23rd November, 2021
Akin Kuponiyi/Lagos
The chairman of Nigerian Bar Association Epe branch, Ademola Koko, alongside his wife Dr Tolulope Olubowale have renewed their legal battle against British Airways, over alleged breach of contract.
Two of Koko’s children, Adeleke Joshua and Temiloluwa Elizabeth are joined as claimants.
The family is demanding €15,000 from the airline as special and general damages.
In an amended statement of claim, Koko averred that his family travelled to United States to celebrate the 50th birthday of his wife sometimes in May 2019
According to the itinerary on their tickets, they departed on 21 May 2019 and were scheduled to return on the 5 June, 2019.
There was no problem on the first leg of their journey, from Lagos to London and then Washington D.C.
The return journey began from Washington Dulles Airport on the 4 June, 2019 at 6:30 P.M. The family got to London Heathrow airport in the morning of 5th of June,2019.
The flight itinerary took a dip for the worse at this point as they were delayed for three hours.
Thus the flight to Lagos, scheduled to depart at 11.20 A.M was delayed till 2:40 p m.
Koko and his family claim in their suit that they suffered untold hardship and psychological breakdown.
The Plaintiffs claim that the flight delay was a result of the negligence by the defendant.
They claim that the airline, in admission of their negligence, distributed an palliative of five pounds refreshment voucher to appease the Plaintiffs, without any apology.
Koko further averred that, they got to Lagos very late in the night and thus aborted his hosting the Koko Dynasty Family meeting in his house.
As the host, he said he had spent N600,000 for the occasion, which went to waste.
He said he wrote the airline both in Nigeria and United Kingdom.
The defendant in response to the letter admitted to compensation in the sum of €1,200, but deliberately refused to pay same.
Consequently, the Kokos are claiming compensation in the sum of £2,120, compensation in the sum of €1,200 as admitted.
They also want the sum of €1,750 as special damages and €10,000 as general damages, for its negligence and breach of contract.
In addition, the Kokos also demand N500,000 from the airline as cost of the legal action.
However, in a statement of defence filed before the court by a Lagos lawyer, Tayo Laleye, the British Airways stated that the delay to its flight was caused by unforeseen flight safety concerns.
Nevertheless it offered the Kokos as a measure of goodwill compensation in the sum of €1,200.
It said the compensation was not an admission of guilt, but purely on goodwill basis.
It said while specific instruction was issued to plaintiffs on how to claim the compensation, no time frames were specified for such payment.
The airline denied all the reliefs sought by the Plaintiffs and urged the court to dismiss the suit.
Initially the case was before Justice Oluremi Oguntoyinbo.
It was re-assigned to Justice Peter Lifu when Oguntoyinbo was transferred to another division of the court
Justice Lifu has adjourned the suit till 2 December 2021 for hearing.