How much compensation can you claim for flight delay in the UK?
How much compensation can you claim for flight delay in the UK?
Was your UK flight delayed? Was it delayed due to airline's fault, such as technical problems? If yes, you could be entitled to receive UK flight delay compensation of up to GBP 520 as per the law. However, you won’t be getting the same amount for every flight. The UK flight compensation amounts differ from flight to flight — the longer the flight, the more you can claim.
The amounts are the same for cancellations and denied boarding.
The amounts are the same both in the UK and EU.
Check your compensation online.
UK air passenger rights: Regulation UK261
What are the air passenger rights in the UK?
Please note that your rights for flight delay, cancellation, and denied boarding still remain the same as set out in the EU Regulation 261/2004. They haven’t changed since Brexit. The only difference is that the fixed compensation amounts are now in sterling instead of euros, and now you are protected by another law - Regulation UK261 (identical law).
If your flight is covered under the UK261 regulation, the compensation you will receive will likely be paid in pounds instead of euros, but that’s about it.
Who can claim airline compensation for flight delay?
Who is eligible to make a claim?
Anyone who has purchased a ticket can make a claim.
Which flights are covered? Which airlines?
All commercial flights departing from, arriving at, or traveling within the European Union, UK, Iceland, Norway, or Switzerland are covered, as long as the airline is responsible for the disruption. If you are flying from a country outside of the EU, EEA or the UK, your flight must be operated by a European airline.
- You are flying with a EU airline
- You are flying with a UK airline
- You are flying with a non-European airline
These regulations also apply to charter flights.
How much compensation can you claim for flight delay in the UK?
Compensation amounts are predetermined by law.
And — they are based on the distance of your flight.
So, how much compensation can you claim for flight delay in the UK?
Compensation amounts are as following:
- 1,500 km or less (mostly 1-2h) — GBP 220
- Between 1,500 km and 3,500 km - GBP 350
- Greater than 3,500 km - GBP 520
This is in accordance with UK regulation 261.
The longer your journey, the more you can claim. When calculating the compensation amount, it is important to consider the final destination. For example, if you have a connecting flight from London to Bangkok via Doha, and the first leg is delayed causing you to miss the next flight to Bangkok, resulting in arriving 3 hours later than planned, you may be eligible for compensation.
So when calculating how much can you claim for this particular flight, we will consider it as a London to Bangkok flight. This is because the final destination is what is important in this case.
Longer flights receive higher compensation.
In certain situations, each passenger may receive compensation of up to GBP 520. So, if you're a family of four, you could receive up to GBP 2080 (GBP 520 x 4). That's a significant amount, isn't it? Don’t forget that you claim flight delay compensation also for old flights.
How much can you claim for flight cancellation? Denied boarding?
The amounts are exactly the same.
It doesn’t matter if it is a delay, cancellation or overbooking.
How to claim flight compensation for flight delay in the UK?
There are two options how you can claim flight compensation in the UK.
Option 1: You can do all the work yourself
To claim compensation for your flight, contact the airline.
Refer to UK261 or EU261, depending on your flight route.
Submit all required documents and wait for a response. If the airline denies your claim and you disagree, take the case to NEB of the country your flight departed from. If the issue is still unresolved, you may take the case to court or a flight compensation company.
Option 2: Work with us
Hand your case over to us — professionals.
We work with airlines from around the world.
If you choose to work with us, we will do all the paperwork and investigation on your behalf. You won’t have to do any of that -- that's the best part about legal representation.
- Go to this page on our website;
- Fill in the details about yourself and your flight;
- Upload your boarding pass and passport copy;
- Sign the claim online.
That’s it. We will take care of everything else.
Even if you're uncertain whether you're eligible for compensation, submit a claim, and we'll investigate it on your behalf. If we are successful in getting you EU or UK flight compensation, there will be a fee associated with that. At the same time, if you don't receive any compensation, you don't owe us anything.
We work with easyJet, British Airways and other UK and EU airlines. If your flight departed or was about to depart from the airport in the UK, EEA or EU, we can help you with most airline claims (including, Turkish Airlines, Qatar Airways, American Airlines, etc.).
Contact us if you have any questions about UK261 or EU261.
Read more:
- Who regulates UK airlines?
- UK flight delay compensation
- UK flight cancellation compensation
- UK denied boarding compensation
By Europe and EU we mean all EU Member States, the United Kingdom (UK), Guadeloupe, French Guiana, Martinique, Reunion, Mayotte, Saint Martin, the Azores, Madeira, the Canary Islands, Iceland, Norway, and Switzerland.
Featured photo by John Smith