Has your flight been cancelled?

When is my flight officially cancelled?

A flight is officially cancelled when it has not been operated as given on the ticket. If you have booked a ticket to London-Heathrow Airport and you finally land in Manchester, this will also be considered a cancellation. As long as you don't arrive at your final destination given on your boarding pass, your flight is cancelled. Even if your flight returns, for example, due to a technical shortcoming shortly after takeoff, your flight is cancelled as well. After all, you have not arrived at your final destination.

When am I entitled to compensation with a cancelled flight?

In case of cancelled flights, the airline must at least arrange a new flight for you. Furthermore, the airline is obliged to provide a transportation under similar circumstances to your destination. If you arrive at your new flight 3 hours later than the scheduled time of your cancelled flight, you are entitled to a fee! If you arrive at your final destination with a delay of 3 hours or more (compared to the scheduled arrival time of your cancelled flight) you are entitled to a compensation. For short flights up to 1,500km within the EU, a delay of 2 hours is already enough to have a right to reimbursement. The final duration of the delay is determined by the difference between the actual arrival time and the scheduled arrival time of your cancelled flight. The actual arrival time or gate time is defined as the moment in which the door of the airplane opens at the gate.

Legislation

The European Regulation 261/2004 stipulates that air passengers are entitled to financial compensation when their flight has been cancelled. For cancelled flights, there are several conditions that your flight must comply to qualify for reimbursement.

These are as follows:

• You have a confirmed booking for the cancelled flight of a European airline or your flight is operated by a non-European airline that departed from the European Union
• For flights more than 1,500km the actual arrival time is at least 3 hours later than the scheduled arrival time of the cancelled flight
• For short flights up to 1,500km 2 hours delay is enough to have right on financial reimbursement
• There are no extraordinary circumstances that caused the cancellation, such as strikes, extreme weather conditions etc.

Does your cancelled flight comply with the above conditions? The final compensation amount mainly depends on the flight distance and the delay of arrival with a replacement flight compared to the scheduled arrival time of your cancelled flight. The amounts are as follows:

• €250.00 for short-distance flights up to 1,500km with a delay of more than 2 hours
• €400.00 for flights more than 1,500km within the EU with a delay of more than 3 hours
• €400.00 for flights between 1,500 and 3,500km with a delay of more than 3 hours
• €300.00 for long-distance flights over 3,500km with a delay of more than 3 hours
• €600.00 for long-distance flights over 3,500km with a delay of more than 4 hours

Airlines have to face significant payments to passengers since the EU Regulation was passed in 2004. This not only applies to cancellations but also for delays and denied boardings. Therefore airlines are highly interested in avoiding compensations and act in a deceptive manner when air passengers apply for reimbursement. Often times, claims are rejected on the basis of extraordinary circumstances. However, this is not always true. As we handle a lot of claims on a daily basis we are stronger than individuals. In addition, airlines know that we will initiate legal actions if they do not grant your compensation. As a result, you often get more compensation and do not have to worry about the whole procedure.

Check your flight within minutes and see if you are entitled to compensation now