A Bihar consumer commission has directed an airline to pay Rs 85,816 to a passenger after repeated delays on a Patna-Mumbai flight caused him and his family to miss their connecting flight to Mangalore. This incident reportedly forced them to arrange fresh tickets, accommodation and transport.
The Indian Express reported that the Patna District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission held the airline responsible for failing to provide an alternative arrangement for the onward journey, amounting to deficiency in service.
The order was passed on September 8 by commission president Prem Ranjan Mishra and member Rajnish Kumar.
Family missed Mangalore connection
According to the case details reported by The Indian Express, the passenger had booked three confirmed tickets for travel from Patna to Mangalore via Mumbai on January 16, 2021. The total fare for the original booking was Rs 18,697.
The passenger said the Patna-Mumbai flight was repeatedly delayed, causing him and his family to miss their connecting flight from Mumbai to Mangalore.
The journey was important as the passenger was travelling to attend his son’s medical counselling session in Mangalore.
The family alleged that despite the prolonged wait, the airline did not provide food or refreshments and failed to arrange an alternative flight for the onward journey.
With no alternative arrangement in place, the passenger said he was forced to purchase fresh tickets from another airline. He also incurred expenses on a hotel stay and transport.
The airline later refunded Rs 4,389, but the passenger claimed the amount was inadequate to cover the losses he had incurred.
Passenger sought Rs 3.34 lakh
The passenger subsequently approached the consumer commission seeking around Rs 3.34 lakh in compensation.
His claim included the cost of the alternative flight, hotel and transport expenses, loss of an advance hotel booking in Mangalore and compensation for the mental agony and physical hardship allegedly caused by the disruption.
Airline cites bad weather
The airline defended the delay by attributing it to bad weather in Delhi, arguing that the circumstances were beyond its control.
It relied on its terms of carriage, which exempted the airline from liability for delays or cancellations caused by extraordinary circumstances.
The airline also pointed out that the connecting Mumbai-Mangalore ticket had been refunded and argued that compensation was not payable when a delay resulted from weather conditions.
It further described the passenger’s claim as exaggerated and unsupported by sufficient evidence.
Commission finds expenses were genuine
The commission, however, noted that the passenger and his family had reached Patna airport on time and had been issued boarding passes before the flight was repeatedly delayed.
The Indian Express reported that the commission examined documents submitted by the passenger, including hotel bills, transport expenses, alternative flight tickets and proof relating to the advance hotel booking in Mangalore.
The commission found these expenses to be genuine and directly attributable to the airline’s failure to make alternative arrangements.
It directed the airline to reimburse Rs 20,205 towards the hotel stay, transport, alternative flight tickets and loss of the Mangalore hotel booking.
After accounting for the Rs 4,389 already refunded, the balance payable under this head was Rs 15,816.
Rs 50,000 for mental agony
In addition to reimbursing the expenses, the commission awarded Rs 50,000 as compensation for mental agony and physical harassment, The Indian Express reported. It also directed the airline to pay Rs 20,000 towards litigation costs. Therefore, the total amount payable to the passenger came to Rs 85,816.
The commission held that since the airline had failed to arrange an alternative means of reaching Mangalore after its flight disruption caused the missed connection, it was liable for the resulting expenses.
“Since the opposite party didn’t arrange any alternate flight to reach Mangalore from Mumbai, the complainant was bound to purchase a fresh ticket,” the commission observed.
Takeaway
The case shows how important documenting expenses when a flight disruption causes a missed connection. Passengers facing prolonged delays should preserve boarding passes, tickets, airline communications, hotel bills, transport receipts and alternative-flight invoices. Such records can help establish that additional expenses were directly caused by the disruption.
The ruling also shows that an airline’s reliance on weather or extraordinary circumstances does not automatically settle every claim arising from a delayed journey. Where passengers can establish that an airline failed to make alternative arrangements and that specific expenses resulted from that failure, those expenses may be considered in a consumer dispute.