Many of us let airline companies get away with a lot. Extra hidden fees, understaffed, poor food and delays are some of the biggest issues surrounding flying. In some sense, you get what you pay for and budget airlines are as much a blessing as they are a curse. One thing you did pay for though, no matter how cheap the ticket is, was to arrive at the destination at a given time. It’s surprising how often they fail at this and it goes unpunished. There are many ways to get the most out of your flight, but here is a rundown on what to do when your flight is delayed.
Can I get compensation for my flight?
Perhaps the most important question of all is, can get some money in compensation for being late? The EU Passenger Rights Regulation is designed to protect the customer in the instance of a delayed flight.
Flightright is a website which will actually file a complaint regarding your flight cancellation for you and fight your corner in return for a small cut of the compensation. No win, no fee tends to be a popular option because often our own emails – from the little guy – to them tend to get lost against these big companies.
If you do fancy taking them on yourselves, here is a run-down on what you might be entitled to given some of the EU’s requirements:
Your delayed or cancelled flight can be compensated even if it was up to 6 years ago
The compensation amount, per person, is between €250 and €600
You may even be entitled to compensation if the airline told you the flight would be cancelled up to 14 days prior to scheduled departure
The airline must be responsible for the cancellation
Extraordinary circumstances exempt airlines from paying compensation. These include different causes of the cancellations, such as:
- Bad weather
- A strike
- Technical fault
- Political instability
- Unavoidable security risks
How delayed is ‘delayed’?
If the delay is from departure, compensation may depend on the duration of the delay and distance of the flight. If you arrived at your destination more than three hours late, you are entitled to compensation providing the delay wasn’t because of the extraordinary circumstances.
For delays, you are also entitled to some free complimentary goods and services outside of the compensation discussed above. Unlike cancellations, you are entitled to these regardless of the cause of delay. There are no extraordinary circumstances in which airlines are exempt from compensating you on the following:
Short distance flights (<1500km)
When delayed over two hours, the airline must provide free drinks, free food and 2 phone calls/emails/faxes.
Medium distance flights (1500km to 3500km)
When delayed over three hours, the airline must provide free drinks, free food and 2 phone calls/emails/faxes.
Long distance flights (>3500km)
When delayed over four hours, the airline must provide free drinks, free food and 2 phone calls/emails/faxes.
What to do when it’s delayed?
Here are a few measures to take to ensure you cover yourself upon the event of a cancellation.
- If you have waited more than 2 hours, ask for complimentary food/drink
- Always check into the flight on time to ensure you’re covered for compensation
- Take a log of what you’re being told by staff (causes of delay) and when they tell you
Most importantly, log how long the delay is and what time you arrived at your destination