Is your flight delayed? Here is what you are entitled to

England UK’s legislation allows you, in certain situations, to claim for compensation if your flight has been delayed or cancelled if you arrive or depart from the UK, regardless of the airline. If this is not the case, you should check with the airline to ask about their policy.

Delayed flights compensation: What should the airline provide for delays

Once the delay is long enough depending on the flight distance, the company should provide with:

• Food and beverages
• Communication (phone calls and/or emails)
• If the flight was supposed to happen overnight and it's delayed, accommodation and journeys between the airport and the hotel should be covered
  
  

Flight distance	How long the delay has to be
Less than 1,500km	2 hours
Between 1,500km and 3,500km	3 hours
More than 3,500km	4 hours

Sometimes the airline provides vouchers to cover these and other things instead of money. Always ask an employee in case nobody offers any kind of assistance. If assistance is not offered or recognized, you should keep the receipts and try to claim them to the airline afterwards. Also, keep in mind that they will cover reasonable expenses and will not cover expensive meals, hotels or gifts.

Delays for 3 or more hours

England legislation entitles you for compensation if the delay is for 3 hours or more and it is the airline's fault such as overbooking or technical issues, but not for weather conditions for example. These same conditions apply if the UK is a connection in your journey.

                          

Delay to your arrival	Flight distance	Compensation
3 hours or more	Less than 1,500km	£220
3 hours or more	Between 1,500km and 3,500km	£350
4 hours or more	More than 3,500km	£520

Delays for 5 or more hours

If the delay is for 5 hours or more you are not obliged to take the flight and the airline legally has to give you a full refund for the current flight, and any other flight of the airline that you won´t use in the same booking, plus a flight back to the airport where you originally departed from. If you do take the flight you can claim up to £520 in compensation, depending on the flight´s distance and how late it arrived.  This refund should be within 7 days of the day of the flight.