Family misses flight owing to ‘short layover’ in Rome, airline ordered to pay Rs 99,000

A Delhi consumer commission has held an Italian airline guilty of deficiency in service and unfair trade practice for offering passengers an inadequately short 45-minute connecting window in Rome, forcing a family of three to miss their onward flight to Barcelona and purchase fresh tickets.

A bench of president Monika Srivastava and member Ritu Garodia of the District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, South Delhi, ordered the airline to pay over Rs 99,000, including a 50 per cent ticket refund and harassment compensation, ruling that airlines cannot blame passengers for the tight schedules they created.

“The complainant had to disembark and board again within 25 minutes. Though the other passengers may have been able to achieve this feat in 25 minutes, the Rome Airport guideline itself provides the minimum connecting time of 30 minutes. This is difficult to comprehend as to the reasons for this connection being offered by the airlines,” the October 30 order read.

It noted that once the airline chose to issue a single itinerary providing such a short connection, they were under an obligation to exercise reasonable care and díligence in planning and offering the journey.

Emphasising that the passenger has no control over the scheduled arrival time of the inbound flight, the time taken to disembark, the distance between the gates or the boarding closure protocol, the commission said that after denying the passenger the connecting journey, the airline cannot escape responsibility by stating that the transit should have been completed within the prescribed time.

Family misses flight after short layover in Rome

The complainant approached the commission alleging deficiency in service and unfair trade practices after he and his family missed a connecting flight from Rome to Barcelona due to an unusually short layover.

According to the complainant, his daughter booked tickets online for him, his wife and herself to travel from Delhi to Barcelona on May 23, 2024. The family paid Rs 1.09 lakh for the tickets.

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The itinerary involved two connecting flights operated by an Italian airline – Delhi to Rome, then Rome to Barcelona. The connecting flights had a layover of only 45 minutes, leaving the passengers with approximately 25 minutes to disembark and reach the boarding gate, which closed 15 minutes before departure.

The complainant alleged that despite requesting priority deboarding from the crew of the Delhi-Rome flight, the airline did not facilitate it. He further alleged that the family had to rush through the airport but found the boarding gate closed. Although the connecting flight was still at the airport, the airline staff refused to allow them to board.

The complainant also alleged that the airline refused to accommodate the family on an alternative flight without charging them for new tickets. He then had to purchase new tickets from Rome to Barcelona for 602.52 euros, equivalent to Rs 56,493.

Airline’s stand

The airline denied responsibility, arguing that the passengers were aware of the flight timings and that the tickets had been booked through a third-party website, Flight Network, without the airline’s involvement in the booking process.

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It also maintained that the Delhi-Rome flight had arrived seven minutes ahead of schedule and that the connecting flight’s boarding gates closed 15 minutes before departure.

Airline liable for poor planning: Order

The commission observed that the airline had issued a single ticket for the Delhi-Rome and Rome-Barcelona sectors, with a short layover. By offering such an itinerary, it was under an obligation to exercise reasonable care and diligence while planning the journey.

The commission noted that the Delhi-Rome flight was scheduled to arrive at 8.15 am, while boarding for the connecting flight began at 8.20 am. Since the boarding gate closed 15 minutes before the 9 am departure, the passengers effectively had only 25 minutes to reach the connecting flight.

Referring to the transit information available for Rome Fiumicino Airport, the commission noted that the minimum connecting time for passengers travelling on the same airline, without having to collect and recheck baggage, was 30 minutes.

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“If the scheduled arrival and the scheduled boarding/closure times leave no reasonable margin for ordinary operational contingencies, the risk arising from such planned connection cannot fairly be shifted entirely upon the passenger,” the ruling held.

Takeaway

The order highlighted that airlines must exercise due diligence while scheduling connecting flights on a single ticket. They cannot shift the burden of impractical layover times onto passengers, particularly when travellers have no control over flight operations or boarding procedures.

Consumers facing similar grievances may contact the consumer helpline in their respective states (Delhi helpline: 011-23379146) or dial the National Consumer Helpline at 1915 for assistance.

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