Glossary

What are Conditions of carriage?

Conditions of carriage are an airline's general contract terms, setting out the rights and duties of both sides for every ticket it sells.

Conditions of carriage are an airline’s general contract terms, setting out the rights and duties of both sides for every ticket it sells.

Also called: Contract of carriage.

How it works#

They govern what happens during disruption, when baggage is compensated, on what terms passengers are rebooked onto other carriers, and when carriage may be refused. They cannot cut down statutory rights, but they fill in everything the law leaves open. In a dispute, citing a specific clause works far better than a general complaint.

Not to be confused with#

Conditions of carriage are not the same as fare rules: fare rules apply to one ticket, conditions of carriage to the relationship with the airline as a whole.

In German#

The German term is Beförderungsbedingungen. German version of this term

  • Fare rules: Fare rules are the conditions attached to a specific airfare covering changes, refunds, validity, stopovers and mileage earning.
  • No-show clause: A no-show clause is the condition that the rest of a booking is cancelled if a passenger fails to take one flight segment.
  • Rebooking on another airline: Rebooking on another airline is transferring a ticket to a different carrier so the passenger reaches the destination sooner after disruption.

Articles that use this term#

TopicEvery article and term onRights and disruption.
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