Saudi Gazette report

RIYADH — The Consumer Protection Association (CPA) stated that all air carriers have the obligation to ship assistive equipment belonging to people with disabilities without counting them in the baggage weight.

According to the comprehensive guide to consumer rights, air carriers are not entitled to count such equipment while weighing luggage, the CPA said, stressing that it is one of the rights of persons with disabilities during flights.

The CPA also noted that the air carrier is also obligated to collect the equipment and deliver it at the plane's door to the passenger with a disability.

Earlier, the CPA revealed the types of compensation that air carriers are obliged to pay in the event of delaying passengers’ baggage.

The CPA stated that the air carrier is required to pay compensation to the passenger in SDR units in case of delay in baggage delivery.

For domestic passengers, the air carrier is obligated to compensate the passenger the equivalent of 20 SDRs for each day of delay. The maximum limit of compensation is 100 SDRs for domestic flights.

As for international flights, the compensation is the equivalent of 40 SDRs for each day of delay, with a maximum limit of 200 SDRs.

The SDRs (special drawing rights) are units of account for the IMF (International Monetary Fund) and other international organizations. Though not a currency per se, it is rather a potential claim on the freely usable currencies of IMF members.

When the air carriers will be required to pay compensation in SDRs units, in the Kingdom it will be converted into Saudi riyals (SR).