O’Carroll v Ryanair 2009 SCLR 125
O, a married couple, successfully claimed against Ryanair in the Sheriff Court for a 48 hour delay in delivery of their luggage. The sheriff awarded £215 in compensation for out of pocket expenses and £535 for stress and inconvenience. R appealed on grounds that the latter was excluded by the Montreal Convention (implemented in the UK by the International Carriage by Air Act 1999) as this amounted to exemplary or non-compensatory damages. The Sheriff Principal rejected the appeal. The £ 535 damages for stress and inconvenience were plainly compensatory under the Law of Scotland and did not amount to punitive damages, which Scots Law does not permit
"Sodalem esse societatis quae dedicetur ad exercitatio legis ut produceat iter peregrationemque"
Showing posts with label England. Montreal Convention. Show all posts
Showing posts with label England. Montreal Convention. Show all posts
Friday, July 09, 2010
England: Article 17 of the Montreal Convention
Barclay v British Airways PLC [2008] 1 Lloyds Rep. 661
B was flying from Phoenix to Heathrow. She slipped on a plastic strip embedded in the floor of the aircraft as she was making her way along a row of seats to her own seat. She claimed under the provisions of the Montreal Convention. BA claimed that she had failed to establish that she had sustained her injury as a result of “an accident” on board the aircraft. The Convention required that what happened had to be more than a mere event or occurrence and the accident and the injury had to be separate things.
The court held that the fall had to have been caused by an unusual or unexpected event external to B. The mere fact that she fell was not external to B for the purposes of the Convention. She had not established that the plastic strip had caused her fall and even if she had there was nothing unusual or unexpected about its presence.
The Court of Appeal dismissed her appeal. Article 17 of the Montreal Convention required there to be an unexpected and unusual event or happening external to the passenger. There was no accident external to B and no event which happened independently of her. The accident occurred as a result of the passenger’s particular, personal or peculiar reaction to the normal operation of the aircraft.
B was flying from Phoenix to Heathrow. She slipped on a plastic strip embedded in the floor of the aircraft as she was making her way along a row of seats to her own seat. She claimed under the provisions of the Montreal Convention. BA claimed that she had failed to establish that she had sustained her injury as a result of “an accident” on board the aircraft. The Convention required that what happened had to be more than a mere event or occurrence and the accident and the injury had to be separate things.
The court held that the fall had to have been caused by an unusual or unexpected event external to B. The mere fact that she fell was not external to B for the purposes of the Convention. She had not established that the plastic strip had caused her fall and even if she had there was nothing unusual or unexpected about its presence.
The Court of Appeal dismissed her appeal. Article 17 of the Montreal Convention required there to be an unexpected and unusual event or happening external to the passenger. There was no accident external to B and no event which happened independently of her. The accident occurred as a result of the passenger’s particular, personal or peculiar reaction to the normal operation of the aircraft.
England: Hot Air Balloon - Carriage By Air
Laroche v Spirit of Adventure (UK) Ltd [2008] EWCA Civ. 12
The court held that there was no logical reason to hold that a hot air balloon was not an aircraft for the purposes of the Carriage by Air Acts, which implements the Montreal Convention in the UK. A hot air balloon is designed for the carriage of passengers and thus any claim made for injury must be made within the framework of the Carriage by Air Acts.
The Court of Appeal held that the purpose for which the passenger was taking the flight (in this case, recreational purposes) had no bearing on whether the Convention (as implemented in the UK) applied or not. It did not matter that the flight route was not predetermined. The court applied the decision in Fellowes v Clyde Helicopters. The natural and ordinary meaning of the word “aircraft” was wide enough to include a passenger hot air balloon. It was designed for and capable of carrying passengers from one place to another. It was capable of being used for international air transport and was so used from time to time. A contract of carriage does not require a specification as to departure and destination. The purpose of Article 1(2) of the Convention was merely to define the carriage as international. It does not provide that the two points within the territory of a single State had to be agreed beforehand for the Convention to apply.
L was a passenger on board the aircraft. He was not on board as a pilot under instruction, did not contribute to the flight in any way and was not therefore a crew member
The court held that there was no logical reason to hold that a hot air balloon was not an aircraft for the purposes of the Carriage by Air Acts, which implements the Montreal Convention in the UK. A hot air balloon is designed for the carriage of passengers and thus any claim made for injury must be made within the framework of the Carriage by Air Acts.
The Court of Appeal held that the purpose for which the passenger was taking the flight (in this case, recreational purposes) had no bearing on whether the Convention (as implemented in the UK) applied or not. It did not matter that the flight route was not predetermined. The court applied the decision in Fellowes v Clyde Helicopters. The natural and ordinary meaning of the word “aircraft” was wide enough to include a passenger hot air balloon. It was designed for and capable of carrying passengers from one place to another. It was capable of being used for international air transport and was so used from time to time. A contract of carriage does not require a specification as to departure and destination. The purpose of Article 1(2) of the Convention was merely to define the carriage as international. It does not provide that the two points within the territory of a single State had to be agreed beforehand for the Convention to apply.
L was a passenger on board the aircraft. He was not on board as a pilot under instruction, did not contribute to the flight in any way and was not therefore a crew member
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