Air passenger rights

When your flight is disrupted, European law gives you three separate rights: to be looked after, to a refund or re-routing, and — in many cases — to compensation. Here is what each means.

Based on Regulation (EC) 261/2004

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The three rights you always have

Regulation (EC) 261/2004 gives every covered passenger a set of rights that apply when a flight is delayed, cancelled or overbooked. They stack together: you can be entitled to care, to a refund or re-routing, and to compensation for the same flight. EU261 covers flights departing the EU on any airline, and flights arriving in the EU on an EU airline (with UK261 mirroring it for the UK).

1. The right to care

Once your wait passes a threshold (from two hours on short flights), the airline must provide, free of charge: meals and refreshments in reasonable relation to the wait, two phone calls or messages, and hotel accommodation and transport if you have to stay overnight. This applies even when the disruption was extraordinary — bad weather never removes the right to care. Keep receipts if you have to pay yourself.

2. The right to a refund or re-routing

If your flight is cancelled — or delayed by five hours or more and you choose not to travel — you can pick either a full refund of the unused ticket within seven days, or re-routing to your destination at the earliest opportunity or a later date that suits you. The choice is yours, not the airline's. See the flight refund guide for detail.

3. The right to compensation

On top of care and any refund, you may be owed fixed compensation of €250–€600 for a delay of 3+ hours, a cancellation with under 14 days' notice, or denied boarding — unless the cause was extraordinary. This is the money most people mean by a "flight compensation claim". Read the full rules in the flight compensation guide, or run your case through the calculator.

Denied boarding and overbooking

Airlines sometimes sell more seats than the aircraft has. If you are refused boarding against your will despite a valid ticket and on-time check-in, you get the full compensation immediately, plus a refund or re-routing. Airlines must first ask for volunteers — and volunteers negotiate their own benefits rather than the statutory amount.

If you are downgraded

If you are placed in a lower class than you booked, the airline must reimburse a percentage of the ticket price for the leg concerned: 30% for short flights, 50% for medium, and 75% for long-haul. This is separate from delay or cancellation compensation.

Passengers with reduced mobility

Passengers with disabilities or reduced mobility have additional protections, including free assistance through the airport and on board. In a disruption, they and their companions must be given priority for care and re-routing.

Your right to information

At the airport, the airline must display a notice telling passengers where to request their rights, and hand delayed or bumped passengers a written note explaining the compensation and assistance rules. If they did not tell you, that does not reduce what you are owed.

Enforcing your rights

Claim from the airline first, in writing. If it refuses without a valid reason, escalate to the national enforcement body in the relevant country, or to the courts. See how to claim for a step-by-step walkthrough — or let us handle it on a no-win, no-fee basis.