Information for Airport Managers

Applicable legislation

Air transport is mainly regulated by European standards. Passenger rights are set out in:

• Regulation (EC) No º 261/2004:  compensation and assistance for denied boarding, cancellations and long delays.
• Regulation (EC) No º 1107/2006:  rights of disabled persons and persons with reduced mobility (PRM).

Each EU country should appoint an authority to oversee these Regulations.
In Spain, this authority is AESA.

Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) procedure

(Applicable to incidents occurring from 02/06/2023)

• Legal framework
  • Order TMA/201/2022 regulates the ADR procedure.
  • On 10 May 2023, MITMA accredited AESA as an alternative dispute resolution entity.
  • The procedure applies to incidents occurring since 02/06/2023 included.
• Involvement of airport managers
  • For airport managers attached to the system, the ADR is mandatory, but the decision is not binding on them.
  • For the rest of the managers, participation is voluntary and the result is also non-binding.
• Electronic relationship obligation

Both airlines and airport managers are obliged to communicate with AESA exclusively by electronic means throughout the procedure (according to Law 39/2015).

In addition, within 10 days of the entry into force of the order, they must provide AESA with their identification data and any information necessary to process complaints electronically.

Information obligations of airport managers

Managers should inform passengers about the following:

1. Options for resolving conflicts

They must inform about the possibility of going:

• a EASA (RAL procedure),
• the consumer arbitration system,
• the arbitration system on equality/disability, as appropriate (Article 40(2) of Law 7/2017).

2. After prior complaint

Although the obligations in point 2 particularly affect air carriers, managers must also ensure that the passenger is aware that:

• If the previous claim is not resolved satisfactorily, or
• If more than 1 month has passed without a response, the passenger can go to AESA (Article 40.3 of Law 7/2017).

3. Time limits and effects

They must inform the passenger that:

• If you file the claim with AESA 1 year after the previous claim, it will be inadmissible.
• The EASA decision is binding on the airline, but not on the airport manager.

4. Adherence to arbitration systems

If the manager is a member of an arbitration system (consumption or disability), he/she must:

• inform the passenger of this;
• indicate that you can use that system to resolve your conflict,
• provide the link to the corresponding website. 

5. Mandatory forms

Managers, like airlines, should make available to passengers:

• a pre-complaint form,
• available on its website and in its customer services,
• at least in Spanish,
• with the mandatory fields established by EASA.