Transport MEPs reviewing air passenger rights have refused to roll back on compensation for a three-hour delay and have also pushed for free cabin luggage and more rights for vulnerable travellers.

On Monday, Parliament’s Transport and Tourism Committee voted to update EU air passenger rights rules, in force since 2004, to ensure that passengers are sufficiently protected against travel disruption such as denied boarding and delayed or cancelled flights. This vote represents the draft Parliament response to Council’s June 2025 position on air passenger rights.

Transport Committee MEPs rejected EU Ministers’ push to weaken air passenger rights. They want to maintain air travellers’ right to be reimbursed or re-routed and to claim compensation if a flight is delayed by more than three hours, if it is cancelled, or if they are denied boarding (Council’s position is that compensation should apply only after a four to six hour delay, depending on the flight distance).

The MEPs were also against decreasing the current compensation amounts for flight disruptions and suggested they should be set at between €300 and €600 depending on the flight distance (Council wants to set compensation at between €300 to €500).

The committee acknowledges that airlines’ responsibility for disrupted flights should be limited to situations within their control. The draft position therefore updates the list of the extraordinary circumstances that would waive their responsibility to pay compensation, for instance natural disasters, war, weather conditions or unforeseen labour disputes affecting the air operator, airport or air navigation service provider. MEPs said that they want this list to be exhaustive and asked the Commission to keep it up to date.

The duty to provide stranded passengers with refreshments every two hours of waiting time beyond the initial departure time, a meal after three hours, and an overnight stay of a maximum of three nights for long delays, should remain in all circumstances, they added.

It was noted that “this three-night limit would offer airlines greater predictability and spare them undue financial costs, while replacing a situation where no clear cap exists and carriers can be exposed to unlimited accommodation costs in extraordinary circumstances.”

The MEPs are also adamant that passengers must be given “clear and timely information on baggage procedures.”

They advocated “for the right to carry on board, at no additional cost, one personal item, such as a handbag, backpack or laptop, plus one small piece of hand luggage with maximum dimensions of 100 cm (combined length, width and height) and weighing no more than 7 kg.”

Transport MEPs also want to scrap the additional fees some travellers are forced to pay, “for instance for correcting passenger name spelling errors or for checking in.” Passengers should retain the right to choose between digital and paper boarding passes, they added.

The Transport and Tourism Committee pays special attention to passengers with disabilities or reduced mobility, and to children, highlighting the EU’s commitment to inclusivity, accessibility, and social responsibility, and the need to make sure that all passengers travel with dignity.

Under the draft rules, these travellers should have the right to compensation, rerouting and assistance by airlines if they miss a flight due to airport’s failure to help them reach the gate on time.

“Passengers with reduced mobility, pregnant women, infants, and children in a pram with accompanying person should be given priority when boarding, while accompanying persons should be seated on an adjacent seat without having to pay extra,” stressed MEPs.

MEPs want pre-filled forms for compensation and reimbursement requests, to simplify claims processing and help passengers and airlines avoid claim agencies. According to the draft rules, air carriers would need to send passengers facing travel disruption (cancellation or delays) a pre-filled form within 48 hours of a disruption (Council’s position requires a pre-filled form only after cancellation, not after long delays). Travellers would have one year to file a request for compensation.

Rapporteur Andrey Novakov (EPP, BG) said, “again, Parliament is sending a clear message: we will not step back from existing passengers’ rights. The rules people rely on today remain the baseline: we are determined to improve them, not dilute them. The three-hour threshold for compensation, the existing compensation levels, and real, enforceable safeguards for passengers remain our red lines. From pre-filled claim forms when flights are delayed or cancelled to the right to sit next to your child at no extra cost – these are practical rights that must work in real life. We are ready to continue the fight for clearer, more predictable rules for airlines and a stronger aviation sector, but never at the expense of passengers.”

Parliament’s draft position on air passenger rights was confirmed by 36 votes in favour and with two abstentions. It will go to the January plenary session next week for a final vote by the House as a whole.

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