AviationADR Arvostelua 

Warning to anyone thinking of using AviationADR / CDRL: Expect long delays, automated bot responses, and a process where no actual human looks at your evidence.

On paper, they claim to provide independent dispute resolution. In reality, your case is handled by automated scripts:

They ignore actual evidence: In my case, the airline explicitly agreed in writing on the portal to refund my flight expenses. CDRL’s automated system completely ignored this consent and published a decision listing £0.00 for expenses.

Empty promises of human review: When I pointed out this obvious software error, I was told it was escalated to the Chief Adjudicator with a 21-day timeline. That deadline expired with zero human contact, while automated system emails blindly continue to chase payment for the wrong amount.

Objections go into a black hole: My portal status has been stuck on "Objection Review: Pending" for weeks. It is clear that no human adjudicator ever opened my file or verified the airline's actual response before closing it.

If you are considering using CDRL, be prepared for an automated runaround where nobody actually reads your file. You are far better off bypassing this process entirely and taking claims straight to Small Claims Court.

Update: in response to the CDRLs reply below: I already created a ticket weeks ago to raise this issue (ticket id A001084), but have yet to receive a response. Please could you raise this internally so this gets picked up finally.

Update: after escalating here it has now been resolved, so updated my review from 1* to 3*, reflecting the point it was resolved successfully in the end but took many weeks, several support tickets and raising here to get there. Either way, thanks for resolving!

My experience was positive because the team was professional, approachable, and communicated clearly throughout the process. They explained each step in a way that was easy to understand and responded to my questions promptly. I felt that my concerns were listened to and treated fairly, which gave me confidence in the process.
The company does a good job of providing a fair, impartial, and well-organised dispute resolution service. Their communication is clear, they keep customers informed about progress, and they handled my case in a professional and respectful manner. They also appear committed to resolving disputes based on the evidence, which helps build trust in the process. Continuing to maintain this level of transparency and responsiveness will help ensure a positive experience for future customers. Nevertheless, one negative comment is that their adjudicator and chief adjudicator should have adjusted my claim as per undeniable evidence provided which did not take place in my case and therefore I received less refund than expected.

They really fought our corner! It was a long process but they got us a great end result!

The ADR were amazing at resolving our claim with easyJet, at first the airline were extremely stubborn on settling a dispute where they were clearly wrong. Although it took some time for the whole process to be completed the ADR were able to get me and my partner a deserved refund! Couldn’t recommend more

Took 4 months to go through the process after the airline dragged its feet for 4 months. Finally had confirmation a payment was to be made, shared bank details, but then nothing and it’s been over a month. Claim was marked as paid and closed, but no payment received. Clearly no point to doing this if the airline can ignore the outcome.

Good help in terms of mediation as airlines often just brush off things and dont always offer what you are entitled too. So had to use the adr directly rather than other agents who take cuts. Got my expenses returned from original airline for alternative flight booking. I didnt get any compensation for cancellation of the original flight due issue in the middle east at the time but I was kind of expecting that even though other airlines were still flying to the same destination. However adr was easy to use once I got to understand it, the process does take time but the services does do what it say so keep up the good work.

Took them 7 months to get back and the adjudicator got the key facts wrong and misunderstood my case entirely. I was claiming for KLM to reimburse me extra luggage cost caused by rerouting me to Emirates with smaller handheld baggage limit (7kg vs 12kg) which resulted in me needing to pay for excess baggage fee, and they thought I was complaining about KLM incorrectly applied the excess baggage charge!

Totally useless and waste of time, think their system may be AI because any human will get such simple facts right. Not to mention there’s no means to complain or clarify my case on their official site!

Case reference to proof that I used their service: 695179f935c081a8960c7254

I'm glad I looked further into how I could bring a claim against Wizz Airline, as I had been going in circles with their internal complaints team with no real solution to my very simple and straightforward to understand complaint.

The Aviation ADR process was simple to understand, fairly easy to complete the relevant information required to open the claim, and they progressed the complaint quite quickly through the stages with an appropriate solution reached in the end (though this is something that I had expressed directly to Wizz Air in my internal complaint to them, thus shouldn't have needed to get to Aviation ADR in the first place).

Nevertheless, I would certainly recommend anyone with a valid dispute and relevant evidence to utilise all their resources, especially unbiased external solutions like The Aviation ADR, rather than simply accepting what an airline tells you.

