Workshop on Travel for Passengers
with Reduced Mobility
Sofia, Bulgaria – 31st March – 1st April 2009
Regulation 1007/2006:
The Legal requirements
Ann Frye, Chair, ECAC Sub-Group
on PRMs
Regulation (EC) No 1107/2006 of
The European Parliament and of the
Council
• “Concerning the rights of
disabled persons and persons
with reduced mobility when
travelling by air;”
• Made 5th July 2006;
• Requirements on refusal of
carriage come into effect 26th
July 2007;
• Other requirements came into
effect July 2008.
European Union Regulation
Fundamental Principles
“In order to give disabled persons and persons with
reduced mobility opportunities for air travel
comparable to those of other citizens, assistance
to meet their particular needs should be provided
at the airport as well as on board aircraft, by
employing the necessary staff and equipment. In
the interests of social inclusion, the persons
concerned should receive this assistance without
additional charge.”
Scope
• The Regulation applies to disabled people
and people with reduced mobility travelling by
commercial air passenger services departing
from, arriving at or in transit through an
airport situated in the territory of an EU
Member State;
• Provisions dealing with refusal of carriage
and assistance by airlines also apply to
passengers travelling from a third country to
a Member State in a Community air carrier.
Definition
• “Disabled Person” or
“Person with Reduced
Mobility” (prm) includes
anyone whose mobility
when using transport is
reduced due to:
– Any physical disability
(permanent or temporary);
– Any intellectual impairment;
– Any other problem caused
by age or disability.
Refusal of Carriage
• An air carrier, its agent or a tour
operator must not refuse, on grounds of
disability or reduced mobility:
– To accept a reservation for a flight
departing from or arriving at an airport to
which this Regulation applies;
– To embark a disabled person or prm
provided that they have a valid ticket and
reservation.
Exceptions
• An air carrier can refuse
carriage on grounds of
disability only:
• in order to meet safety
requirements:
– established under international,
Community or national law or;
– Established by the Authority
which issued the air operator’s
certificate; or
• If the size if the aircraft or its
doors make embarkation of
the disabled person
physically impossible.
Exceptions
• If a passenger is refused on one of these
grounds, the carrier must make “reasonable
efforts” to propose an acceptable alternative;
• A passenger who has been refused on this
basis must be offered the right to reimbursement or re-routing;
• Where safety requirements are at issue, the
carrier may require that the disabled person
is accompanied by another person capable of
providing necessary assistance.
Points of Arrival and Departure
• The airport managing body
must designate points of arrival
and departure within the airport
boundary at which disabled
people and prms can call for
assistance;
• These points must be agreed
with the Airport Users
Committee and with
organisations representing
disabled people ;
• The points will vary but could
include forecourts, car parks,
taxi ranks, coach and rail
stations.
Points of Arrival and Departure
• They must also be
clearly signed and
give information
about the airport in
accessible formats
Transmission of Information
• Air carriers, their agents and tour operators must
ensure that they receive notification of the need
for assistance at the point of booking;
• If they receive notification 48 hours ahead of
travel, they must transmit it to the airport at least
36 hours before departure;
• If they don’t receive 48 hours notice the airport
must make “all reasonable efforts” to ensure that
the disabled person can take their flight;
• After departure the air carrier must inform the
destination airport of the needs of the passenger
as soon as possible.
Right to Assistance at the Airport
• The airport managing
body is responsible for
providing assistance;
• They can provide
assistance themselves
or contract it out;
• Assistance must be
provided to enable
disabled people to:
• Move through all stages of
the airport procedures;
• Get on board the aircraft
and into a seat.
Right to Assistance at the Airport
• Annex 1 to the Regulation
sets out the assistance
that must be provided.
This includes:
– Moving from the designated
point of arrival;
– Checking and registering
baggage;
– Boarding the aircraft;
– Stowing baggage on board;
– Completing customs and
immigration procedures on
arrival.
Charging for Assistance at
Airports
• Airports must provide
assistance without charge to
the disabled passenger;
• They can levy a charge on all
airport users to fund the
assistance;
• The charge must be shared
among airport users in
proportion to the total number
of passengers carried to and
from that airport;
• The charge must be cost
related and transparent.
Quality Standards for Assistance
• The airport managing body must set quality
standards for the assistance required;
• These standards must be agreed with the
Airport Users Committee and organisations
representing disabled passengers;
• Quality standards must take account of the
guidance drawn up by ECAC;
• Quality standards must be published;
• Higher standards can be provided by
agreement between the airport and air
carrier;
• Airports with fewer than 150,000
commercial passenger movements annually
are exempt from these requirements.
Right to Assistance on Board
the Aircraft
• The air carrier must provide
assistance without charge to the
passenger;
• Annex 2 sets out the assistance
that must be provide. It includes:
– Carrying recognised assistance dogs;
– Carrying up to two pieces of mobility
equipment (per passenger), including
electric wheelchairs;
– Making all reasonable efforts to
arrange seating to meet their needs
(subject to safety requirements);
– Assistance in moving to and from toilet
facilities.
