EU negotiates passenger rights: Will the three-hour limit remain?

Three-hour limit as a point of contention

At its core, it is about the so-called trigger threshold. The original proposal from the Council provided for a significant increase in this threshold in order to relieve airlines and the already heavily burdened European airspace. Critics fear that this would then eliminate a large proportion of today's claims.

Members of Parliament, on the other hand, hold the view that they want to maintain the three-hour threshold. According to information from negotiation circles, this limit is considered non-negotiable for the representatives of the people – it stands symbolically for consumer protection in air traffic.

A reduction in compensation amounts is being discussed as a possible compromise in return. Should the three-hour limit hold, the flat rates could be lowered to increase acceptance among member states. Concrete figures were not mentioned on Tuesday.

Simplification of the procedure

In addition to the material thresholds and amounts, the bureaucratic process is also being discussed. It is being debated how the application for compensation can be simplified through pre-filled forms. The goal is that travelers will no longer have to enter their data themselves in the future, but can transmit it directly to the airline.

As Deutschlandfunk reported, citing calculations, around 60 percent of all compensation claims are at risk of disappearing according to the plans discussed so far. The broadcaster's author, Petra Thiele, pointed out that consumer protection in air traffic is coming under pressure as long as the threshold is raised.

It remained unclear whether a breakthrough would be achieved in Brussels on Tuesday. Observers expected negotiations to continue in the coming weeks. A final agreement is considered uncertain, as the interests of airlines, consumer advocates, and member states are partly far apart.