Laws on denied boarding compensation
We are the enforcement body in the UK for the laws that cover air passenger rights when flights
are delayed or cancelled, or when passengers are downgraded or denied boarding. Our enforcement
powers are subject to where the incident happened.
Laws on the rights of people with a disability and those with reduced mobility
We are the enforcement body in the UK for the laws that cover the rights of passengers with
disabilities and reduced mobility to have additional assistance at the airport and onto the
plane.
Following the publication in March 2012 of the CAA’s Safety Notice on the carriage of electric
mobility aids, a number of issues have come to light relating to how airlines are implementing the
requirements set out.
On 30 January 2013, the CAA wrote an open letter (PDF) to all airlines operating to and from the UK to clarify how
the safety requirements for the carriage of electric mobility aids relate to the requirements of
the Regulation EC1107/2006.
Laws on baggage
The Montreal Convention
1999 (PDF) is a treaty between ICAO member states which provides consistent rules on the carriage of passengers,
baggage and cargo. It applies subject to the country where the contract was made having ratified
the Montreal Convention.
Laws on transparent information to passengers
- Air Services Regulation EC Regulation No 1008/2008
- Carrier Identity Regulation EC Regulation No 2111/2005 on the establishment of a Community
list of air carriers subject to an operating ban within the Community and on informing air
transport passengers of the identity of the operating air carrier (provision of information about
the airline operating the flight and any changes).
General consumer protection legislation
We are also one of the UK’s enforcement bodies for general consumer law as it applies to air
travel. We have this power through Part 8 of the Enterprise Act 2002
which covers a wide range of domestic and Community legislation.
Where the Office of Fair Trading or the
Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
has published guidance for business on the legislation covered below we will act in accordance with
that guidance:
CAA and Competition and Markets Authority joint guidance for the travel industry
The CAA and OFT (now the CMA) have produced joint guidance for the travel industry on the key
consumer protection regulations that set out the requirements in relation to the transparent
provision of price and other information. The guidance is designed to help businesses understand
the requirements of the regulations and to comply with them.
The guidance sets out the requirements of the Air Services Regulation
(ASR), specifically the price transparency requirements, the Carrier Identity
Regulation (CIR), the Consumer Protection from Unfair
Trading Regulations (CPRs), the Unfair Terms in Consumer Contracts
Regulations (UTCCRs) and the E-Commerce Directive.
Two version of the guidance have been produced, a full guidance document sets out each of the regulations and their
requirements in detail, and sets out the CAA and CMA’s enforcement powers. There is also a shorter
quick reference version of the
guidance designed to give a brief overview of the requirements of the regulations. Both versions
contain practical example of the requirements of the regulations.
Air passenger rights - European case law
There is European case law on air passenger rights from the Court of Justice of the European
Union.