Air NZ court victory sets international precedent

1.00pm

Air New Zealand has won a precedent-setting case in the United States after an American woman sued it over deep vein thrombosis (DVT).

Adriene Rodriguez, who flew with Air NZ from Los Angeles to Auckland in 2000, sued the airline, claiming it had not done enough to warn passengers over the dangers of DVT.

The Federal Appeals Court has ruled the airline was not responsible for the potentially fatal blood clot Ms Rodriguez developed.

American commentators say the Federal Appeals Court ruling dealt a blow to scores of lawsuits by passengers seeking compensation from airlines.

The Ninth US Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco ruled in a 3-0 decision the condition was not an accident but instead the result of Ms Rodriguez's reaction to the aircraft's normal operations.

Had it been an accident the airline could have been liable for damages.

The court also said there was no evidence that the airline violated its own policy or an industry standard by allegedly failing to provide an adequate warning of the risk of blood clots.

Air NZ communications manager Glen Sowry said today the airline had been educating passengers for years in a programme which began long before the woman flew. There was little more it could do.

The case would not lead to a change in its programme to educate passengers about the risk of deep vein thrombosis, he said.

"Already on board the aircraft in our pre-flight video briefing there is quite a detailed bit. We advise customers to exercise, to move their feet around, to walk around the aisles, that sort of thing to maintain circulation."

He said the airline's in-flight magazine also contained advice.

"It is something we have certainly been encouraging customers to do for many, many years."

Mr Sowry said Air New Zealand's economy class seats on its Boeing 747 aircraft had more space between them than any other airline.

"There is actually a reasonable amount of room there and beyond that there is not a great deal that we are able to do," he said.

Deep vein thrombosis causes blood clots to form in the legs, leading to pain and swelling. It can be lethal if a clot breaks loose and reaches the heart or lungs.

It mostly affects passengers in the cramped seats of economy classes on long flights. Pregnant women, the elderly and passengers who had surgery shortly before the flight are high-risk fliers.

Since Ms Rodriguez sued Air NZ, similar legal actions against American airlines had been assigned to a single judge, chief United States American District Judge Vaughn Walker in San Francisco.

Rodriguez's lawyer, Clay Robbins, has been reported as saying in the San Francisco Chronicle on Saturday he would ask the full appeals court for a rehearing.

"I believe it rewards the airline's decision to withhold important health-related information from passengers," he was reported to have said.

The airline's lawyer Roderick Marg, was reported to have said he hoped the ruling resolved the cases before Judge Walker.

Rodriguez collapsed after her 12-hour flight to Auckland and when she regained consciousness could not speak or control her right arm.

She was taken to hospital, but recovered and flew to Australia.

Medical opinion said that like all deep vein thrombosis patients, she would carry a risk of the disorder when flying.

About 100 similar cases were understood to be waiting to be heard in America.

- NZPA

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