Claim Flight Delay Compensation under EU or UK Law

You may claim compensation for a delayed flight if it delays at the final destination for more than 3 hours due to the airline’s responsibility.

With our delayed flight compensation calculator, you can find the amount to claim in just 2 minutes. And it doesn’t even ask for any personal data.

Enter your flight details below and get to know the amount you may request for your delayed flight.

Flight Delay Compensation Calculator

Don't remember your flight details? Click here
Don't remember your flight details? Click here

Or, just open our compensation calculator and find out how much the airline owes you. You can do this in a couple of minutes. It is easy to use and quite handy.

When can you claim for flight delays?

If your flight is delayed for three hours or more at the final destination, you are entitled to flight delay compensation of up to £520.

Provided that the disruption was caused due to the airlines’ fault.

The flight delay claim amount varies between £220 to £520 depending on the distance of your flight and the length of the delay.

Some of the other following conditions when you can ask for compensation for flight delays:

  1. Under UK air passenger rights, you may claim for a flight departed from UK airport or arrived at UK airport with an UK-registered airline.
  2. For EU law to apply, you must have departed from the airport in the EU (European Union) or arrived at the EU airport with an EU-regulated airline.
  3. It shouldn’t be delayed due to exceptional circumstances, which are beyond the control of the airlines.

Can you claim compensation for delayed flight outside of the UK/EU?

The answer is a big YES.

It doesn’t matter if you have citizenship of any other country than UK or EU.

Flight Delay Compensation Rule is valid for all the passengers who departed from the airport in the UK/EU or arrived in the UK/EU with an UK/EU airline.

And we add more benefit to passengers outside of UK or EU. No VAT is applicable when you enforce your rights through ClaimFlights.

To summarise:

Origin and Destination EU-regulated Airline Non-EU regulated Airline
From inside of UK/EU to inside of UK/EU ✅Yes ✅Yes
From inside of UK/EU to outside of UK/EU ✅Yes ✅Yes
From outside of UK/EU to inside of UK/EU ✅Yes ❌No
From outside of UK/EU to outside of UK/EU ❌No ❌No

How far back can I claim compensation for delayed flight?

In the UK (England, Wales, and Northern Ireland), you can claim for flights delayed back up to 6 years. Whereas, in Scotland, you can go back up to 5 years.

What are your rights for delayed flights?

If there’s a delay at departure, you are eligible for “Right to Care”. The airlines must offer:

For 2 Hours Flight Delays

Foods/Snacks
Free meals and refreshments.
Communication
2 free phone calls, email or fax service.

For 5 Hours Flight Delays

Foods/Snacks
Free meals and refreshments.
Communication
2 free phone calls, email or fax service.
Flight
Re-routed to the earliest available alternative flight
Refund
refund of the ticket cost, if you were unwilling to travel
Accomodation
Hotel accommodation & transport facility for an overnight delay.

Plus, compensation of up to £520 (previously under EU law, 600€), if you reached your final destination later than 3 hours.

Plane delayed over 5 hours

For flight delays of more than 5 hours, in addition to free meals, drinks, two phone calls and access to emails, you should be re-routed to the earliest available flight.

And in case you are not willing to travel, you can ask for a refund of flight ticket cost. Whereas, if you travelled and reached the destination later than 3 hours, you are eligible for compensation.

We just mentioned that airlines are reluctant to return your money. So, you need to be a little clever to get it.

And there are some easy ways to do that. Have confirmation of the delayed flight in writing. If possible, collect evidence for your claim.

Do airlines have to compensate for flight delays on package holidays?

European Union Regulation (EC) No. 261/2004 provides protection for tour packages, travel packages, vacation packages, and holiday packages.

Your travel destination can be anywhere in the world. But the package must be purchased within the EU countries.

Your travel itinerary should clearly state the original and final destinations, route and transport facility.

Before the trip, the tour operator should inform you about the time, the location of any stopovers and flight connections.

The tour operator is responsible solely for any breach of the terms and conditions. Airlines might amend the price if they have mentioned it in their terms.

The tour organiser shall file the compensation claim on the passenger’s behalf. Your tour operator should ask for reimbursement, and you should get the full refund of the ticket cost within 7 days.

Repayment can be in cash, check or electronic bank transfer.

Another form of compensation for flight delay would be to re-route you to your final destination. The airline should arrange the earliest available flight for you. Alternatively, you can choose as per your convenience, or according to your travel plans.

How much compensation do you get for delayed flights?

The amount depends on the distance of your flight and the length of the delay. It is between 250 Euros to 600 Euros.

The table below shows the amount of compensation that you can claim for your delayed flight:

Arrival Delay Route Distance Claimable Amount
Up to 2 hours 59 minutes Any distance None
3 hours or more less than or equal to 1,500 km £220 (under EU law 250€)
3 hours or more more than 1,500 & up to 3,500 km £350 (under EU law 400€)
4 hours or more * more than or equal to 3,500 km £520 (under EU law 600€)
* When UK/EU borders were not crossed the amount may get reduced by 50%, i.e., you can get up to 300€.
Flight Delay Compensation Amount
Note: The calculation of the delay takes place from the so-called “WOG (Wheel off Ground)” to the aircraft door opening (from lift-off to when the airline crew opens the door after landing).

