LUFTHANSA GERMAN AIRLINES Vs. SURINDER KAUR BAJAJ

JUDGEMENT

(1.) DR. P. D. Shenoy, Presiding Member-Heard the learned Counsel for the petitioner.

(2.) LEARNED Counsel argued at length. The complainant was a member of the Lufthansa Miles and More Membership Scheme under the frequent flier programme. It is not disputed that the complainant is a British citizen who does not require a visa for visiting the USA. The complainant had spent Rs. 3. 5 lakh towards her round-the-world trip on Lufthansa earlier, as a result of which she was awarded a ticket by Lufthansa with the following routes:

(3.) IT is not disputed that the United Airlines is a Star Alliance Partner along with Lufthansa. Accordingly, a person who purchases tickets from Lufthansa can travel by United Airlines and vice versa. Before the issue of the ticket, the complainant's passport was scanned by Lufthansa. The complainant found to her utter shock during her return trip that she could not travel to San Francisco as the United Airlines did not have the facility of machine scanning of the passport though, even with the naked eyes, one could see that it was a British passport exempting the complainant from the requirement of possessing a US visa. Further, the United Airlines also did not have the Notification which exempted the British nationals from possessing a US visa, which, in our opinion, is not a fault of the complainant/consumer.