Passenger rights

Dear Passenger,

If you are denied boarding, your flight is cancelled or delayed for at least two hours, or your baggage is lost or damaged, you may be entitled to certain standards of treatment and compensation under the Air Passenger Protection Regulations. For more information about your passenger rights please ​​contact us or visit the ​​Canadian Transportation Agency’s websiteThe link will be opened in a new browser tab which may not meet accessibility guidelines.

We will keep you informed by email or alternatively by text. So that we can do this, please give us your up-to-date email address and mobile phone number before your planned flight. The quickest way is to log in, then save your details under ​​My Bookings and "Passenger details".

Alternatively, you also have the following options:

• Every time you book, make sure that you, your travel planner or your travel agency always enter your most up-to-date contact details when making a flight reservation.
• Enter your details only once in your Miles & More customer profile. Please don’t forget to quote your Miles & More card number when booking.
• With the ​​Lufthansa appThe link will be opened in a new browser tab you can receive notifications directly on your smartphone.
• For all other information channels please check ​​hereThe link will be opened in a new browser tab.

If you have provided your contact details for your booking during online/mobile check-in and in your Miles & More or Travel ID profile, we will inform you automatically by email or text about your flight status or your rebooking on an alternative flight. If you have checked in via the Lufthansa app, you will also receive the information as a push message.

You will receive all the above messages within 10 to 30 minutes of the flight disruption occurring. Up to 90% of passengers on a cancelled flight or whose connection has been delayed will be rebooked within an hour.

We will endeavour to find the best alternative possible, and rebook your flight. We will first attempt to rebook you on a new Lufthansa Group member flight that departs within 9 hours of your original departure.  If that is not possible, we will rebook you on any available airline that will get you to your destination within 48 hours of your original departure time.  Another alternative will be to provide transportation to, and a ticket to your final destination from, an alternate airport that is nearby.

Nevertheless, if you are not happy with your new flight connection, you also have the option of searching for an alternative flight yourself:

• via ​​My bookings
• via ​​the Lufthansa appThe link will be opened in a new browser tab
• via the ​chatbot at lufthansa.comThe link will be opened in a new browser tab with the request “Check my booking". You can find ​​further information about the chatbotThe link will be opened in a new browser tab here.
• at our ​service counters

When your flight is expected to be significantly delayed, you have the right to receive care from the airline.

This includes: meals and refreshments in reasonable relation to the waiting time, hotel accommodation including transport costs both ways in the event an overnight stay is a result of the delay/cancellation, and the opportunity to make two brief telephone calls or to send two faxes or e-mails. The airline is not required to provide this care if you are responsible for a further delay of your departing flight. In the case of delays of more than five hours, you have the right to have the cost of your ticket refunded within seven days in the amount of the travel not completed or in the amount of the travel already completed if the purpose of the travel was not accomplished due to the delay, and, if applicable, to a return flight to the point of first departure at the earliest opportunity.

You have the right to compensation if your arrival at the destination airport is delayed by more than three hours and the delay cannot be attributed to extraordinary circumstances that could not have been avoided by taking all reasonable measures; such circumstances include, for example, poor weather conditions, political instability, strikes, security risks, and unexpected deficiencies in flight safety.

If a flight is delayed on the tarmac after the doors of the aircraft are closed for take-off or after the flight has landed, the carrier must provide passengers with the following, free of charge:

• if the aircraft is equipped with lavatories, access to those lavatories in working order;
• proper ventilation and cooling or heating of the aircraft;
• if it is feasible to communicate with people outside of the aircraft, the means to do so; and
• food and drink, in reasonable quantities, taking into account the length of the delay, the time of day and the location of the airport.

For more information on the tarmac delay contingency plan please click ​​here.

If a flight is delayed on the tarmac at an airport in Canada, the carrier must provide an opportunity for passengers to disembark

• three hours after the aircraft doors have been closed for take-off; and
• three hours after the flight has landed, or at any earlier time if it is feasible.

If, in the event of overbooking, you are involuntarily denied boarding on a flight you have booked, you have the right to care from the airline as described above. In addition, you shall be offered re-routing to the final destination of your booked flight. This re-routing shall take place at the earliest opportunity and under comparable conditions.

Subject to available seating, you may, instead, travel to your final destination at a later date/time of your choosing, in which case the costs of meals/refreshments, hotel, and transport between the hotel and airport shall be borne by you.

If you are involuntarily or voluntarily denied boarding, you have the right to an alternative flight or to reimbursement and compensation, which can also be provided by cheque or bank transfer or, with your consent, in the form of a gift card. The amount of this payment depends on the distance of the planned route and on the re-routing that has been offered to you.

