Wizz Air in GBP1.2m extra customer payout after regulator orders complaint reviews

Wizz Air has paid out more than GBP1m in extra compensation owed to customers after the UK’s aviation regulator ordered the airline to revamp the way it deals with complaints. The Civil Aviation Authority last July forced Wizz to review a swath of compensation claims after investigating “a high volume of complaints about the airline”, particularly during a period of major travel disruption in 2022. The CAA said it had “significant concerns” that the airline had not paid passengers what they were owed and had “failed to meet its passenger rights obligations”. As a result, on Tuesday the regulator announced that London-listed Wizz had paid out an extra GBP1.24mn in compensation to 6,000 customers, after it re-examined more than 25,000 claims involving UK flights from March 2022. The regulator cannot at present fine airlines, and has long called for tougher powers. Yet the enforcement action against Wizz represented an unprecedented intervention, marking the first time it has made such an order for a carrier to review complaints. The claims that the CAA ordered Wizz to review relate to the airline’s requirement to provide alternative flights, as well as care and assistance such as covering hotel costs. “While we welcome the steps taken by Wizz Air after falling short in its treatment of disrupted passengers, airlines should routinely look after passengers and uphold their rights when flights are delayed and cancelled,” said Paul Smith, consumer director at the CAA. Wizz said it had “fully complied” with the CAA’s requests and has invested GBP90m in improving its operations. Like many other airlines, Wizz suffered a string of delays and cancellations in 2022 as the aviation industry struggled to cope with a sudden surge in passenger numbers after pandemic-era travel restrictions were lifted.<br/>