Information for passengers with regard to the EU Regulation 261/2004

Application
The regulations apply to:

• passengers departing from an EU airport, or departing from an airport of a third party country with an EU airline/carrier arriving to an EU airport;
• passengers with a confirmed booking for the flight;
• passengers present at check-in by the time indicated (except in the case of a cancelled flight) or
• if the time is not indicated, passengers present at check-in at the latest 45 minutes before the departure time;
• passengers with a ticket with a fare available to the public.

 

Flight delays
In accordance with EU regulations, a delay is considered when a flight is delayed with respect to the envisaged departure time by at least 4 hours for flights of more than 3500 km, at least 3 hours for flights of between 1500 km and 3500 km and for flights of more than 1500 km within the EU, and by at least 2 hours for flights of up to 1500 km. If a long delay is expected, you have the right to assistance from the carrier.
This assistance includes meals and drinks in relation to the duration of the delay, a hotel arrangement, if required, and the possibility of two short telephone calls, faxes or emails. The carrier is not obliged to provide this assistance if the provision of this assistance would cause a further delay. In the case of delays of more than 5 hours, you have the right, within 7 days, to reimbursement of the ticket for the parts not used, or even the parts of the ticket used if the purpose of the trip has been compromised and, if required, to transport to the trip starting point.
In accordance with the EU regulations, you do have the right to monetary compensation if the flight is delayed at arrival for equal to or greater than 3 hours if the flight is not delayed as a result of exceptional circumstances which, in any case, could not have been prevented.

 

Denied boarding 
Denied boarding is the refusal from an air carrier to carry a passenger on a flight, although he/she has presented himself for boarding respecting the conditions indicated in the previous paragraph ‘‘Application’’, except when there are reasonable grounds to refuse carriage such as reasons of health, safety or security, or inadequate travel documentation.

When an operating air carrier reasonably expects to deny boarding on a flight, it shall first call for volunteers to surrender their reservations in exchange for benefits under conditions to be agreed between the passenger concerned and the operating air carrier. In addition, in the event of voluntary boarding denial, the airline shall offer either the full refund of the ticket within seven days or the rebooking, under comparable transport conditions, onto an alternative flight to his/her final destination at the earliest opportunity or at a later date at the passenger’s convenience, subject to availability of seats.

In the event of denied boarding without the passenger’s consent, the airline shall offer:

• a choice between the refund of the ticket within seven days and the rebooking, under comparable transport conditions, onto an alternative flight to their final destination at the earliest opportunity or at a later date at the passenger’s convenience, subject to availability of seats;
• assistance as in case of delayed flight;
• immediate compensation as follows:
  a) Eur 250 for all flight itineraries below 1500km;
  b) Eur 400 for all flight itineraries within EU above 1500km and for all other itineraries between 1500km and 3500km;
  c) Eur 600 for all extra European flight itineraries above 3500km.

Compensation may be reduced by 50% when passenger is offered the chance to be rebooked onto an alternative flight whose arrival time does not exceed two (a), three (b) or four hours (c) compared to the arrival time of the originally booked flight.

Compensation will be paid by bank transfer.

 

Cancellation of the flight
If a flight for which you have a confirmed booking is cancelled, you have the right to assistance, reimbursement or, as an alternative, re-accommodation. In certain cases, you also have the right to monetary compensation.
In accordance with the EU regulations, you do not have the right to monetary compensation if the flight is cancelled as a result of exceptional circumstances which, in any case, could not have been prevented even if all the necessary precautions has been taken e.g. bad weather, political instability, strikes (except those actions intended to assert workers' demands with regard to salary and/or social benefits, which is entered into upon a call by a trade union of the staff of an operating air carrier, as pronounced in the judgment of the Court of Justice of the EU C-613/20 of 06.10.21), safety and security risks or unforeseeable safety and security shortcomings.

Furthermore, you have not the right to receive monetary compensation if you have been informed in advance about the cancellation and if:

• the cancellation has been notified at least 14 days before the departure;
• the cancellation been notified between 14 and 7 days before the departure and the new departure time
• is not more than 2 hours before the original departure time and the new arrival time is not more than 4 hours before the original arrival time. 
• the cancellation been notified less than 7 days before the original departure date and the new departure time is not more than one hour before the original departure, and the new arrival time is not more than 2 hours after the original arrival time.

 

In case of denied boarding, cancellation of the flight or flight delay, the passenger wishing to raise a claim should contact Air Dolomiti Customer Relations Office:

Via Paolo Bembo, 70
IT-37062 Dossobuono di Villafranca (VR)
Web: www.airdolomiti.eu/support-and-contacts/customer-relations-eu

 

The Airline, in order to reduce legal time and costs in defining complaints, promotes the amicable settlement of disputes through the use of alternative systems to judicial litigation, including through remote means of communication, inviting passengers to join in personally or through the assistance of the European Consumer Centers Network, which can also be contacted for information on passengers' rights, by consulting the website https://ec.europa.eu/info/live-work-travel-eu/consumer-rights-and-complaints/resolve-your-consumer-complaint/european-consumer-centres-network-ecc-net_it.

ENAC is the National Enforcement Body responsible for the application of the Regulation (EC) 261/2004 at the Italian airports. Further information are available at the following link: 
https://www.enac.gov.it/en/passengers/passengers-rights/complaints-in-case-of-denied-boarding-cancellation-or-long-delay-of

A list of the relevant authorities responsible for ensuring the legal rights of passengers can be found under the following web link: National Enforcement Bodies (NEB) (europa.eu).

 

In this regard, Air Dolomiti informs passengers/consumers that, as of 28 February 2023, for cases falling within the framework of the rights provided for by Regulation (EC) No. 261/2004, which establishes common rules on compensation and assistance to passengers in the event of denial of boarding, cancellation of the flight or prolonged delay, an attempt at reconciliation is mandatory, as a condition of the filing of the appeal in court, through the ConciliaWeb platform of the Transport Regulatory Authority (ART) accessible at the following link or, alternatively, before another ADR Body (Alternative Dispute Resolution) identified pursuant to art. 141-decies, paragraph 1, of the Consumer Code. Passengers who have submitted a complaint to the Carrier pursuant to the aforementioned Regulation (EC) No. 261/2004 in the ways and forms indicated in the first paragraph of this article, and received a response considered unsatisfactory, are therefore required to carry out the mandatory attempt at reconciliation before a case may be filed in court. For more information on this subject, Passengers may consult the ART website or the website of the Ministry of Enterprise and Made in Italy at the following link.

 

Air Dolomiti also informs passengers/consumers that a European platform has been established for the online resolution of consumer disputes relating to goods and services purchased online in the European Union (referred to as the ODR platform). The ODR platform may be consulted at the following link. Through the ODR platform, passengers/consumers can consult the list of ADR bodies, find links to their websites, and propose the initiation of an online dispute resolution procedure. In addition, in the case of flights departing from or to Germany, the alternative dispute resolution procedure is available, accessible at the SOEP (Schlichtungsstelle Reise & Verkehr e.V.) portal.