SINGAPORE – Offers made by Singapore Airlines (SIA) to compensate the 211 passengers on board turbulence-hit Flight SQ321 are just the start of what legal experts say will be a lengthy process to determine how much the national carrier will ultimately pay out.
Sudden, extreme turbulence hit the Boeing 777-300ER aircraft on its way to Singapore from London on May 21, leaving a British passenger dead from a suspected heart attack and dozens of others injured, some seriously.
Three weeks on, those who suffered minor injuries have been offered US$10,000 (S$13,500) each in compensation. SIA has also offered US$25,000 as an advance payment for passengers with more serious injuries to meet their immediate needs ahead of discussions over the final compensation amount.
The Straits Times looks at what this means for SQ321 passengers and crew.
Is it normal for airlines to offer compensation?
Senior Counsel Lok Vi Ming, who represented SIA in the deadly SQ006 crash in Taipei in 2000, said it is not unusual for airlines to offer advance compensation as the compensation process can take time.
However, such advance payments would not be considered admission of liability, he noted.
On whether SIA’s offers are within expectations, Mr Lok said it is best for each passenger to decide that with the help of legal and professional advisers.
“Even passengers with minor injuries would suffer injuries of varying degrees of severity, and so it would be difficult to draw a line for the entire group.”
In the SQ006 crash that killed 83 people, SIA offered immediate financial relief of US$5,000 to each survivor a few days after the accident.
SIA later offered US$400,000 in compensation to the families of those who died and US$20,000 to those injured. Some rejected the offers and sued for higher damages.
In all, 40 lawsuits were filed against SIA in Singapore, and more than 60 were filed in the United States. By October 2006, all of them were settled out of court for undisclosed sums.
For SQ321, Meritus Law consultant and former district judge Rajaram Ramiah said the initial compensation offered by SIA may be to sieve out passengers who suffered minor or no injury as soon as possible. This is so the carrier can commit its resources to dealing with more complex cases, especially since some of the injuries may have long-term effects, both physiologically and psychologically, added Mr Ramiah, who had represented victims of the SQ006 crash.
National University of Singapore aviation law professor Alan Tan said serious cases will likely end in confidential settlements, which could possibly go into millions of dollars.