Know your Rights | The EC Regulation 261/2004 protects you - Flightright UK

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The EU Air Passenger Rights Regulation

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The EU Air Passenger Rights Regulation

Since the EU 261 regulation was passed in 2004, passengers have been protected against severe flight disruption. The legislation confirms that long delays, cancellations, missed connections and flight re-bookings cause great inconvenience to the passenger, and as such affected passengers should be compensated.

Use our online compensation calculator to check whether you are entitled to compensation and then get Flightright to enforce your claim at the touch of a button.

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Key Points about “The EU Air Passenger Rights Regulation”

  • EU Regulation 261/2004 establishes air passenger rights and compensation for flight disruptions, including flight delays, cancellations, and denied boarding.
  • The regulation applies to all flights departing from an EU airport and all flights operated by an EU airline arriving in the EU, as well as flights departing from Iceland, Norway, and Switzerland.
  • Passengers may be entitled to compensation under the regulation if their flight is delayed, canceled, or if they are denied boarding due to overbooking or other reasons.
  • Compensation amounts vary based on the length of the flight and the extent of the delay, and can range from €250 to €600 per passenger.
  • Passengers are also entitled to assistance and care, such as food, drinks, and accommodation if necessary, if their flight is delayed or canceled.
  • Airlines are not required to provide compensation if the disruption was caused by extraordinary circumstances beyond their control, such as bad weather or air traffic control strikes.
  • Passengers have up to three years to file a claim for compensation under the regulation.

You had a flight delay or a flight cancellation? Check your rights now and increase your chances of compensation

Who does the EC Regulation 261/2004 apply to?

  • Passengers who have a valid ticket and booking confirmation
  • Passengers who: start their trip at an EU airport, or land in an EU airport, provided that the airline is headquartered in the EU

It doesn’t matter whether the passengers are

  • Booked on a package holiday
  • Using a low-cost airline
  • On a business trip or
  • Children (on a paid ticket) or
  • Flying on free or reduced tickets under customer loyalty or promotional programmes.

The EU Regulation does not apply to:

  • Passengers travelling on a free or reduced fare that is not available to the public either directly or indirectly.
  • Air passengers that did not check in on time. Unless notified otherwise, passengers should check in at least 45 minutes before departure (unless their flight has been cancelled)
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Why is the Air Passenger Rights Regulation in place?

The EU regulation is in place to protect passengers against the inconvenience caused by long waiting times or flight cancellations, which the airline had the power to prevent. This is the ruling as stated in full: “Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 February 2004 establishing common rules on compensation and assistance to passengers in the event of denied boarding and of cancellation or long delay of flights.” The regulation provides passengers with protection against travel disruption, and also serves as an incentive for the airlines to maintain a more punctual operation. These rights also apply for passengers travelling on a package holiday.

The EU regulation 261/2004 is concerned with the following:

  • It is intended for passengers who suffer delayed or cancelled flights, overbooking or denied boarding.
  • Depending on the circumstances, and subject to certain conditions, it may give rise to a claim for compensation of between €250 and €600 per person.
  • It provides assistance and access to basic services in the event of flights cancelled or delayed for several hours.
  • It offers the right to request a seat on another flight or to withdraw from the scheduled flight if it is cancelled or delayed by more than 5 hours.
  • It obliges airlines to inform their passengers of flight delays and cancellations and their rights.

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When do I get compensation according to EU regulation No. 261/2004

Based on the 2004 EU261 ruling, your flight must either take off or land in the European Union, in the latter case the airline must also have is headquarters in the EU. Your claims are valid up to 6 years retrospectively. It does not matter whether you took the flight as business traveller or as part of a package holiday, it is the person who suffered the inconvenience of the flight disturbance who receives the compensation.

You are entitled to compensation in the following cases:

  • Delays: Your flight must have arrived at its destination 3 or more than 3 hours late
  • Cancellations: If you have been informed of cancellation less than 14 days before departure
  • Overbooking: The airline overbooked your flight and you will not find a seat on board, which is equivalent to denied boarding.
  • Missed connecting flight: If the final destination is reached 3 or more than 3 hours later due to a missed connecting flight This also applies if the connecting flight was operated by another airline as long as your ticket is valid for both legs of the flight.

The amount of compensation is dependant on the distance of the flight – not on the amount you paid for your ticket.

  • Short distance flight delays – Below 1500km – Passengers are due €250 compensation
  • Medium distance flight delays – Between 1500km and 3500km – Passengers are due €400 compensation
  • Long distance flight delays – Over 3500km – Passengers are due €600 compensation

Delay, cancellation, overbooking or missed connection flight? You are entitled to:

Short distance up to 1500 kmMedium distance up to 3500 kmLong distance from 3500 km
e.g. London – Edinburghe.g. London – Athense.g. London – Tokyo
250€400€600€

The airlines must inform passengers about their rights

All airlines must clearly and completely inform its customers about their rights as air passengers. They must inform you by means of warnings at the time of invoicing, written notices in case of delay and updated information on their own website.

The Berlin Regional Court decided (judgment of 8 October 2015, exp.: 52 O 102/15; judgment not signed) that the Germania airline had to stop incorrectly informing its customers about their rights in the event of significant delays and oversold tickets. An information sheet published on its website on the payment of compensation and assistance in the event of overbooking, cancellation and substantial delays described passengers’ rights in an ambiguous and partially false manner. It did not contain an indication of the payment of compensation from €250 and €600, nor did it mention the possibility of reimbursement of the ticket price or the free flight back to the point of departure in the event of flight cancellation.

