Passenger Rights Model Complaint Form
when travelling by sea and inland waterway Regulation (EU) No 1177/2010 concerning the rights of passengers travelling by sea and inland waterway
This complaint form can be used by passengers to form a complaint to a carrier or terminal operator or to the national enforcement body responsible for waterborne passenger rights. The use of this form is not mandatory. Please investigate if your carrier or NEB have a complaint form in place and if those are mandatory, please use these forms.
According to Article 24, carriers and terminal operators shall have in place an accessible complaint-handling mechanism and passengers may submit a complaint to the carrier or terminal operator within 2 months from the date on which the service was performed or should have been performed. In accordance with Article 25(3) of Regulation (EU) No 1177/2010, any passenger may submit a complaint, in accordance with national law, to the competent body, or to any other competent body designated by a Member State, about an alleged infringement of the Regulation. The competent body shall provide passengers with a substantiated reply to their complaint within a reasonable period of time.
An overview of the competent national authorities can be found here
Note that the carrier or terminal operator must be given two months to reply to your complaint.
Instructions:
1) Passengers who believe they have a valid complaint against a carrier or terminal operator regarding lack of assistance, lack of compensation for loss of damage of mobility equipment, lack of information, lack of reimbursement and re-routing in the event of delayed or cancelled departures or lack of compensation. Please keep a copy of this form for your records.
2) Should the carrier or terminal operator fail to provide you with a reply within 2 months of receipt or, if you are not satisfied with their reply, this form (a copy of the original form may be used) should be sent to the national enforcement body in the Member State of embarkation.
3) If the incident took place at a port of departure outside the EU, you may contact the national enforcement body in the Member State of dis-embarkation.
4) For complaint types such as baggage claims or ticketing issues these too should be submitted first to the carrier or terminal concerned. Should you not receive a reply, or if you are not satisfied with the reply, the European Consumer Centres in any Member State of the EU can be contacted for further advice.
5) Please note that the competent authorities of Member States cannot in general take binding decisions in respect of individual complaints. If you are still not satisfied with the carriers or terminals response, even following the answer from the competent authority, you will have to pursue the matter in Court or through alternative dispute resolution. Please consult the Member State concerned in order to consult their individual competences.
For further information:
Information on your passenger rights should be available on board of the transport vehicle and in terminals.