In the rare situation where there are not enough volunteers, we may deny boarding to other passengers and give boarding priority to:

• unaccompanied minors
• passengers with a disability and their support person, service animal or emotional support animal, if any
• passengers travelling with family members; and 
• passengers who were previously denied boarding on the same ticket, provided the carrier is informed

If, due to a situation within Discover Airlines' or required for safety purposes, you're denied boarding, we'll provide you with the following before you board your next flight booked as part of your alternate travel arrangements, unless this would further delay you:

• Food and drink in reasonable quantities, considering the length of the wait, the time of day and location
• Access to a means of communication; and
• Hotel or comparable accommodations, with transportation to/from, within reasonable distance from airport for overnight delays for out-of-town passengers, subject to availability. 

If you’re a passenger who is denied boarding because of a situation within our control, you’ll be entitled to receive denied boarding compensation, unless:

• You haven’t fully complied with ticketing and check-in requirements, or you do not satisfy the conditions for transportation under Discover Airlines' tariff and ​​general conditions of carriage. 
• You’re offered transportation on another seat on the same flight as the one specified on your ticket, at no extra charge.

Denied boarding compensation is calculated based on your arrival time at destination and is 900 CAD (if delayed by less than 6 hours), 1,800 CAD (if delayed between 6 and 9 hours), and 2,400 CAD (if delayed by 9 hours and more). Please note that you are not entitled to received delay or cancellation compensation if you have already been paid denied boarding compensation.

For delays or cancellations within our control, in addition to the standards of treatment and information provisions listed above, if Discover Airlines did not advise you of the delay or cancellation at least 14 days prior to departure, you may be owed compensation as follows:

• 400 CAD, if the arrival of the passenger’s flight at the destination that is indicated on the original ticket is delayed by three hours or more, but less than six hours,
• 700 CAD, if the arrival of the passenger’s flight at the destination that is indicated on the original ticket is delayed by six hours or more, but less than nine hours, or
• 1,000 CAD, if the arrival of the passenger’s flight at the destination that is indicated on the original ticket is delayed by nine hours or more; 

Note that the above standards of treatment do not apply when there is a delay or cancellation due to situations outside of Discover Airlines' control.

Certain events, such as adverse weather conditions, technical problems in the baggage handling areas or a bag tag becoming detached, can sometimes lead to baggage items being damaged or not arriving at the destination airport at the same time as their owners.

If your baggage appears to be lost, please keep all your flight documents, especially your boarding pass and the baggage claim tag. Please wait until all the baggage has been delivered at baggage reclaim. This can take up to one hour and, in rare cases, even longer. If one or more of your baggage items still cannot be found, please report this immediately so that an official report can be made. A bag will not be deemed a total loss until it has been missing for 21 days or more.

You can report your loss as follows:

• at the baggage tracing desk at the airport or
  
• ​​​online

You will then be given written confirmation as well as a reference number (PIR number). It is essential that you keep this.

We are always very sorry when this happens and take all the necessary steps to get your baggage back to you as soon as possible or to compensate you for any damage your baggage item may have suffered.

• If your baggage is delayed, damaged or lost, Discover Airlines will refund the fees you paid to check it in.
• A carrier's liability towards you is limited in respect to destruction, loss, delay, or damage to baggage, to 1,288 Special Drawing Rights per passenger. This limit applies to most international itineraries with Discover Airlines.

You'll be reimbursed for reasonable interim out-of-pocket expenses upon submission of receipts. Claims must be submitted no later than 21 days from the date your baggage was placed at your disposal. More information can be found ​​here.

We greatly regret damage to your baggage during transport. Please be assured that we take all necessary measures to prevent damage.

If one or more of your baggage items are damaged on arrival, please report this immediately so that an official report can be made. You can report the damage at the baggage tracing desk at the airport. You will then be given written confirmation as well as a reference number (PIR number). It is essential that you keep this.

In the event that you don’t notice the damage until you have arrived home or at your hotel, you must report it in writing within the legally stipulated period of seven days after your flight. You must also provide proof that the damage was caused while your baggage was under the care of the airline concerned. Once we have received your complete damage report, you will be given confirmation in writing with a reference number.

Dear passenger,

If your flight has been canceled or significantly delayed, or you have been denied transportation on a flight for which you have a confirmed booking, you have rights under EU Regulation 261/2004, which came into force on 02/17/2005. The airline operating the flight on which the flight disruption occurred is responsible for granting your rights.

The regulation applies:

to passengers taking a flight in an EU Member State or from a third country with an EU airline to an EU country, provided that the passengers have not received any compensation, reimbursement, or assistance in that third country,

• only if you have a confirmed booking for the flight in question,
• only if you have presented yourself at check-in (except where there has been a flight cancellation) at the specified time or, if no time was specified, no later than 45 minutes before the published departure time,
• only if you are traveling on a fare which is publicly available.

