What are airlines’ reasons for denied boarding?

What are the main reasons for denied boarding?

When an airline refuses to let you board the flight, while you have a valid ticket, are on time at the gate and meet all travel and visa requirements, this is considered denied boarding. This generally happens when an airline overbooks the flight, a common practice where they sell more tickets than there are available seats. As a result, some passengers are left without a seat on the plane and are denied boarding.

How do airlines choose who to bump?

Different factors come into play when airlines decide to bump passengers. First of all airlines will never deny boarding to people on business seats, because they are very valuable. They are also unlikely to bump passengers who paid a lot for a seat, like one with extra legspace or a seat at the front. Once all the seats are taken, the airline will deny the passengers that are the latest to board the plane. This is the general approach although airlines could deviate from this.

What can you do if an airline denies boarding?

When you are refused boarding there are several options available. You can get a refund for your ticket, since the airline didn’t uphold their end of the agreement. You could also ask for a rebooking onto another flight. It is very important to ask for a denied boarding document, which airlines are obliged to provide you with. This document will help you get the compensation you’re entitled to.

Can I get a refund if I was denied boarding?

If you were on time for your flight and you were not allowed to fly, you are likely entitled to a refund of your ticket (including taxes), according to the European regulation. If you would rather request to be booked onto another flight for free, this is also possible but then you would not be entitled to a refund of your original flight.

How can I claim flight compensation for denied boarding?

Under EU and UK law, if your flight was overbooked or you were denied boarding for a different reason, you could also be entitled to a monetary compensation of up to €600 if:

You did not give up your seat voluntarily AND
The airline did not offer you a replacement flight OR the alternative flight they offered arrived at your final destination 2+ hours later than your original flight.

Not sure if you are entitled to a refund or flight compensation? Use our Claim Calculator to check your eligibility and start your claim online in minutes!

The importance of proof in the event of a denied boarding

Airlines are obligated to give you proof of the denied boarding. This is often a form which is filled in by the personnel of the airline. Unfortunately airlines often don’t fulfill this obligation. Therefore we advise you to expressly request this document. Additionally we advise you to make proof that you were at the boarding gate on time.

Court cases are lost because passengers can’t prove that they were at the boarding gate on time. However when passengers prove they were at the boarding gate on time, then compensation will be awarded. Thus proof is crucial in order to enforce your right to compensation. Therefore we advise you to make a picture as soon as possible to show you were at the boarding gate on time. This way when an airline marks you as no show, you can prove that you were actually there and they marked you as no show wrongfully.

Airline’s defence in cases of denied boarding

If the reason for denied boarding falls within the airline’s control, they are required to compensate the affected passengers. However they often refuse to, by using a controversial way to deny compensation to passengers: they mark them as “no-show”. This means that even if you were at the gate on time with all the requirements, the airline claims you weren’t there.. Unfortunately courts will decide in favour of the airline when this happens, because passengers often can’t prove that they were at the boarding gate on time.

How to take legal action against an airline for denied boarding?

If an airline has marked you as no show, they will never pay out your compensation, which means that legal action is often the only way forward. When you file a claim with Flight-Delayed.com, we can take your case to court if needed, where we can prove that you were on time for your flight and were unfairly denied boarding. With 15 years of experience and 9 legal teams across Europe, we know all the ins and outs of such cases. We win over 98% of all the cases we present in court and we’ll do everything we can to secure your compensation too! We’ll handle the entire process for you, no effort required on your part.

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We hope you find this information useful, have a safe and amazing trip!

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