Do you know that you are eligible to receive compensation of up to $650 if your flight is delayed? YES! You can receive monetary compensation if your plans get messed up due to a late flight.
It’s not always bad weather, which can be responsible for flight delays. It could be a technical glitch too. The EU is concerned about Air Passengers’ rights, and made sure that they don’t get burnt in the heat.
Thus, they came up with the Air Passengers Rights Regulation, which is also known as EU Flight Delay Compensation! Knowing the provisions mentioned in this law can be beneficial for every passenger. Knowing who all are eligible to get compensation, and how to get it will make your situation less frustrating.
The length of the delay and the distance of the flight will determine whether or not passengers have a right to assistance, compensation, and a return flight from the airline. However, if the delay is due to the “extraordinary circumstances,” listed below, airlines don’t need to offer delay compensation:
This is the length of the delay criteria that EU261 considers to provide compensation:
EU261 is drafted to provide delay compensation to the passengers who are traveling with airlines. These rights depend on the airline’s origin, and route.
All 27 countries of the EU are under the Flight Delay Compensation Rules.
Other than these, there are some other countries where EU261 applies:
Many times, you purchase a ticket on one airline but actually go on one of its partners because of airline alliances. You may, for example, buy a ticket on Delta Air Lines but board KLM.
It is the airline operating the aircraft, not the airline you bought your ticket from. So, the actual aircraft company will bear responsibility for these codeshare flights.
This implies that you would not have compensation rights for the flight to Paris if you purchased your ticket on the Air France website with Delta operating the route. But if it’s a flight on an Air France aircraft, you would. Or if the trip originates from Paris, then you will get the compensation mentioned under EU261.
If your ticket fulfills the criteria of EU216, then you are entitled to the following benefits:
1. If your flight is delayed for less than 2 hours then, you won’t get any compensation from the airline.
2. If the delay exceeds 2 hours, then you have the “Right to Care”, which means you can ask for the following things:
3. You can get reimbursement if you have to spend money on these things because of flight delays.
4. If your flight is delayed over 5 hours, then you have the right to get a full or partial refund along with your European Flight Delay Compensation.
5. The airline is not permitted to charge you more to cover the fare difference if they offer you an upgrade or another flight.
6. However, you can receive a reimbursement of between 30 and 75 percent of the original cost if you opt for a lower fare class flight.
EU flight compensation largely depends on the duration of the delay and the length of the flight. Airlines compensate you accordingly. To get a better picture, check out this chart:
Less than 3 hours | 3-4 hours | More than 4 hours | Never arrived | Distance |
Not Applicable | € 250 | €250 | €250 | All flights under 1500 km |
Not Applicable | €400 | €400 | €400 | Internal EU flights over 1500 km |
Not Applicable | €400 | €400 | €400 | Non-EU flights between 1500-3000 km |
Not Applicable | €300 | €600 | €600 | Non-EU flights over 3500 km |
The USA doesn’t have any laws similar to EU flight delay compensation. Unlike EU flight delay compensation, the USA doesn’t make it compulsory for airlines to compensate in cash if it gets delayed or canceled due to controllable reasons.
But, it doesn’t mean that the USA doesn’t have any regulations to protect the rights of Air passengers. U.S. regulations focus on protecting passengers during tarmac delays. It has made provisions that make it essential for airlines to provide these facilities:
This blog may have made it clear how you can request compensation from the airline if your flight is delayed. If you still have any doubts, don’t hesitate to dial +1 855-510-4054. Keep in mind that EU flight delay compensation can benefit US citizen too, if you are flying from EU countries or on their carriers.
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