Agência Brasil explains: passenger rights in flight delays

When a flight is delayed or canceled, it causes headaches and annoyances for passengers, who often don’t know what to do in these cases. This week, on the eve of the Christmas and New Year festivities, when the volume of flights and passengers at airports is greater, an aeronauts strike further complicates travel periods, with an impact on the time of departure or arrival of planes. The National Civil Aviation Agency (Anac) advises passengers on their rights and duties in the event of delays and cancellations for various reasons, whether strikes or adverse weather conditions, among others. According to Anac, to minimize the discomfort of passengers waiting for a flight, airlines must: keep passengers informed every 30 minutes about the expected departure of delayed planes; immediately report the delay, cancellation and interruption of the service; offer free of charge, according to the waiting time, material assistance; offer re-accommodation, full reimbursement or performance of the service by another mode of transport, leaving the choice to the passenger, when there is a flight delay of more than four hours or cancellation. Denied boarding According to Anac, denied boarding occurs when the airline needs to deny boarding to passengers who showed up to travel, fulfilling all their boarding requirements. This can happen in some situations, such as the company’s need to change the planned aircraft for another with a smaller number of seats; due to the need for the aircraft to fly lighter for operational safety reasons; or when tickets were sold above the capacity of the aircraft, the so-called overbooking. 🇧🇷 In these cases, the company must look for voluntary passengers who accept to board another flight, by offering advantages such as, for example, money, extra tickets, miles, daily rates in hotels, freely negotiated. If the passenger accepts the advantage, the company may request the signature of a receipt, proving that the proposal was accepted. If it does not get enough volunteers and a passenger is denied boarding, the company must immediately pay financial compensation in the amount of SDR 250, in the case of domestic flights, or SDR 500, for international flights. SDR stands for Special Drawing Right and is a basket of International Monetary Fund currencies. The updated value can be consulted on the Central Bank website or on the IMF website. In addition to this financial compensation, the company has to offer the passenger prevented from boarding the alternatives of re-accommodation, full reimbursement or execution of the service by another mode of transport. Material assistance is also due, if applicable. Material assistance Material assistance must be offered free of charge in cases of delay, cancellation, flight interruption and denied (negative) boarding. That is, when the passenger is at the airport, explains ANAC. Depending on the waiting time, starting from the moment the boarding is delayed, canceled or denied, the following assistance must be provided: from one hour onwards: communication (internet, telephone, etc.); after two hours: food (voucher, meal, snack, etc.); from four hours: accommodation (only if you are staying overnight at the airport) and round trip transportation. If the passenger is at their home location, the company may only offer transportation to their home and from their home to the airport. Passengers with Special Assistance Needs (PNAE) and their companions will always be entitled to accommodation, regardless of the overnight stay at the airport. According to Anac, in any situation, regardless of the reason for delay, cancellation or delay, assistance must be offered and applies both to passengers waiting in the terminal and those on board the aircraft, with doors open. The company may suspend the provision of material assistance to proceed with immediate boarding. If the consumer has a problem with the airline, he can file a complaint with the agency. Doubts can be resolved at the number 163. The call is free from any state in the country and works every day, from 8 am to 8 pm. *With information from ANAC

Agência Brasil