Your Air Passenger Rights Under UK261 & EU261

Have you experienced a flight disruption recently? Luckily, you have your air passenger rights to protect you. According to UK261 and EU261, you can claim compensation of up to £520. But how do you know if your flight is eligible? Read on to learn everything you need to know about your passenger rights.

Air Passenger Rights in the UK

Recent findings by the UK Civil Aviation Authority show that only 10% of passengers are aware of their rights. As a British citizen, your air passenger rights are protected by several aviation laws. So, the silver lighting if your flight from Heathrow flight was delayed is that you can claim compensation of up to £520.

EU Regulation 261/2004

Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council (EU261) establishes common rules and sets the minimum standards on financial compensation and assistance to passengers in the events of denied boarding, flight cancellations, long delay and downgrade.

It applies to the countries of the European Common Aviation Area (ECAA): the 27 Member States of the European Union, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Iceland, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro, Norway, Serbia, as well as Switzerland and the United Kingdom.

Under EU261, you might be entitled to financial compensation of up to £520 if you are flying, either from ECAA or to ECAA on board of an airline registered in ECAA and you experience one of the following flight disturbances:

• Flight delay longer than 3 hours at the time of arrival
• Flight cancellation less than 14 days before departure without a suitable alternative flight
• You're denied boarding due to reasons under the airline's control, such as overbooking
• Your alternative flight is downgraded to a lower travel class than the one on the original ticket

UK 261 Legislation

Following Brexit, the UK adopted its version of EU261, which has similar conditions. The main focus of Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 into domestic law through the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018, as amended by The Air Passenger Rights and Air Travel Organisers’ Licensing (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2018 (commonly referred to as UK261) is to protect passenger rights in case of flight disruptions caused by the airline. 

Under UK261, you might be entitled to compensation of up to £520 in case of delays, cancellations or denied boarding on flights which:

• Departed from a UK-based airport
• Landed at a UK-based airport on a carrier registered in the UK

The Montreal Convention

In case your disrupted flight isn't covered by EU261 or UK261, your passenger rights are still protected by the Montreal Convention. The Montreal Convention (MC99) establishes common rules for air carriers operating international flights. It protects the rights of passengers in cases of flight disruptions causing damage to the passengers, such as lost luggage.

Under MC99, you can claim compensation respecting 2 years from the scheduled arrival date of your disrupted flight. In case of delayed or lost luggage, you have 7 days to file a claim. If your belongings aren’t located within 21 days, you can claim compensation. Have a look at our article on the Montreal Convention to learn more about your rights on international flights. 

Your Air Passenger Rights Broken Down

Your air passenger rights are protected by the laws we outlined above. But what exactly do these laws cover? 

While there might be some specificities which might differ, both EU261 and UK261 protect air passengers in case their flights are delayed or cancelled, or the passengers are denied boarding on the aircraft. Below, you can find an overview of what flights are covered by the regulations:

One important distinction is that these protections only apply in cases where the disruption is the airline’s fault. This means that if your flight is delayed due to an airline strike or technical issues with the plane, you can claim compensation.

But if the disruption is due to extraordinary circumstances like bad weather or security reasons, the carrier isn’t obliged to pay compensation.

What are your rights when it comes to flight delays?

According to UK261 and EU261, air passengers have several rights in case of flight delays if the issue is within the airline's control to prevent. These include:

• Compensation of up to £520 in case of flight delays of over 3 hours at the time of arrival
• Additional care in the form of meals and refreshments from the airline in case of delays over 2 hours

In the case of delays of over 5 hours, you can claim a full refund of your ticket and refuse to continue your journey. The airline has to provide you with a new flight to your departure airport and refund you the money for all flights within the booking. 

The amount of your flight delay compensation depends on the distance of the flight and the amount of the delay you’ve experienced. Amounts vary between £220 and £520, with most flights to and from the UK being eligible for £350 in compensation. The table below breaks them down for you:

-3 hours	3+ hours	Distance	Example flight
	£220	Under 1,500 km	London → Paris (343 km)
	£350	1,500 – 3,500 km	Edinburgh → Berlin (1,730 km)
	£350	Over 3,500 km (in EU)	Lisbon → Stockholm (3,608 km)
	£520	Over 3,500 km (departing EU)	Frankfurt → New York (6,202 km)

When can you exercise your passenger rights?

You can claim flight delay compensation in case the following apply to your disrupted flight:

• Your flight departed from the EU or the UK
• Your flight arrived at your destination with over 3-hour delay
• The delay was caused by reasons within the airline’s control
• You checked in on time for your flight
• The delay occurred in the past 3 years

One important thing to keep in mind is that if the airline offers you vouchers and accept them, you won’t be able to claim additional compensation. We advise our clients not to accept them, as oftentimes airlines will offer vouchers at a lower cost than the ticket or for their flights. Don’t forget that if the above conditions are met, you’re eligible for compensation of up to £520. 

What are your rights in case of flight cancellations?

Similarly to delays, EU261 and UK261 protect your passenger rights in case of flight cancellations. You can claim up to £520 in compensation if the following apply to your cancelled flight:

• Your flight was cancelled by the airline less than 14 days before the departure date
• You weren’t provided with an alternative flight, or
• The new flight you were provided with wasn't a suitable alternative

With cancelled flights, you’re also entitled to a full refund of your ticket, and care while you wait, such as food, drinks, and accommodation if your new flight is scheduled for a later date. 

