Flight delayed or cancelled? You could be owed up to £520.
UK and EU law sets fixed compensation for delays of 3 hours or more. Check your flight in 60 seconds — free, no signup, and it works for flights up to 6 years ago.
- Per passenger — a family of four can be owed over £2,000
- Old flights count — claim up to 6 years back
- Cash, not vouchers — airlines must pay compensation in money
Based on the UK261 and EU261 passenger rights rules enforced by the Civil Aviation Authority and national regulators.
Check your flight
Five quick questions. No personal details needed.
Exactly when you're entitled
These aren't goodwill gestures — they're fixed legal rights under UK261 and EU261. Here is the full picture, in plain English.
Delays: the 3-hour rule
- • It's the arrival that counts — when the doors open at your destination, not when you took off. Left 3 hours late but landed 2h55 late? No compensation.
- • 3+ hours late arriving = compensation, IF the cause was within the airline's control.
- • From 2 hours' delay the airline owes you care regardless of cause: food, drinks, two calls or emails, and a hotel plus transfers if you're stuck overnight.
- • If the delay passes 5 hours you can abandon the trip and demand a full refund within 7 days, even when the cause was extraordinary.
Cancellations
- • Cancelled with less than 14 days' notice = compensation on the same scale as delays, unless the replacement flight gets you there at nearly the original times.
- • You always choose: full refund, or rerouting to your destination at the earliest opportunity — including on other airlines when yours has nothing suitable.
- • 14+ days' notice = no compensation, but the refund/rerouting choice still stands.
Pays out — the airline's fault
- • Technical faults and maintenance problems — including ones found at the last minute
- • Crew shortages, crew out of hours, staffing problems
- • The airline's own schedule knock-ons ("the inbound aircraft arrived late")
- • Overbooking and denied boarding
- • Airline staff strikes (the airline's own employees — ruled the airline's problem by the courts)
Doesn't pay — extraordinary circumstances
- • Genuinely severe weather (not "it was a bit windy")
- • Air traffic control restrictions and airport closures
- • Security threats, medical diversions, bird strikes
- • Strikes by airport staff or ATC (outside the airline's control)
- ⚠ Airlines routinely stretch these excuses. "Weather" that only grounded their plane while others flew is challengeable — and claims firms win exactly these arguments.
Time limits: you can go back 6 years in England and Wales, 5 in Scotland. EU countries set their own limits — commonly 2–3 years, some longer.
Flying to or from the US? Different rules.
The US has no equivalent of the £520 compensation scheme — but Americans are covered by the UK/EU rules more often than they think, and US law gives you refunds instead.
You CAN claim UK/EU compensation if…
Your flight departed the UK or EU — any airline, any passport. New York to London on Delta: not covered. London back to New York on the same Delta plane: covered, up to £520. Arrivals into the UK/EU count too when the airline is a UK/EU carrier.
US flights: automatic refunds
Since late 2024, US airlines must automatically refund you when a flight is cancelled or significantly changed (3+ hours domestic, 6+ international) and you don't accept the alternative. Cash back, not vouchers — but it's a refund, not compensation on top. Most big US carriers also promise meals after 3 hours and hotels for overnight delays they caused.
Canada & elsewhere
Canada pays CAD $400–$1,000 for controllable delays of 3+ hours on large airlines (claim within 1 year). On any international itinerary, the Montreal Convention lets you recover proven out-of-pocket losses from a delay — hotels, missed prepaid bookings — on top of everything above.
How claiming works
Check your eligibility
The rules are fixed in law, so for most flights the answer is clear-cut: 3+ hours late arriving, and the cause was within the airline's control.
Choose how to claim
Claim free directly with the airline, or hand it to a claims specialist who chases — and if needed sues — the airline in exchange for a cut of the payout.
Get paid per passenger
Compensation is owed to every passenger on the booking, including children. Airlines must pay cash — you never have to accept vouchers.
What the law says you're owed
Fixed amounts per passenger for arrivals delayed 3 hours or more, set by the UK261 and EU261 regulations. The distance is the flight's full route distance.
| Flight distance | Example routes | UK departure | EU departure |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 1,500 km | London to Dublin, Edinburgh, Amsterdam, Paris | £220 | €250 |
| 1,500 to 3,500 km | London to Athens, Malaga, Tenerife, Istanbul | £350 | €400 |
| Over 3,500 km | London to New York, Dubai, Bangkok | £520 | €600 |
Long-haul flights arriving 3–4 hours late pay half the full amount. Cancellations with less than 14 days' notice follow the same scale.
Common questions
How late does my flight have to be? +
Compensation starts when you arrive at your destination 3 hours or more late. It is the arrival delay that counts, not departure — a flight that leaves 3 hours late but lands 2 hours 55 late does not qualify.
How much am I owed? +
Under UK rules: £220 for flights under 1,500km, £350 for 1,500–3,500km, and £520 for longer flights. EU departures pay €250/€400/€600. It is per passenger — a family of four on a long-haul delay can be owed over £2,000.
Can I claim for an old flight? +
Yes. You can claim up to 6 years back in England and Wales, and 5 years in Scotland. Most people have no idea — a delayed holiday flight from three summers ago is still claimable.
What if the airline blames the weather? +
Genuine severe weather, air traffic control restrictions and some strikes are "extraordinary circumstances" and exempt the airline. But airlines regularly blame weather for delays that were really crew shortages or technical faults, which do pay out. If in doubt, check — it costs nothing.
Do I have to use a claims company? +
No. You can claim directly with the airline for free. Claims firms take a cut (typically 25–35%) but handle the fight, including taking airlines to court when they stonewall. Direct first if you have the patience; a claims firm if you want it off your plate.
I missed a connection because my first flight was late. Does that count? +
Yes, if both flights were on one booking. What matters is when you arrived at your final destination. A 1-hour delay into Amsterdam that made you miss the onward leg and arrive 5 hours late in Singapore is a 5-hour delay for compensation purposes.
I'm American — do these rules apply to me? +
They apply to flights, not passport holders. Any flight departing the UK or EU is covered whoever you are and whatever the airline, so a New Yorker flying London to JFK on Delta can claim up to £520. US domestic flights are not covered — see the US section above for what you get instead.