APPENDIX 6
Supplementary memorandum submitted by
BMI
I am writing to you about the House of Commons'
Select Committee hearing on financial protection for air travellers
to be held on 2 November.
bmi's position is well known. But, I wanted
to take the opportunity to amplify our position.
We take customer service seriously and believe
that our customers should be aware of their rights when booking
travel. We encourage all our passengers to take out comprehensive
travel insurance. We do not, however, agree with the CAA analysis
that a levy should be imposed on scheduled air travel to cover
those very rare occasions when airlines fail.
At the request of Karen Buck, the Parliamentary
Under Secretary at the Department for Transport, bmi attended
a meeting on 24 October to discuss what commitments airlines could
make in this area.
We have worked closely with DfT on the possibility
of including text on our web booking engine explaining financial
protection for air travel. bmi is committed to providing this
advice as part of an industry wide compact with government. We
have told the Minister and her officials that we will take part
in such an arrangement that covers all airlines that carry UK
residents flying into and out of the United Kingdom.
It is essential, in our view, that all domestic
carriers are covered by a voluntary commitment on information
to passengers. The meetings on 24 October were limited to bmi
and other financially sound carriers—i.e. those that are
not the problem. We encourage DfT to reach out to carriers not
present at the 24 October meeting. In addition, many UK residents
travel on foreign carriers. We argue that those carriers too,
should be encouraged to follow the initiative between DfT and
the responsible UK carriers.
For the record, I would like to make clear that
bmi (including bmi regional and bmibaby):
— recommends that our customers take
out appropriate travel insurance;
— will work towards putting on our
web sites, as part of the booking process, information about financial
protection. We prefer to use a recommended text drawn up by the
Department for Transport;
— will also consider alerting passengers
that paying by credit card may carry some protection;
— will offer assistance to stranded
passengers subject to the availability of seats and other operational
issues;
— will inform front-line staff and
the public of repatriation offers, where applicable and supply
the Air Transport Users' Council with details so that information
on the various offers is also available from a single source.
We will also ensure that the Foreign & Commonwealth Office
gets the same information so that those abroad making contact
with their local embassy or consulate can be advised accordingly;
and,
— expects the same voluntary commitment
from all other airlines which serve the UK market, but which were
not at the 24 October meeting.I hope this clarifies the position.
Please let me know if you require further information.
Peter McClymont
Manager, Industry and Government Affairs.
1 November 2005
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