While travelling, it’s important to know if you can claim compensation for travel delays that are out of your control and what your rights are in that situation.
Let’s face it, delays and cancellations are hardly rare these days. In the 12 months leading up to January 2024, British Airways cancelled 3.3% of its flights, less than 24 hours before departure. That’s according to data from the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).
With the cost of living continuing to squeeze pockets, households are feeling the pressure of high interest rates, sky-high childcare costs and soaring mortgage costs. As a result, budget airlines like Ryanair, easyJet and Wizz Air seem ever more appealing with their budget fares (as low as £15) and are popular with those looking to save on holiday costs. However, they aren’t exempt from their fair share of flight delays and disruptions.
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At the end of July, more than 60 British Airways flights were cancelled due to storms and air traffic control restrictions, affecting around 10,000 passengers. Ryanair also cancelled 650 flights, while easyJet cancelled 14 flights at Gatwick.
This follows a large-scale IT outage in July that saw thousands of flights delayed or cancelled. Cyber security firm Crowdstrike said the problem was caused by a defective update to its Falcon antivirus software, which aims to protect Microsoft Windows devices from cyber attacks.
Of course, the last thing you want when you’re hoping to jet off on holiday is to be affected by unexpected delays.
We outline your rights if your flight is delayed or cancelled, and how to claim compensation and/or other benefits. In some cases, you can even get compensated for losing out on valuable time, money and the stress you’ve been caused.
How to claim compensation for travel delays and cancellations
However, if it is an exceptional circumstance and your flight is put back while you’re in the airport, your airline may still have to provide you with the cash to cover food and drink, calls to loved ones to inform them of your journey changes, and even accommodation if you need to stay somewhere overnight ahead of your rearranged flight.
Under European air passengers’ rights rules, passengers are entitled to be flown to their destination as soon as possible. If they’re abroad, they are due hotels and meals until they can be flown home.
Qualifying for this sort of compensation depends on the length of your flight, and the length of the delay:
- For flights less than 1,500km, the delay needs to be a minimum of two hours.
- For flights between 1,500km and 3,500km, the delay must be a minimum of three hours.
- For flights longer than 3,500km, the delay must be at least four hours.
The airline should provide you with vouchers for this directly, though you can also keep receipts for the money spent and claim it back from the airline later on.
Be aware that the airline will only pay up for reasonable expenses, so you won’t get the money back if you opt for luxury options.
If the flight is more than three hours late, and it’s the airline’s fault (so it's not an exceptional circumstance), then you should be entitled to compensation. Again the level of compensation will vary based on the length of the delay and the distance of your flight:
- For flights less than 1,500km and a delay of at least three hours, you can claim £220 in compensation.
- For flights between 1,500km and 3,500km and a delay of at least three hours, you can claim £350 in compensation.
- For flights of more than 3,500km and delays of under four hours, you can claim £260. This jumps to £520 for delays over the four-hour mark.
If the flight is delayed by more than five hours, you do not have to take it and can instead claim a full refund.
Should the flight be cancelled, the airline is required to provide either a full refund or cover the cost of a replacement flight. If the replacement flight delays you by more than two hours, and you receive less than two weeks’ notice, then you are entitled to compensation, though the sums can vary significantly.
| Flight length | Notice | Length of disruption | Compensation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 1,500km | 7-14 days’ notice | Arrive under two hours late at destination | £110 |
| Under 1,500km | 7-14 days’ notice | Arrive more than two hours late at destination | £220 |
| Under 1,500km | Under seven days’ notice | Arrive more than two hours late at destination | £220 |
| Flight of between 1,500km and 3,500km | 7-14 days’ notice | Departs at least an hour earlier than booked flight | £175 |
| Flight of between 1,500km and 3,500km | 7-14 days’ notice | Arrive up to three hours late at destination | £175 |
| Flight of between 1,500km and 3,500km | 7-14 days’ notice | Arrive more than three hours late at destination | £350 |
| Flight of between 1,500km and 3,500km | Under seven days’ notice | Arrive more than three hours late at destination | £350 |
| Flight of 3,500km+ | 7-14 days’ notice | Departs at least an hour earlier than booked flight | £260 |
| Flight of 3,500km+ | 7-14 days’ notice | Arrive up to four hours late at destination | £260 |
| Flight of 3,500km+ | 7-14 days’ notice | Arrive more than four hours late at destination | £520 |
| Flight of 3,500km+ | Under seven days’ notice | Arrive up to four hours late at destination | £260 |
| Flight of 3,500km+ | Under seven days’ notice | Arrive more than four hours late at destination | £520 |
In each case, the compensation figure is per person.
If the airline is not helpful with your claim, or you feel you have not been treated fairly, then you may be able to take your complaint to an alternative dispute resolution scheme – if the airline is a member of one. Otherwise, you can take it to the CAA.
What compensation can you get for air traffic control errors or issues beyond the airline’s control?
While airlines don’t have to pay out financial compensation for, say, airport power cuts or air traffic control errors, because it is not deemed as their fault – they do have to do other things, says consumer rights expert Martyn James.
“Even though you don’t get monetary compensation for delays or cancellation like you would do if the airline was at fault, they must still try to get you to your destination,” says James. “This can involve putting you on one of their own flights or failing that, on that of a competitor.”
Think carefully about requesting a full refund if you still want to go away. “Flights are more expensive if you buy on the day or within 48 hours, so you may find your refund doesn’t come through immediately or the cash doesn’t go very far.” It may make more sense to request that the airline gets you on the next available plane.
The CAA said that if flights are available on the day of travel passengers must be booked on them, even if this is on a rival airline.
“If you can’t get hold of the airline, then check the options online, take screenshots and if you can’t contact the airline, make notes of what you did to try, then buy direct,” says James. “If you use a credit card you may also have other protections further down the line with your card provider if the airline refuses to pay out.”
You might also be entitled to food and drink vouchers, the cost of calls to communicate with others about the situation, accommodation and transport to and from the airport.
Which airports do you need to arrive at earliest to avoid delays?
Research by claims.co.uk reveals that London Heathrow is the airport that passengers should arrive at the earliest to avoid delays. Being the primary airport in London, it holds nearly 80 million passengers every year, which adds to the traffic jams and long queue times at the site.
We look at other airports you’d have to make an early headstart to in order to make your flight.
| Airport | Yearly traffic (vehicles per mile) | Yearly terminal passengers | Security queue times | Score (out of 100) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| London Heathrow | 3,174,354 | 79,149,042 | 20 minutes | 78.26 |
| Birmingham | 2,635,425 | 11,479,335 | 24 minutes | 54.86 |
| Bristol | 2,260,423 | 9,911,879 | 30 minutes | 54.72 |
| Leeds Bradford | 2,279,643 | 3,989,405 | 35 minutes | 51.43 |
| Manchester | 1,919,394 | 28,077,659 | 24 minutes | 50.45 |
| London Stansted | 1,867,434 | 27,951,116 | 18 minutes | 40.71 |
| London Gatwick | 1,656,850 | 40,894,242 | 16 minutes | 37.42 |
| London Luton | 1,738,817 | 16,399,866 | 19 minutes | 34.26 |
| Edinburgh | 1,913,770 | 14,395,463 | 16 minutes | 31.88 |
| Glasgow International | 1,633,294 | 7,355,987 | 13 minutes | 14.61 |
| London City | 2,073,664 | 3,429,684 | 12 minutes | 12.21 |
| Newcastle | 1,437,605 | 4,818,885 | 15 minutes | 8.66 |
Source: claims.co.uk
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