The airlines may try to interpret this scheme in their favour.

How much can you claim compensation for a 5 hour flight delay?

For flight delays of more than 5 hours, in addition to free meals, drinks, two phone calls, and access to emails, you should be re-routed to the earliest available flight.

And in case you are not willing to travel, you can ask for a refund of the ticket cost. Whereas, if you travelled and reached the destination later than 3 hours, you are eligible for compensation.

How to claim compensation for delayed flight?

With ClaimFlights, it’s very simple.

Enter flight information, i.e. flight number and date of travel, into our free compensation calculator. Then, enter the reason behind your flight problem in our online compensation checker tool.

Within 2 minutes you will find the amount that you can demand from the airline.

What to do next?

Proceed with your claim with us

Our claiming process is very easy. You just need to provide us with your flight information, which doesn’t take more than 2 minutes of your time.

We have historic flight delay info

We have access to a lot of information about different airlines. Thus you receive compensation within the right time.

Provide us your flight details

Provide us with your flight details. After entering your flight information, mention the reason and details of your problem.

How to claim compensation for delayed flights?

1

Check Entitlement

Check if you can claim using our compensation checker tool.
2

Enter Flight Details

Fill in your flight number, date of journey, and some further information.
3

Assign to us

For a hassle-free claim, assign us your case by signing the digital contract.
4

We process your case

Our claim experts will take all your hassles, and claim on behalf of you.
5

Get Compensation

Don’t be late, claim for your rights today.

ClaimFlights 3 Steps Claiming Process

Step 1 Step 2 Step 3
Enter your flight details Sit back and Relax Get Paid
Enter your flight number and date of journey and some further information. Our claim experts will research your case with the help of our comprehensive database. We send compensation (minus our commission + VAT) directly to your bank account.
It only takes 2 minutes to enter all the desired information. We fight for your rights and bring your claim through. On request, we will send you a digital .pdf invoice.

What to do when your flight is delayed?

w

Ask reason of delay

Ask the airline for the reason behind it. Get confirmation in writing from airlines’ customer service.
l

Note Arrival Time

Note the actual arrival time, i.e., when the plane door was opened and passengers were allowed to step out.
i

Collect Evidence

Collect evidence such as boarding pass, receipts, vouchers, etc. to support your claim.

Check Eligibility

Enter your flight details into our claim form and check if you are eligible for compensation.

Exchange Contacts

Exchange contact information of co-passengers (which can further act as evidence).

Claim Money Back

Assign us your case for a hassle-free claim (we work on a “No Win – No Fee” basis).

If the plane is delayed over 3 hours, you can request money back up to 600 Euros. It’s even valid for connecting flights if booked under the same leg. You could not claim compensation if the lateness were caused due to circumstances beyond the control of the airline company.

What happens if you missed your flight connection due to delay

If you miss your connecting flight due to a delay or cancellation, you may ask for a return ticket and get flight refund for the part of the journey not covered.

Whereas, if you reached your final destination later than three hours, you are entitled to claim compensation.

Before filing the claim, make sure that the airline cannot prove it was due to extraordinary circumstances.

Look at it this way; it is you versus the airline. They would prefer not to compensate you. But their flight delay messed up your plans.

So, think of it as building a court case. They need to be ‘found guilty’. Ok, enough of court language.

You get the point. The airline will reject the compensation claim in extraordinary circumstances. So, make sure that the air carrier was responsible. In most cases, it is not that difficult to establish.

In order to claim compensation for missed connection due to delays or cancellations under EC 261, it is necessary for the passenger to book the entire journey under one ticket or one booking reference.

Your rights on flight delays and cancellations

Flight Compensation Rights under EU 261 Regulation

According to EC 261/2004 rule, passengers are entitled to financial compensation of up to 600€ for delayed flights of more than 3 hours, cancelled flights without prior notice, and denied boarding due to overbooking.

Airlines are not liable to compensate for the inconvenience caused due to exceptional circumstances (like the strike, bad weather, or an Act of God), which seems to be fair.

There are different kinds of delays. There are short ones that cause some frustration. Then there are long ones that cause agitation. The law tries to treat passengers according to the length of the delay.

If the delay is of more than 2 hours, airlines should provide free meals, refreshments, two phone calls and access to emails or fax. Hotel accommodation and transport facility (between airport and hotel) should be the airline’s responsibility for an overnight delay.

If the airlines do not provide these services, ask them. It’s your right, as long as you have a valid ticket.

Hotel, travel, and meals are not cheap. Under EU law, the airlines should pay for these, not you.

Here is how this works. The airline should give you vouchers for food, hotel, etc. If they don’t, go ahead and ask someone who works for the airline.

If they still don’t help you, get creative. Pay the bills but keep the receipts. Then show these when filing the claim. But be reasonable with expenses.

It is worth mentioning; Airlines are not obligated to pay for fancy things. If you handover receipts for alcohol, luxury hotels or expensive meals, you won’t get back any money.

