The Danish Supreme Court ruled today that 12 passengers of Primera Air were entitled to compensation after the airline experienced delays due to technical problems.

However, the trade association Dansk Luftfart has announced its intention to exert political pressure at a EU level to ensure rules are not interpreted “too far”.

Not cleared for takeoff
According to EU law, an airline is liable to pay compensation to passengers who are forced to endure delays of over three hours due to “technical problems” – except in “extraordinary circumstances”.

The Danish Supreme Court yesterday ruled that the delays in question were not due to such circumstances, and that Primera Air owed each of the 12 passengers 3,000 kroner in damages.

Flyforsinkelse.dk, which provides legal assistance to airline passengers seeking compensation, filed the lawsuits and claims it has an additional 1,500 cases that are on standby in the country’s courts.

An unfair judgement?
Michael Svane, the chief executive of Dansk Luftfart, announced his intention to bring the matter to the EU after the verdict was delivered.

“Now we must take the ball to the [EU] political scene to see if we can strike a better balance between the interests of passengers and the interests of airlines,” DR quoted him as saying.

“The consequences of the judgment will require airlines to assume strict liability for technical difficulties – even if the airlines have done everything required maintenance-wise.”