Information for Disabled Passengers | Passenger Information

Accessible cabin for disabled passengers

GUIDANCE FOR PASSENGERS WITH DISABILITIES

DFDS is committed to making travel on our services as comfortable as possible for passengers with reduced mobility, disabilities and special needs.

Our team onboard and ashore have been provided with Disability Awareness Training to ensure the highest standards of care.

You are entitled to certain assistance both in port and onboard the ship. This includes assistance boarding and/or leaving the ferry, assistance with baggage and/or any specific medical equipment and assistance in making your way to the toilet facilities.

To help us make your journey as smooth and comfortable as possible, we need to know your requirements at your earliest convenience, ideally when you make your booking, but no later than two working days before you travel. We will always try our utmost to accommodate all requests for travel with us.

Access & Information

Making a reservation

In order to be able to make your journey with DFDS as comfortable as possible, we need to know any specific needs with regards to accommodation, services required or mobility and/or medical equipment ideally at the time of booking. You can also let us know up to 2 working days before you travel. This will ensure we can have the appropriate assistance in place.

If you have booked through a travel agent or a tour operator you should advise your booking agent that you will require assistance and ask to pass this information on to DFDS.

After assessing your specific requirements, DFDS may require that you are accompanied by an individual that can assist you during the journey. Before making this requirement, we will have a dialogue with you and always consider your wishes. Such an accompanying person shall be carried free of charge.

Once you have contacted us, a note will then be added to your booking which will ensure that where possible your needs are taken into consideration.

Any information relating to you will be obtained in a discreet manner and stored with a regard for confidentiality and in accordance with our privacy policy. This information will only be shared on an operational basis, necessary to the carrying out of the tasks required and to inform the ships if there are passengers in need of special assistance in case of any emergency.

If you have not contacted us before you travel to alert us of your needs we cannot guarantee you of assistance whilst travelling through our ports and onboard our vessels.

Travelling with DFDS

For safety reasons we can only cater for up to five wheelchair passengers at once onboard our vessels.

Hearing impairment If you or a member of your party has a hearing impairment, please mention this when making a reservation and report to the Information Desk when you board the ship. The crew will make sure that you receive any important messages which are broadcasted during the crossing.

Visual impairment If you or a member of your party has a visual impairment, please mention this when making a reservation and report to the Information Desk when you board the ship. On arrival, our staff will help you to locate the passenger areas and assist wherever possible.

Carriage of Mobility & Medical Assistance All mobility and medical equipment may be taken into the passenger accommodation or on the vehicle deck. Please notify us of any need to bring mobility and/or medical equipment at the time of the booking. You can travel with medical oxygen with written permission from a GP advising that medical oxygen is required. We need to be informed that medical oxygen will potentially be used on the voyage at the time of booking. We can carry a maximum of 6 x size F i.e. up to 60 litres aggregate water capacity.

Assistance Dog

At the port & boarding/disembarking our ships

You will be advised via your booking confirmation of your check-in time at the port. Our terminals are disabled friendly and have accessible parking. We can provide wheelchairs in some ports (see the list below) and onboard our vessels with advance notification at the time of booking and where available. Passengers travelling in vehicles can be parked close to a lift and assisted by our crew if required.

Our ports and terminals have the following facilities for disabled passengers and passengers with limited mobility.

Terminal/Port	Wheelchair	Adapted Toilets	Lifts
Copenhagen	No	Yes	Yes
Oslo	No (wheelchair can be provided on request)	Yes	Yes
IJmuiden	Yes	Yes	Yes
Newcastle	Yes	Yes	Yes
Dunkirk	No	Yes	Yes
Dover	No	Yes	Yes
Kapellskar	No	Yes	Yes
Karlshamn	No	Yes	Yes
Newhaven	Yes	Yes	No
Paldiski	No	No	No
Dieppe	Yes	Yes	No
Kiel	No	Yes	No

Onboard

Our onboard facilities offer access to wheelchair users. If you require any assistance during your journey, please contact the Information Desk onboard our vessels.

Our ships have the following facilities for disabled passengers and persons with reduced mobility. Please note that you can only book disabled cabins via your booking office due to limited availability.

Ship	Adapted Cabin	Wheelchair	Adapted Toilets	Lifts
Pearl Seaways	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Crown Seaways	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
King Seaways	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Princess Seaways	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Athena Seaways	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Calais Seaways	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Cote d'Albatre	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Delft Seaways	N/A	Yes	Yes	Yes
Dover Seaways	N/A	Yes	Yes	Yes
Dunkerque Seaways	N/A	Yes	Yes	Yes
Liverpool Seaways	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Optima Seaways	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Regina Seaways	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Seven Sisters	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Victoria Seaways	Yes	Yes	Yes	N/A
Cote des Dunes	N/A	Yes	Yes	Yes
Cote des Flandres	N/A	Yes	Yes	Yes

Find out more about our ship facilities below:

>Dover - France

>Newcastle - Amsterdam

>Kapellskär - Paldiski

>Karlshamn - Klaipeda

Exceptions

Disabled passengers and persons with reduced mobility shall not be denied access to our services unless:

The carriage of a person with disabilities or a person with reduced mobility places the company in breach of safety law or regulations determined by national and/or international law or that of a competent authority
The design of the ship or the port infrastructure and equipment, including terminals, makes it impossible to carry out embarkation, disembarkation or carriage of the disabled passengers or those with reduced mobility in a safe or operationally feasible manner

When we have to refuse a booking, we shall immediately inform the person of the specific reasons. On request, those reasons shall be notified in writing, no later than five working days after the request. In the event of refusal, reference shall be made to the applicable safety requirements and to the competent authorities dealing with complaints.

Complaints

Any complaints should be directed, in the first instance, to DFDS (the operator). A complaint must be submitted within two months of the scheduled date of the service. The operator must notify the passenger within one month of receipt whether the complaint is substantiated, rejected or still under consideration with a final reply and decision within two months.

DFDS
Customer Care Team
International Passenger Terminal
Royal Quay, North Shields, NE296EE
T. 0344 848 60 90
E. uk.customercare@dfds.com

If the complaint cannot be resolved to the satisfaction of the passenger, then it may be referred to the complaint handling body. ABTA has been appointed by the Department for Transport to act as the Complaints Handling Body under the Regulation. ABTA has many years of experience of dispute resolution between consumers and operators and has a conciliation service which can be available to all. ABTA will provide an evidence-based response to a complaint within a reasonable period of time but will only consider a complaint that has already been through the operator's own complaint handling process.

ABTA Ltd
31 Park Street
London SE1 9EQ
E. ferry@abta.co.uk
W. www.abta.com

There is also a National Enforcement Body (NEB) under the Regulation. This is the Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA) in the UK. The NEB is primarily concerned with significant breaches of the Regulation and will not consider any complaint, in the first instance, unless it is such a breach and/or the person making the complaint has followed the complaint handling procedure above.

Maritime & Coastguard Agency
National Enforcement Body Officer - Technical Performance Section
Directorate of Maritime Safety & Standards
Maritime & Coastguard Agency
Bay 2/23, Spring Place
105 Commercial Road
Southampton SO15 1EG
T. 0238 0329 315
E. neb@mcga.gov.uk
W. dft.gov.uk/mca

You can download a copy of our complaints procedure here.

Accessible Travel with DFDS

Find all the information you need as a disabled passenger travelling on one of our DFDS ferries. Enjoy a relaxing ferry crossing armed with everything you need to know about our ports, cabins and onboard facilities so you can truly relax and begin your holiday with DFDS.

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