Important INFO
If the airline provides you with vouchers – which are usually much less than compensation payouts – this does not negate their responsibility to issue you your compensation.

How do I claim my compensation?

The first the thing to do is to establish that you actually have a valid compensatory claim. This can often be a long and drawn out process: flight databases will need to be accessed, similar legal cases will need to be compared, and you’ll need to check whether your case applies under European Regulation No. 261/2004 etc. The logical solution is to make your compensation claim with Flightright. You just need to enter your flight details into our free compensation calculator, confirm that you have a valid claim against the airline, and we’ll take care of the rest. We have enforced over €100 million for affected passengers. The claim check calculator analyzes hundreds of thousands of flights and the corresponding meteorological data to check whether your case applies under the EU regulation. You will receive an immediate evaluation of your case, free of charge. More than 3.2 million passengers have already made use of our services.

Get started and establish whether you’re eligible to a compensation.

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If the compensation calculator indicates that you are entitled to a compensation, then you have the option of instructing us to defend your claims. By doing so, you benefit from a reliable, knowledgeable and committed partner to help you get your claim through to completion. We have the know-how to negotiate with the airlines and the sort of attempts they make to avoid paying their passengers what they are owed. This enables us to represent our customers’ interests against large airlines on a much more level playing field. We’ll make sure that you get the compensation you deserve, even if it means going to court, where we currently have a 98% enforcement success rate.

snacks-and-refreshments-strike

Which rights do I have during waiting at the airport?

The EU regulation states that if you’ve experienced bad flight disruption you’re entitled to more than your potential compensation, regardless of whether the airline is responsible for the situation or not. Here you can see your entitlements based on the length of the delay and the distance of your flight:

  • Short distance (up to 1500km): departure delayed over 2 hours, or flight cancelled – free drinks and food, and 2 telephone calls, emails or faxes
  • Medium distance (between 1500 and 3500km): departure delayed over 3 hours, or flight cancelled – free drinks and food, and 2 telephone calls, emails or faxes
  • Long-haul (over 3500km): departure delayed over 4 hours, or flight cancelled – free drinks and food, and 2 telephone calls, emails or faxes

In the case of overbooking you immediately become entitled to additional services and benefits. In cases of flight delays and cancellation, further rights become available: if you have waited at the airport longer than 5 hours, you’ll be entitled to cancel flights. If your flight is postponed until the follow day, the airline must accommodate you in a hotel for the night. Further information about these rights can be found on our flight delays page, or our flight cancellations page.

What are “extraordinary circumstances”?

Sometimes, under EU regulation, flight disruption does not qualify for compensation as the cause behind it was deemed to be an “extraordinary circumstance”. This is when it the disruption is out of the airline’s hands, and therefore not their responsibility. These circumstances include, among others:

  • Unavoidable security risks
  • Political instability
  • Airport or airspace closure
  • Adverse weather conditions
  • Birds flying into the engine
  • Strikes

An exception is made if the airline could have prevented the problem. An example would be if the airline blamed bad weather for flight disruption, and what actually happened was that the airline failed to ensure that there were adequate supplies of de-icer before the onset of winter. In this case the airline can be held responsible for the delay, after all they could have prevented it. A crucial indicator of a situation like this is if other flights were operating during the bad weather.

If the airline states that the disruption is caused by an extraordinary circumstance, this does not automatically exempt the airline from paying compensation. According to the ECJ ruling of 11 June 2020 (Case C-74/19), airlines must prove that they took all possible measures to re-route affected passengers at the earliest opportunity. The airline must demonstrate that it was not possible to rebook individual passengers onto a faster connection. In doing so, airlines must prove that they examined the possibility of rebooking passengers not only onto their own flights, but also the flights of other airlines. This includes both direct and indirect connections. If an alternative means of transportation, such as bus, train or taxi, could get a passenger to their destination faster, this must also be taken into account.

How to protect my rights on a future flight?

You have planned a flight trip in the future and want to be sure you won’t miss any compensation payments in advance? No problem. You can enter your flights in advance in our compensation calculator and we will inform you if you are entitled to compensation.

How to protect my rights on a future flight?

You have planned a flight trip in the future and want to be sure you won’t miss any compensation payments in advance? No problem. You can enter your flights in advance in our compensation calculator and we will inform you if you are entitled to compensation.

Checklist: Your air passenger rights

  • You might be entitled to compensation from €250 to €600 if you have flight delay of 3 or more than 3 hours, cancellation, overbooking or missed flight connection
  • From 2 hours on waiting at the airport you are also entitled to refreshments and snacks

Requirements:

  • You have checked in for your flight on time (generally no less than 45 minutes before departure).
  • You encountered these problems on a flight operated no more than 6 years ago.
  • The airline is responsible for the delay (e.g. technical fault or sick crew)
  • The flight took off in the EU (from any airline) or landed in the EU (provided that the airline is headquartered in the EU).
  • You can claim compensation even if you have travelled with a tour package or had a business trip

Has your flight been cancelled due to a strike?

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Recent flight delays

Are you currently affected by a flight delay and strike or bad weather conditions are not the cause? Find your delayed flight in our table, check your entitlement for compensation in our claimcheck and let Flightright enforce your claim for you.

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Passengers are protected by EU law

In the event of cancellation, delay, overbooking and missed connecting flights, passengers are entitled to compensation according to the EU Passenger Rights Regulation.

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