Originally Posted by
daz211
Trust me, the majority of passengers knew their rights.
The staff at the desk were simply saying, we are not Ryanair, there is nothing we can do.
Passengers were asking for simple information and being told 4-5 days wait for 2 seats back to Stansted.
when asked what hotel or alternative was available, they replied no flight are guaranteed not even 5 days, no hotel at all and no food go and book other flights with other airlines before they are full and in the end the shutter was pulled down.
so what can you do.
The law stands as it stands. To which extent someone you are doing business with complies with the law and how difficult (or not) it is to force the law upon your business partner is no different whether you are dealing with Ryanair or someone else. Ryanair (and a lot of other airlines) are simply difficult business partners and it is a choice everyone has to make whether or not you want to enter into contractual relationships with someone who will give you headaches if something goes wrong. As the law stands as it stands, in the end you will prevail, but it will require instructing a legal service provider, advancing costs for travel, accommodation plus legal fees. That is what your business partner bases his business model on: "So what can you do."
If I remember correctly, I have received compensation and/or damages without a fuss only once (from a US carrier). In all other cases I had to throw the law book at them, either by threatening legal action or actually initiating proceedings. Not once so far it actually ended up in court. As soon as they saw that I meant business and was about to play hardball, they were quick to cough up the dough. However, I am not really chasing compensation. There have been cases in which I would have been entitled to compensation and I could not be bothered to do something as I was not seriously inconvenienced or had suffered a monetary loss.