[Sim084]

I was supposed to fly with Condor from Innsbruck to San Jose (Costa Rica) via Frankfurt on October 3rd 2010. I had a return ticket with the same airline on January 20th 2011; the law in Costa Rica requires that you must have a ticket out of the country at the time of entry.

I flew from Innsbruck to Frankfurt with no problems but in Frankfurt, after check in, at the gate, I was denied boarding. They said that not only do I have to have a ticket out of Costa Rica but that ticket must be within 90 days.

I pleaded, I argued, I asked them to tell me which law says that. Nothing worked. They were quick to give my seat to someone else and I was left in the airport at midnight to spend the night there with no support whatsoever from the airline. The next day I was given (for a fee of 80 EUR) a stand-by ticket for October 5th (3 days later!). I had to take a train back to Innsbruck and again back to Frankfurt on the 6th with no guarantees that I would have a seat on that flight. I also had to change my return flight to fit their demands of 90 days (I paid another 60 EUR).

By chance, I did make it to Costa Rica on the 6th and proceeded to check whether the law really requires the onward ticket to be within 90 days. Surprise, surprise, it makes no mention whatsoever of this. I had, in fact, complied with all the requirements, but Condor had probably sold more tickets than it had seats.

Four other people were denied boarding that day and I was the only one who chose the stand-by option. However, the next flight, on the 6th of October, was full, despite the fact that five other people had been denied boarding. This can only mean that extra tickets were sold.

I sent Condor a complaint, quoting the Costa Rican regulations, and asking for a refund of my extra costs and compensation according to EU Regulation 261/2004. I asked them that, if they think they were right, they should tell me which Costa Rican regulation the decision was based upon. I got a brief reply three weeks later saying that they are not responsible for what happened to me. Nothing else.

I made a complaint, following the EU procedures, with the German authority about two months ago and still no reply from them either. To be honest, I think the authorities are hand in hand with the airlines, so passengers are just left with complaining on online forums.

I hope this helps someone make the right decision about which airline to take. Oh, btw, Condor belongs to Lufthansa, which is a founding member of Star Alliance, just in case anyone is wondering.