How to escalate a ferry complaint in Greece
Last reviewed 18 October 2026
Greece runs more domestic ferry traffic than anywhere else in Europe, and the complaints route is well defined — but it is a sequence, and taking the steps out of order is the most common way a complaint comes straight back to you.
The order matters
The carrier goes first. Always.
The national enforcement body is an escalation body. It is there for when the operator has refused you, or has let the Article 24 deadlines pass without a proper answer. Go to it before you have given the operator its chance and the usual outcome is being told to go and do that first — having spent some of your two months doing it.
So the sequence is:
- Complain to the carrier, in writing, within two months of the sailing.
- Wait for their reply, or for their deadline to lapse.
- Then escalate, attaching both your original complaint and their reply — or proof that none came.
Step 1 — the carrier, and the Greek extras
Send your written claim to the operator's published complaints address. We keep the current channel for each operator because they differ more than you would expect: some publish a designated address, some only a web form.
Greece also recognises two routes that most countries do not, and both are worth knowing:
The travel agency that sold you the ticket is a recognised complaint channel under Greek law. If you booked through an agency, they can pass the complaint to the carrier, and for some operators this is genuinely the path of least resistance.
The Port Authorities — the Limenarcheio — at the port of departure or arrival receive maritime passenger complaints under the Greek Code of Maritime Cabotage Legislation and Passenger Rights (Law 4948/2022). This is useful while you are still travelling and the disruption is in front of you, and it creates a contemporaneous record that is hard to argue with later.
None of these replaces a written claim to the carrier. They support it.
Step 2 — the Hellenic Ministry of Maritime Affairs
The Hellenic Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Insular Policy is the National Enforcement Body for Regulation (EU) No 1177/2010 on Greek ferry routes. It runs an online passenger-rights complaints portal:
Submit through the Ministry's form, and attach:
- the same claim you sent the carrier,
- your evidence — ticket, booking reference, the operator's own disruption notice,
- the carrier's reply, or proof that they did not reply within the Article 24 deadlines.
That last item is the one people leave out, and it is the one that makes the file complete. If the carrier simply went quiet, say so explicitly and show when you wrote.
One thing worth knowing: this same Ministry is the enforcement body for Greek routes regardless of who owns the carrier. It is determined by the route, not the company — so it applies to the Attica Group brands, to independent operators, and to international Adriatic crossings departing Greece alike.
Step 3 — alternative dispute resolution
If the enforcement route does not resolve it, two further options exist, and both are free:
- The Hellenic Consumer's Ombudsman (synigoroskatanaloti.gr), Greece's ADR body for consumer disputes.
- The EU Online Dispute Resolution platform at ec.europa.eu/consumers/odr, for cross-border cases.
Before you start
Two things make the whole sequence go better, and both happen before step 1.
Know what you are claiming. Reimbursement for a cancelled sailing and compensation for a late arrival are different rights with different conditions, and a letter that asks for the wrong one invites a rejection on its face. The rights page sets out both, with the live thresholds.
Know your deadline. Two months from the sailing, and it is shorter in practice than it sounds — here is how the clock works.
This is general information about Regulation (EU) No 1177/2010 and the Greek complaints process, not legal advice. ReFerry is a facilitator: we prepare claims for passengers to file themselves, and the operator decides the claim and pays you directly.