A big thank you to ADR for sorting out my claim,very easy process,and surprisingly quite quick,the Airline told me no claim was due,but as soon as I went thru ADR all of a sudden they became liable

The process was straightforward, and the team kept me informed throughout my claim. They handled my case professionally and helped me obtain compensation from the airline when my direct attempts had been unsuccessful. Although the process took some time, the communication was clear and the final outcome was worth the wait.

Aviation ADR supported our claim for compensation and a refund of expenses against Air France/KLM. For details of our experience with KLM checkout my review, what remains to be written here is that after several months we were successful in our claim but without Aviation ADR's support and process I have no doubt we would still be waiting for payment for a legitimate claim. Thank you.

AviationADR was able to assist with a claim wrongful charge from Wizzair. It is reassuring to know that a body like AviationADR exists to protect customers like myself. A recommended service for anyone who’s experienced bad customer service from an aviation service provider.

Aviation ADR are extremely efficient and process driven respected adjudicators that get results. They are highly reliable and effective and are fair in their assessments. Their communication is excellent and update you on every aspect along the way. Payment of the claim was agreed quickly and payment was made the following few days.

I had to use ADR after a cancelled flight with KLM, and honestly the experience with ADR was just as bad as the service I received from KLM.

A few issues I found with ADR:
• Poor and unfriendly website
• Weak communication
• Customer service is not great (except for CDRL/technical support)
• The process is extremely slow

If you need to escalate a claim against an airline, I would strongly suggest avoiding ADR. Instead of helping, the process makes you feel worse, and they take months to give an answer that most of the time is not in favour of customers.

I understand that the system and processes are not within the staff’s control, but customer service is and they don’t take ownership or seem to care.

Overall, a bad experience.

We couldn’t have received our out of pocket expenses from KLM without this service. We had tried to engage with KLM for nearly 3 months before contacting this service. They took on the claim and whilst it still took another 3 months we received our money back. Thanks for standing up for the little people.

Very customer focused each step explained in a language that was understood

A fair outcome. The airline had dismissed my complaints within minutes of lodging them, after delaying my flight by over 6hrs leading to missed appointments.
The benefits of having an organisation that champions the rights of passengers cannot be overemphasized.
Thank you

After unsuccessful and very unreasonable from the airline direct this service was amazing, securing me a refund and compensation when otherwise denied by customer services of the airline. Thank you so much for handling this for me.

Long story short, after 2 months of KLM/AF closing our case, I proceeded to raise the case with the Human Environment and Transport Inspectorate (ILT). After 4 weeks, KLM/AF declined the offer of mediation. Finally, I referred the case to the Aviation Alternative Dispute Resolution for Aviation. A few months went mainly due to KLM/AF stalling and wanting time to ‘build their defensive’ they ran out of time! ⌛️ The whole process with ADR was fantastic! The emails received to let me know the next stage in the process. The timelines etc! All fantastic. I felt 'listened' too!
I fought this because I worked hard for that money, it was a gift for my husband, AND because I hate it when big companies think they can treat customers with total disregard! Full pay out after 6 months! I am very happy with that!
The case: 4/1/26 - 2 cancelled flights and multiple delays spanning over 3 days! Communication was shocking, and so was the customer service! TOLD time and time again via copy and pasted (and poor use of copilot) emails, we were not entitled to even a flight voucher because (apparently) running out of de icer, maintenance to Schephol Airport (scheduled btw) and ‘extraordinary weather’ aka snow in Jan is not their fault!

I had a Ryanair flight cancelled due to severe weather and initially faced significant difficulties recovering my expenses.

After the cancellation, Ryanair did not offer a suitable rerouting option for several days, so I had to arrange my own travel for two people, including a replacement flight, an additional hotel night and meals. My initial claim to Ryanair was rejected on the basis that I had booked alternative transport without prior agreement, despite there being no practical rerouting available at the time.

I escalated the matter to AviationADR. The process was not quick—it took around two months—but AviationADR progressed my case with Ryanair and the airline eventually agreed to reimburse my replacement flight and other eligible expenses.

Throughout the process I kept all receipts, booking confirmations and correspondence, which I believe was essential to the successful outcome. I also had travel insurance through American Express, which helped cover some costs while the ADR claim was ongoing, although the final settlement with Ryanair still needed to be resolved separately.

While I would have preferred Ryanair to deal with the claim fairly from the outset, I am pleased that AviationADR provided an independent route to resolve the dispute. If you have a genuine claim supported by evidence, I would recommend remaining patient, keeping detailed records and pursuing the ADR process if you cannot reach a satisfactory resolution directly with the airline.

Overall, I successfully recovered my expenses after approximately two months thanks to the AviationADR process.