Flights and airports Delayed flights
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Your rights
The Denied Boarding Regulation gives you legal protection
If you are at the airport and discover your flight is delayed, your legal position depends on where you are flying to and from.
If you are travelling with an airline based in the EU or with a non-EU based airline flying from an EU airport, then you are protected by the Denied Boarding Regulation. The regulation states that the airline has an obligation to offer you assistance if your delay is expected to go beyond a certain point.
If you are travelling with a non-EU based airline flying from a non-EU destination, the airline doesn't have the same duty to look after you. Check the airline's Condition of Carriage to see what you are entitled to.
The Denied Boarding Regulation
The Denied Boarding Regulation applies if:
- You have a confirmed booking
- You checked in on time, or if no check-in time was given, then at least 45 minutes before your flight was scheduled to depart
- You're departing from an EU airport, or from a non-EU airport and flying into an EU airport on a 'community carrier' (an airline with its headquarters and main place of business within the EU. That includes all European discount and no-frills airlines).
What you are entitled to
If you are protected by the Denied Boarding regulation, you are entitled to:
- Two free phone calls, faxes or e-mails; and
- Free meals and refreshments appropriate to the delay; and
- Free hotel accommodation and hotel transfers if an overnight stay is required.
The above applies:
- When a flight under 932 miles (for example, London to Venice) is delayed for at least two hours
- When a flight within the EU that is more than 932 miles (for example, London to Athens) is delayed for at least three hours
- When a flight that isn't within the EU but is between 932 and 2,174 miles is delayed for at least three hours
- When any other flight is delayed for at least four hours.
You can also choose not to travel, and get a refund of your ticket cost if the delay lasts for five hours or more (but the flight is not cancelled).
What to do
At the airport, ask the airline to provide full reasons for the delay. Ask if the delay is due to 'extraordinary circumstances'. If the airline can prove extraordinary circumstances exist, then no compensation is payable. Extraordinary circumstances are situations beyond the control of the airline, for example, security risk, political instability or severe weather that makes flying dangerous.
Technical problems can be 'extraordinary' but not where the problem should have been picked up by routine maintenance.
Challenge your airline if you don't agree that there were extraordinary circumstances, for example if you are told you can't fly due to weather conditions, but other flights are departing. Airlines may stretch the definition of extraordinary circumstances further than they should.
If your flight is delayed because of an airline staff strike, the airline has an obligation to offer you meals and/or refreshments, depending on the length of the delay. It may also have to provide you with hotel accommodation and transport to the hotel. Strikes, however, are usually considered 'extraordinary circumstances' for the airlines, so while the meals, refreshments, etc, must still be provided, it's unlikely that any additional compensation under the Denied Boarding Regulations will be paid. It's worth checking on your travel insurance policy to see if it excludes cover for issues such as industrial action, as you may need to claim on things outside of your transport requirements, such as independently booked accommodation.
If you still feel aggrieved by the airline, then contact the Civil Aviation Authority and seek their assistance. They may be able to intervene on your behalf.
Compensation
If there are no extraordinary circumstances, request compensation under the Denied Boarding Regulations as follows:
| Compensation for delay | ||
|---|---|---|
| Flight distance | How late arriving | Entitlement |
| Up to 1,500km (932 miles) | More than 3 hours | €250 |
| Any flight within the EU over 1,500km (932 miles) or any other flight between 1,500km-3,500 km (2,175 miles) | More than 3 hours | €400 |
| More than 3,500km (2,175 miles) | Between 3-4 hours | €300 |
| More than 3,500km (2,175 miles) | More than 4 hours | €600 |
This right to compensation is not set out specifically by the Denied Boarding Regulation, but follows a European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruling on the regulation on 19 November 2009. However, you will probably find that the airline refuses your claim. This is because, following a request from a number of airlines, any questions relating to the November 2009 ruling have been referred back to the ECJ - placing a 'stay' on further courts proceedings in the UK. This will remain in place until the ECJ has reached a decision, and, in the meantime, airlines cannot be compelled in the UK to pay compensation for delays.
However, this 'stay' does not affect your rights to phone calls, hotel accommodation and food following a delay. What's more, passengers could still make a claim for delay compensation in another EU country if an EU airline was involved.