Training
• Airports and air carriers must:
– Ensure that all their personnel
(including those employed through
sub-contractors) who provide direct
assistance to disabled passengers
are trained in how to meet their
needs;
– Provide disability equality and
disability awareness training to all
personnel who deal directly with the
travelling public;
– Ensure that appropriate training is
provided to new employees and
refresher training is given to all
employees.
Compensation
• If a wheelchair or other
mobility equipment is
damaged while being
handled at the airport or
carried on board, the
passenger must be
compensated in
accordance with
international rules.
Enforcement
• Each Member State must designate a body or
bodies responsible for the enforcement of the
Regulation for flights departing from or
arriving at airports in their territory;
• This body must ensure that the rights of
disabled people and prms are respected;
• This includes compliance with the quality
standards;
• Most countries have appointed their Civil
Aviation Authority.
Duties of Enforcement Body
• The NEB has to take necessary measures
to ensure that the rights of disabled people
and PRMS are respected;
• This includes compliance with quality
standards.
Complaints
• A disabled person or prm can report a
breach of the Regulation to the airport
managing body or airline concerned;
• If they are not satisfied with the
response they can complain to the
Enforcement Body who should
investigate it;
• Member States must inform disabled
people and prms about their rights and
how to complain.
Penalties
• Member States must set rules on
penalties to apply to breaches of the
Regulation and must make sure that
these rules are implemented;
• The penalties must be “effective,
proportionate and dissuasive”.
Penalties
• To take one example:
• The UK have set the following levels of
fine:
– 6000 € for most offences, but;
– Unlimited fine for more serious offences
including:
•
•
•
•
breach of non-discrimination provisions;
failure to designate arrival/departure points;
charging for assistance;
limiting or waiving obligations.
Turning law into practice..
• Regulation 1107/2006 defines the areas in
which assistance needs to be provided;
• But not how that assistance is to be delivered;
• The Regulation asks that airports and air
carriers “have regard” to Guidance from the
European Civil Aviation Conference (ECAC)
in:
– How they organise assistance to disabled
passengers and
– How they train their staff.
Turning law into practice..
• Guidance drawn up by the
ECAC - known as Doc 30 – sets
out the quality standards and
service levels that are needed;
• The Guidance has no legal force
but it is widely recognised and
used by airlines and airports;
• Service level targets and
standards based on the ECAC
guidance can be included in the
contract with the assistance
provider.
ECAC Guidance
• There are three guidance notes that are
particularly helpful in developing best
practice:
– Annex J: Code of Good Conduct in Ground
Handling for Persons with Reduced Mobility;
– Annex K: Guidelines on Ground Handling for
Persons With Reduced Mobility;
– Annex N: Guidelines on Awareness and Disability
Equality for All Airport & Airline Personnel dealing
with the Travelling Public.
Annex J
• Sets out:
– The scope of the services that should be
provided;
– The operating principles that should be
followed;
– The hours during which they should be
available.
Annex J
• Also deals with:
– The service standards and targets that
should be met for pre-booked and non prebooked departing and arriving passengers;
– Customer satisfaction;
– Performance and quality monitoring.
Operating principles
• There should be:
– An effective system of
prioritising, scheduling
and delivering
assistance;
– Clear guidelines for the
customer so that they
understand what should
be provided;
– Appropriate
meeting/waiting areas;
– Training programmes
for staff;
– Appropriate equipment.
Service Standards
• Annex J suggests
minimum levels of
service for providing
assistance;
• These are
expressed in terms
of acceptable
waiting times;
• However, standards
are about quality as
well as time!
Annex K
• Deals with:
– The basic principles that
should be followed in
delivering assistance;
– The equipment that
should be available to
provide assistance
safely and with comfort
and dignity;
– The training needs of
staff operating this
equipment.
Annex N
• Understanding disability is essential for
all staff at airports and on airlines who
deal with the travelling public;
• Annex N provides guidance on how to
interact with and provide assistance to a
wide range of people with disabilities;
• The most important point for all those
working in this field is to treat people
with respect and dignity.
Further information
• http://www.ecac-ceac.org/
– ECAC.CEAC Doc No. 30, Part I (revised)
• Annexes J,K and N
Is it working?
• The European Disability Forum is still
receiving complaints including:
– Airlines refusing boarding without
medical clearance;
– Airlines insisting on an accompanying
person;
– Airlines refusing to carry heavy
wheelchairs;
– Airlines charging for mobility
equipment.
• There is also evidence of some airports
charging airlines at a disproportionate
level.
Is it working?
• The Regulation will only be effective if the
monitoring and enforcement are consistent
and rigorous;
• It is already clear that standards vary
considerably;
• Some enforcement bodies see their role
simply to pass complaints from the disabled
person to the airport without comment;
• They need to take a proactive role of
investigation and arbitration..
Is it working?
• Other keys to successful operation include:
– A consistent and effective system of notification
between travel agents, airlines and airports;
– A recognition by airports that buying the cheapest
ground handling services is unlikely to be good
enough - cleaning companies are not necessarily
experts in handling disabled people!
– Involvement of disabled people both in standard
setting and in monitoring service delivery.
Workshop on Travel for Passengers
with Reduced Mobility
Sofia, Bulgaria – 31st March – 1st April 2009
Regulation 1007/2006:
The Legal requirements
Ann Frye, Chair, ECAC Sub-Group
on PRMs