ECJ Opinion
A fall on the flight stairs is not automatically compensated
According to an ECJ opinion, anyone who falls on a flight of stairs on the way to or from an airplane cannot automatically hope for compensation for pain and suffering or other payments. Photo: Daniel Karmann/dpa
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A passenger fell while boarding a plane and broke her arm. She then sued for damages. The case ended up with the ECJ, which has now published an opinion.
According to an ECJ opinion, anyone who falls on a flight of stairs on the way to or from an airplane cannot automatically hope for compensation for pain and suffering or other payments.
Advocate General Nicholas Emiliou recommended to the highest EU court on Thursday that a corresponding accident only entitles to compensation if there is an obvious reason. He cited a snow-covered stairway, a smudge or a gap between the stairway and the plane as examples.
The background to the report is a case before an Austrian court. A passenger fell while exiting a mobile staircase for no apparent reason and broke her arm. She sued for damages and compensation for a household help.
According to the report, however, a boarding ladder would have to be slippery, defective or in some other way unusually dangerous for this accident to be construed under the Montreal Convention. This stipulates that an airline must pay for physical injuries resulting from an accident if it occurs on board or during boarding or disembarking.
However, if every damaging and involuntary fall, regardless of the cause, constituted such an accident, the agreement would be interpreted disproportionately to the disadvantage of the airlines, according to the Advocate General. The ECJ’s opinions are not legally binding, but the judges often follow them. A verdict is likely to come in a few months.