Here is excellent news. Even for adverse weather conditions if the other airlines were operational, you still may have the right to these services. Now you know why it pays to know your rights.

European air passengers also have travel rights under the Montreal Convention and Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).

Am I eligible to Compensation due to bad weather

Airlines can deny any compensation payment due to extraordinary bad weather. The situation might, however, be very different if the harsh weather conditions at any particular airport are constant or to be expected and other airlines are allowed to fly.

Constant “normal bad weather” at the airport is not considered to be an extraordinary situation that would justify the cancellation or delay of flights.

This is due to the fact that the airline has to take normal, and therefore foreseeable, weather conditions into account when scheduling flights i.e. when deciding whether or not to allow aircraft to fly to and from certain airports.

You should be aware of your rights to claim for flight delays under bad weather conditions.

What are ‘extraordinary circumstances’? Can you claim for flight delays due to it?

Extraordinary circumstances are the conditions – beyond the control of airlines – that can cause disruption, despite taking reasonable preventive measures.

Some examples of exceptional circumstances are:

  • Earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, extremely bad weather, Tsunami, etc.
  • Crew member’s strike causing all the airplanes with other airlines to fly late.
  • Unseen technical problems, like a bird hitting the plane engine.
  • The destined country is into political unrest.

Extraordinary circumstances’ are considered ‘Act of God’, which absolve the airlines from paying monetary compensation. However, you may still claim compensation if other airlines were able to operate under the same conditions.

UK Air Passenger Rights for flight compensation after Brexit

After the Brexit the withdrawal of the UK from the European Union the rules are same for the UK citizen based on EU regulations EC 261 and for all the UK flight delay the compensation prices will be the same i.e. £520 (under EU law 600€).

If the passenger is traveling from the UK or EU airpot with any airline the passengers have the right to claim under UK/EU law.

What is the Montreal Convention?

The Montreal Convention is a set of rules for compensation for travel disruptions. This includes flight delays, cancellations and boarding benials. The Montreal Convention states that an airline is responsible for any damage caused by delayed carriage of passengers.

International passengers can claim compensation under the Montreal Convention for any damage they suffer due to travel disruptions or luggage issues.

Why choose “ClaimFlights”?

No win = No fee

Yes, you read it right, we do not charge any upfront fees until we win the case and get compensation from the airlines.

Success Fee 25%

Our success fee is just 25% (no VAT, if you are a non-EU resident). We have a fantastic success record and fair prices.

No Legal Action Fee

No legal action fee or admin fee. (It’s free of charge, and no hidden costs, even if we have to take your case to court).

Best Payout

You get the best payout when compared with the other claim companies. Check out the price comparison.

Close to 100% Success

Close to 100% success ratio in court. Our legal claim experts are well trained and experienced in sending claim letters.

Test Winner

We are a test winner in many flight delay provider tests. And, you get the best payout for your delayed flight.

Don’t delay, claim for your flight today!

ClaimFlights follows the “No Win No Fee” policy. You do not pay us any fee until we ‘win’ compensation for you.

Our team of experts knows how to get the airlines’ attention when they ignore passengers’ requests.

Our charges are less than the other claim companies. Our customers are not just satisfied but thrilled to claim with us.

We have a proven track record; 95% who claim through us win compensation.

You only pay 25% of the receivable amount plus VAT, which is much lesser than the other claim companies. While processing claims, we send you regular updates of your case.

Transparency is key!

Let’s again Summarize what we had in this guide

EU Air Passenger Rights

For flight delays of more than 3 hours, you may receive compensation.

Z

Are you eligible to Claim?

You may claim for delays over 3 hours at the destination airport.

Rights on Package Holiday

EU law is valid for package holidays, for packages purchased in the EU.
l

To do's for Flight Delays

Preserve flight ticket and proof of flight delay to provide when asked for it.

}

When can you claim

You are eligible for compensation if the delay exceeds 3 hours on arrivals.

s

Exceptional Circumstances

No reimbursement for flight delays due to the situation beyond the control.

Amount of Compensation

You may claim up to 600€ (approx. $700) in compensation for flight delays.

Flight Departure Delays

You are entitled to free meals & phone calls for 2+ hours delay.
t

How to claim money back?

Leave all your hassles to us, and enforce us to claim for your rights.

Choose Your Choice To Claim

Lawyer

M

Higher Fees (£50 to £500, + Hearing Fees)

M

Risk of losing money

M

Hours of your time are spent

M

Result unknown

ClaimFlights

N

Zero Cost Risk & Additional legal databases

N

Pay Only When We Win

N

Only takes 2 minutes to claim

N

Close to 100% Success rate

Yourself

M

Low cost risk, most airlines ignore customer claims

M

Case might end up in court

M

Takes hours of your time

M

Outcome Unclear

Esenia Ulbrich

Esenia Ulbrich

Founder & Legal Head

Esenia Ulbrich is the founder of ClaimFlights and heads the legal team. She holds a master's in business administration and loves sailing in the Saronic Gulf, hiking in the Alpes, and spending time with her daughter.

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