13 New Air Passenger Rights Coming To Europe (And Why Americans Should Care)

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Europe has been on a bit of a roll lately when it comes to airline passenger rights.

First came news that passengers would soon be entitled to bring a small personal item on board at no additional charge. Yep, even on ultra-low-cost carriers. Then came a rule guaranteeing free family seating for children traveling with their parents. Again, this was for all airlines covered by the rules.

Both changes had plenty of Americans wondering why we don’t have similar protections.

Well…those weren’t the only changes.

The Council of the European Union has now given final approval to updated passenger-rights rules that include 13 significant changes affecting travelers flying within and out of the EU, as well as certain flights into the EU.

They won’t take effect immediately, but they represent one of the biggest overhauls of European airline passenger protections in years.

What’s Changing?

Among the biggest changes are:

• Passengers will be able to bring a personal item, such as a small bag or backpack, on board for free.
• Passengers “shall not be denied boarding on the grounds that they used their own printed version of a digitally issued boarding pass.”
• Passengers with disabilities or reduced mobility will be entitled to compensation, rerouting and assistance if they miss a flight because the airport failed to get them to the gate on time.
• Children under age 14 will be able to sit beside the person accompanying them for free.
• Pregnant passengers and passengers with disabilities or reduced mobility will likewise be able to sit beside their travel companion without paying additional reservation costs.
• Airlines will have to provide more transparent pricing, including displaying airfares that include an allowance for a piece of hand baggage before the booking process begins.
• Airlines won’t be able to charge passengers to correct misspellings of their names on tickets.
• Passengers will be able to obtain digital boarding passes at check-in without having to create an account or download an app.
• If a passenger misses the outbound flight of a round-trip ticket, the airline won’t be able to cancel the return flight or charge a “no-show” penalty.
• If a passenger is moved to a lower class than the one they booked, they’ll automatically be entitled to a refund.
• Printed boarding passes will have to be offered for free to passengers who have already checked in.
• Passengers will have nine months to file a compensation claim against an airline for disrupted travel.
• During a disruption, airlines will have to provide refreshments every two hours, a meal after three hours, additional meals every five hours after that—up to three meals per day—and free hotel accommodation and transportation when an overnight stay is necessary.

Don’t expect these changes overnight, though.

The updated rules will take effect 12 months and 20 days after they are published in the Official Journal of the European Union. Until then, the current passenger-rights rules remain in place.

How Will This Affect Americans?

Although these rules don’t affect flights that operate entirely within the United States, Americans don’t have to be EU citizens to receive their protections.

The updated rules will cover:

• Flights within the EU, whether operated by an EU or non-EU airline
• Flights departing from the EU for a non-EU country, whether operated by an EU or non-EU airline
• Flights arriving in the EU from a non-EU country when operated by an EU airline

That last distinction is important. A flight from the United States to Europe generally will be covered if it’s operated by an EU airline. The same inbound flight operated by a U.S. airline generally won’t be covered under these EU passenger-rights rules.

However, a flight leaving the EU for the United States will be covered regardless of whether it’s operated by a European or American airline.

So if you’re planning a European vacation after the new rules take effect, these protections could directly affect your trip.

Europe has long been ahead of the United States when it comes to airline passenger protections, and these new rules only widen that gap.

Whether it’s free family seating, better assistance during disruptions or making it easier to travel without being forced into an airline app, many of these changes address complaints travelers have had for years.

Americans may not benefit when flying at home, but anyone traveling on a covered flight within, out of or into the European Union after the rules take effect will have a much stronger set of rights than they do today.

It’ll be interesting to see whether any of these ideas eventually make their way across the Atlantic.

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This post first appeared on Your Mileage May Vary