If the airline doesn't provide you with care during your wait, you can claim the money from them afterwards. All you need to do is keep the receipts and fill out how many additional costs you incurred when you’re submitting your claim. 

Aside from a full refund, you might also be entitled to additional compensation in the case of flight cancellations. Below, you can see a breakdown of how much you can claim: 

-3 hours	3+ hours	Distance	Example flight
	£220	Under 1,500 km	London → Paris (343 km)
	£350	1,500 – 3,500 km	Edinburgh → Berlin (1,730 km)
	£350	Over 3,500 km (in EU)	Lisbon → Stockholm (3,608 km)
	£520	Over 3,500 km (departing EU)	Frankfurt → New York (6,202 km)

One tip is to always submit your claim for cancellation compensation. Even if the airline has refunded your cancelled flight, you can still be eligible for additional financial compensation.

While compensation amounts are fixed, your compensation can be reduced by 50% in some cases. This is enacted in cases when the alternative flight you're provided with arrives within 2 hours (short flights), 3 hours (medium), and 4 hours (long-haul) from the original arrival time. 

You can also claim additional compensation in case you experience disruptions with your alternative flight:

• If you were notified 7–13 days before departure, your replacement flight can leave up to 2 hours earlier and arrive no more than 4 hours than your original
• If you were notified less than 7 days before, it can leave up to 1 hour earlier and arrive no more than 2 hours later than the original flight

When can you exercise your passenger rights?

If your flight is cancelled, you can claim compensation if the following conditions apply:

• Your flight departed from the EU or the UK
• You were notified about the cancellation within 14 days of departure
• The cancellation was caused by reasons within the airline’s control
• You checked in on time for your flight
• The cancellation happened within the last 6 years

Was your flight delayed or cancelled?

You can be owed up to £520 compensation.

Check your compensation

What are your rights if you were denied boarding?

UK261 and EU261 also provide protections in case of denied boarding. But you can only claim compensation if you were involuntarily denied boarding, like in cases of flight overbooking. In these cases, your passenger rights are:

• Option to choose between a full refund of your ticket or an alternative flight
• Right to care whilst you wait in the form of meals, drinks, and accommodation in case of an overnight stay

The most common cases of denied boarding are due to overbooking of the flight. Airlines often sell more tickets than seats on the plane, as they expect some passengers not to show. When this happens, airlines will first ask which passengers will voluntarily give up their seats. 

If this doesn’t provide enough passengers, the staff will choose at random enough people to free up space on the flight. This is when you can claim compensation for involuntarily denied boarding. 

Compensation amounts for denied boarding again depend on the flight distance:

Keep in mind that with denied boarding, you should be provided with compensation immediately at the airport. Your compensation remains the same even if you’re flying outside the EU. 

When can you exercise your passenger rights?

In case of involuntarily denied boarding due to overbooking or another reason within the airline’s control, you can exercise your air passenger rights if:

• Your flight departed from the EU or the UK
• You weren’t provided with an alternative flight which would depart within an hour of your original flight
• You didn’t give up your seat voluntarily
• You checked in on time for your flight

What are your rights in case of a missed connecting flight?

If you missed your connecting flight due to a delay, and the arrival time at your final destination exceeds the scheduled arrival time of the flight originally booked by more than 3 hours, you are entitled to compensation.

Once again, your compensation for a missed connection depends on the distance of the flight.

But to be eligible for compensation, your flights need to be under the same booking reference. Provided you have separate flight tickets with different operating air carriers, you would not be able to claim compensation.

The easiest way to check if that’s the case is to look up your booking reservation and see if you’ve booked it under the same reference number. You can do that either through the confirmation email or on the airline’s website. 

What are your rights in case of a downgrade? 

If you are downgraded (put in a lower class than what you originally booked), you are entitled to reimbursement of a percentage of the price of your ticket, depending on the flight distance as follows:

1. 30% – flights of 1,500 km or less;
2. 50% – flights within ECAA of more than 1,500 km (except flights between ECAA and French overseas departments), and all other flights between 1,500 and 3,500 km;
3. 75% – flights not falling under 1 or 2, including flights between ECAA and French overseas departments.

You can claim reimbursement only for the flight which was downgraded (not for the entire journey, in case you had connecting flights).

How can SkyRefund help? 

Experiencing a flight disruption can be very stressful, which is why we’re here to make it easier for you. With more than 8 years of claiming compensation for passengers around the world, SkyRefund’s team is experienced in fighting for passenger rights.

In the UK, some of our successful stories include helping a couple whose flight from London to Paris was cancelled within 1 week of departure. Our legal experts were able to obtain the full amount of compensation for the passengers who used it to travel to Rome for their second honeymoon. 

In Germany, another one of our clients had missed their connecting flight due to a delay in the first leg of their journey. The airline had denied that there was a causal connection. But SkyRefund was able to argue that in court, and we won, getting the full amount of the compensation owed to the passengers.

Your flight disruption can also be a successful story. All you have to do is submit a compensation claim with SkyRefund and our team will take care of the rest. And best of all, we work on a “No win, No fee” basis, so we only get paid if you succeed in claiming your compensation. 

Refer to our article on the decision of the EU Parliament containing the latest developments concerning Regulation EC261/2004 and how that might affect your air passenger rights.