According to EU Regulation 261/04, delays are deemed to have occurred if the departure is delayed by 4 hours compared to the scheduled departure time for flights over 3,500 km, by 3 hours for flights between 1,500 and 3,500 km, and for flights over 1,500 km within the EU, and by 2 hours for flights up to 1,500 km. If it is foreseeable that your flight will be subject to a significant delay, you have the right to obtain assistance from the airline.

This assistance includes: Meals in reasonable ratio to the waiting time, hotel accommodation if necessary, including transfer costs and the opportunity to make two short telephone calls, faxes or emails. The airline does not need to provide you with assistance if this would delay your departure even further. In the event of delays of over 5 hours, you have the right to a refund of the cost of the ticket for any part of the journey not made within seven days, or for any part of the journey already made if the purpose of the journey was not accomplished as a result of the delay and, if necessary, return transportation to the point of departure at the earliest possible time.

You have the right to compensation if your arrival at the destination airport is delayed by over 3 hours and the delay is not due to extraordinary circumstances that could not have been avoided had all reasonable measures been taken, for example poor weather conditions, political instability, strikes, security risks or unexpected flight safety defects.

If due to overbooking, you are involuntarily denied boarding on the booked flight, you have the right to assistance from the airline as listed above under “Delays”. You will also be offered alternative transportation to your booked flight’s final destination. This will be at the earliest possible time and under comparable conditions.

Subject to availability, you may instead travel to your final destination at a later date of your choosing, in which case you will be responsible for your own accommodations, hotel and transfer costs.

If you have been involuntarily or voluntarily denied boarding, you have the right to an alternative flight, or to a refund and compensation, which can also be done by check or transfer, or, with your consent, in the form of a Gift Card. The amount of this payment depends on the distance of the planned flight route and the alternative transportation you are offered: For flight distances of up to 1,500 km, the compensation is €250, between 1,500 and 3,500 km, and for intra-European flights over 1,500 km, it is €400 and over 3,500 km, it is €600. The distance shall be calculated based on the last destination where the passenger arrives later than the scheduled time of arrival as a result of denied boarding or cancelation.

If you are offered an alternative flight with an arrival time of no later than 2 hours for flights of up to 1,500 km, of no later than 3 hours for flights between 1,500 and 3,500 km, and for all flights over 3,500 km no later than 4 hours after the scheduled arrival time of the originally booked flight, the compensation payment is only 50% of the above-mentioned payment amounts, i.e. €125, € 200 or €300.

You are not entitled to the assistance described above if you are denied boarding due to your own fault, for health and safety reasons, or due to missing or inadequate travel documents.

If the flight on which you had a confirmed booking has been canceled, you also have the same rights to alternative transportation, assistance, refund and compensation as listed above.

However, you are not entitled to compensation under the EU Regulation if the incident is due to extraordinary circumstances that could not have been avoided had all reasonable measures been taken. For example, bad weather conditions, political instability, strikes, security risks or unexpected flight safety defects.

Similarly, there is no right to compensation if:

• you were informed of the cancelation at least 14 days prior to departure
• you were informed of about the cancelation between 14 days and 7 days before departure and where departure was no more than 2 hours before the original departure time, or the arrival was no more than 4 hours after the scheduled arrival time
• you were informed of the cancellation less than 7 days before departure and departure no more than 1 hour before the original departure time or the arrival was no later than 2 hours after the scheduled arrival time.

If you are affected by being downgraded to a lower fare class, you have the right to compensation within 7 days. The amount of this payment depends on the planned flight distance and the paid airfare per segment; for flight distances of up to 1,500 km, the compensation is 30% of the paid airfare per segment between 1,500 and 3,500 km, and for intra-European flights over 1,500 km it is 50% of the paid airfare per segment and over 3,500 km is 75% of the paid airfare per segment. If you believe that you can assert claims against EW Discover GmbH based on the aforementioned terms and conditions, please use our ​contact form or send a letter to: EW Discover GmbH, Hugo-Eckener-Ring 1, FAC, Building 234, 60549 Frankfurt am Main.

You can find a list of the complaints offices responsible for ensuring passenger rights at Europa.eu.

If your trip was a private trip, you have the right to contact the neutral travel & traffic mediation system for flights in case of disputes.

This is possible where there are concerns in relation to a

• case of denied boarding, delayed transportation or canceled flights;
• the destruction, damage, loss or delayed transportation of luggage, or
• breaches of duty in the transportation of disabled and restricted mobility passengers
• breach of duty in the conclusion of contracts of carriage

if,

• you have already contacted Discover Airlines with your issue and you have not received a response within two months, or
• you do not agree to Discover Airlines processing your request or fulfilling your claims.
• Your issue is not already pending before a court or was pending or has been settled in a settlement.
• Your trip is a private trip.