Flight compensation: what you can claim for delays, cancellations and denied boarding

Who is covered

Three closely related regimes apply in Europe:

The operating airline is what counts — the one whose aircraft and crew flew you — not the airline that sold the ticket. A flight from New York to Paris on Delta is not covered; the same flight on Air France is.

What counts as a qualifying disruption

• Delay — you arrived at your final destination 3 hours or more after the scheduled arrival time. Departure delay and taxi time don’t matter; the clock stops when at least one aircraft door opens at the gate.
• Cancellation — the flight did not operate and you were told less than 14 days before departure, unless the airline offered a replacement flight close to the original times.
• Denied boarding — you had a confirmed booking, checked in on time, and were refused boarding against your will (typically overbooking). Extraordinary circumstances are not a defence here.

Connecting flights on a single booking are treated as one journey: the delay is measured at the final destination and the distance is the straight line from the first departure airport to the final destination.

How the amount is calculated

The amount depends only on the great-circle distance of the flight, not on the fare:

• up to 1,500 km: €250 (£220)
• 1,500–3,500 km: €400 (£350)
• over 3,500 km: €600 (£520) — but flights between two EU/EEA airports over 3,500 km (for example Paris to Réunion) are capped at €400

On flights over 3,500 km the airline may halve the amount if it got you to your destination less than 4 hours late (or re-routed you within the equivalent windows for cancellations).

When the airline does not have to pay

The airline can refuse fixed compensation for delays and cancellations only if it proves extraordinary circumstances — events outside its control that could not have been avoided even with all reasonable measures. Bad weather, air-traffic-control restrictions, security incidents, airport strikes and bird strikes usually qualify. Technical faults, crew sickness, staffing shortages and strikes by the airline’s own staff generally do not.

The burden of proof is on the airline. “Operational reasons” is not a legal category and should be challenged. The extraordinary circumstances page lists what the Court of Justice has decided, cause by cause.

Other rights you keep regardless

Even when no fixed compensation is due you are entitled to:

• Care — meals, refreshments, two calls or emails, and a hotel with transport if you have to stay overnight (after 2, 3 or 4 hours of delay depending on distance).
• Refund or re-routing — for cancellations, denied boarding and delays of 5 hours or more.
• Reimbursement of reasonable expenses when the airline failed to provide care — keep the receipts.

How to claim

1. Check your flight with the free checker above. It applies the rules to your exact route, tells you the amount, and shows the reasoning with sources.
2. Send a written claim to the operating airline (its web form or customer-relations address), quoting the flight, booking reference, passengers and the legal basis — the claim letter guide has the wording, and the generator writes it from your flight.
3. If the airline refuses or ignores you, escalate to the national enforcement body of the departure country or the airline’s approved dispute-resolution scheme, and ultimately to the courts. Limitation periods vary by country (1–6 years — see the time-limit table), so don’t wait.

You can do all of this yourself for free, including the claim letter. Horvera’s paid Claim Pack is for what happens after you send it: a saved case with a submission-ready PDF package, the sent date, follow-up reminders you opt into, an analysis of the airline’s reply and the escalation route for your country.