tickets “estab­lish­ed the right to transport but do not prove they showed up at the airport or boarded the plane”.

It was up to the passenger to provide proof of boarding and, with most airlines now allowing electronic ticketing and automatic boarding passes there was no simple way to get this proof without paying for extras onboard or at the airport.

Although airlines must keep a passenger register for security purposes, the court said it was the passenger’s duty to provide tangible proof of boarding, information the court admitted was held “only by the airline”.

Mr Bourven said “at the least XL Airways acted in bad faith”. The family was asked for proof “to which it did not have access”.

For the moment only people seeking compensation from French airlines are affected and there are calls to amend the law.

In the interim, he said passengers should create their own proof by paying to put luggage in the hold; asking the airline for a printed boarding pass, which usually costs extra; keeping till receipts for credit card purchases made in departures or keeping a record of your location at the airport at the given time on a smartphone.

To get ‘free’ proof, it was a case of getting neighbours on the plane to attest you were there, taking a selfie in front of the gate with the flight number shown – or taking photos with airline staff. A line of people asking for selfies with the pilot could cause a rethink.