PokeyMindy
500+ Posts
My (long) story about a refund I received from Alitalia ️
In Sept. my flight from Boston-Rome was delayed by a little over 2 hours. Because of this my travel buddies and I missed our connecting flight to Palermo. It was a pain in the butt finding the "transfer desk" we needed in order to get booked on the next flight to Palermo. A HUGE line but we finally got our boarding passes along with a voucher for a sandwich and non-alcoholic beverage. (if ever alcohol was needed it was then). We arrived in Palermo along with our luggage 4.15 hours after we were scheduled to arrive. A travel savvy friend told me about an EU Regulation EC 261 which basically says if you arrive more than 3 hours after your scheduled time you MAY be eligible for monetary compensation.
Well, the day after I got home, Sept. 23rd, I did some research. On the Alitalia website I found where to file a "missed connection" complaint and did so. After almost 2 months, today I received a check for $689.00!! 
The most you can get is €600,00 so with the exchange rate at the time of my claim it came to that amount. I dreaded flying Alitalia at the time but I must say that I am very impressed with how they handled my claim. I doubt that many know about this rule; I sure didn't. I am very thankful to my friend Sharon Johnson for telling me about the EU rule. (To think I almost settled for a sandwich and a bottle of water). Also, my 4 travel companions are getting a €600,00 compensation as well. (they filed after they heard I was getting a refund....they owe me dinner and drinks, ). My other option was an E-ticket for €700,00 that I could use on any Alitalia flight within 1 year.
Thank you for your patience if you've ready through this entire post!! Cheers!! The money will go towards my next European adventure!!
In Sept. my flight from Boston-Rome was delayed by a little over 2 hours. Because of this my travel buddies and I missed our connecting flight to Palermo. It was a pain in the butt finding the "transfer desk" we needed in order to get booked on the next flight to Palermo. A HUGE line but we finally got our boarding passes along with a voucher for a sandwich and non-alcoholic beverage. (if ever alcohol was needed it was then). We arrived in Palermo along with our luggage 4.15 hours after we were scheduled to arrive. A travel savvy friend told me about an EU Regulation EC 261 which basically says if you arrive more than 3 hours after your scheduled time you MAY be eligible for monetary compensation.
Well, the day after I got home, Sept. 23rd, I did some research. On the Alitalia website I found where to file a "missed connection" complaint and did so. After almost 2 months, today I received a check for $689.00!!
The most you can get is €600,00 so with the exchange rate at the time of my claim it came to that amount. I dreaded flying Alitalia at the time but I must say that I am very impressed with how they handled my claim. I doubt that many know about this rule; I sure didn't. I am very thankful to my friend Sharon Johnson for telling me about the EU rule. (To think I almost settled for a sandwich and a bottle of water). Also, my 4 travel companions are getting a €600,00 compensation as well. (they filed after they heard I was getting a refund....they owe me dinner and drinks, ). My other option was an E-ticket for €700,00 that I could use on any Alitalia flight within 1 year. Thank you for your patience if you've ready through this entire post!! Cheers!! The money will go towards my next European adventure!!
