Your guide to air passenger rights and compensation

We think it's important to claim the air passenger rights compensation you are legally entitled to.

For you: You get real money that recognizes the hassle of a disruption and helps cover your costs.

For everyone: Compensation holds airlines accountable and gives them a financial incentive to avoid unnecessary disruptions.

One thing that many regulations have in common is that airlines aren't required to compensate for extraordinary circumstances or force majeure.

In plain language that means you probably can't get compensation when your flight is affected by severe weather or natural disasters. But airlines still have to take care of you and minimise disruptions.

Stuck overnight? Many international regulations require airlines to cover your hotel, meals, and transportation.

Many air passenger rights include rules about providing food and drink during a long delay (roughly 2 - 3 hours).

Strong user rights with airlines give you the choice: get rerouted on the next available flight or take a full refund and make other plans.

If your checked-in bags are lost, damaged, or delayed, check your rights for what you're owed. Even in the USA passenger regulations protect your luggage.

Most regulations include clauses to ensure airlines keep you informed about delays, cancellations, and your options.

Air travel should be accessible to all, and almost all countries have laws which ensure passengers with disabilities, families, older passengers, and others can get support if they require it.

Learn more about rights for passengers with additional needs.

Some countries have stricter limits on how long you can be stuck on a plane when there's a disruption.

These rules also cover things like access to toilets, water, and air conditioning while you're on the plane.

Some air passenger rights even put limits on unfair charges and surprise fees.

For example in Canada airlines cannot charge a fee to sit children under 14 next to their parent or guardian.

If the airline that you flew with has gone bankrupt or otherwise no longer exists, you are not likely to receive your compensation even if you do submit a claim. Passengers usually are last in a long list of creditors that airlines will have to pay after going under. However, if your flight was operated by another airline, it is possible to claim compensation with them instead.

Airlines will offer to reschedule your flight if there has been a delay or disruption of some sort, for example, due to changing travel restrictions. Airline passenger rights for delayed flights ensure that carriers will usually offer you a new flight schedule, or in some cases, offer an entirely new replacement flight.

If your disrupted flight meets the necessary criteria — then yes. For codeshare flights, the airline who is operating your flight at the time of cancellation or delay is the one responsible for paying compensation. It’s possible to claim compensation if the connecting flights are part of a single reservation departing from the EU, or is an EU airline, and only if the disruption qualifies.

Yes. If your flight is delayed or canceled and meets the necessary criteria, you can claim for compensation from the airline. It is the airline’s responsibility to compensate their passengers, so the laws apply even if the flight ticket was part of a package holiday. The easiest way to check if your flight is eligible is to use our Compensation Check. You can also contact the airline.

Yes, if it meets the necessary criteria. You can claim compensation for any flight delayed by 3 hours or more, or if your flight was canceled less than 14 days before departure, and if your airline was considered at fault.

You can claim unexpected expenses up to 2 years after a flight delay or cancellation if the costs incurred were a direct result of the disruption. This covers the costs of essentials that became necessary due to the disruption, as well as missed costs. For example:

• Food and drinks

• Hotel bookings

• Transport tickets

If you are an AirHelp+ member, we offer assistance in reimbursing unexpected expenses.

The airline is always responsible for providing with you care in case of lengthy delay or cancellation. They must provide you with food and lodging, transport to and from the airport, and access to communication.

If you were flying in the EU, under flight regulation EC 261, you can get up to €600 (~$650) in compensation for a delayed or canceled flight where the airline is at fault.

If you had to book a hotel due to a flight delay, you can also reclaim these costs from the airline, so long as you have your receipt. For AirHelp+ members, we also offer assistance with reimbursing these necessary expenses.

Under EC 261, if your flight was canceled and the replacement flight downgrades your seats (e.g. business class to economy class), you can get reimbursed between 30% – 75% of the ticket price you originally paid. On the other hand, if you were upgraded, the airline cannot charge you any additional costs. Read more here.

You can protect any future flights by purchasing travel insurance.

In addition to travel insurance, if you are worried about compensation, lost luggage, and refunds for unexpected expenses, you can also become an AirHelp+ member. AirHelp+ provides support on a range of flight issues, with access to a dedicated live chat that can give you real-time advice before, during, and after a flight disruption.

Flight distance is just one of the factors that can affect compensation. We'd suggest using our Compensation Check tool, which can calculate the compensation you're entitled to under various air passenger rights including Europe's EC 261 and Brazilian laws.

It depends on your dispute. If you are having dispute regarding compensation, you can always try to pursue your case yourself, or start a claim with AirHelp. When an airline wrongfully rejects your claim for compensation, we can check with our independent data systems to confirm if your flight is eligible. In some cases, we may hand over the claim to our legal experts, who will look at what actions can be taken to get the airline to pay.

For US domestic flights you can also file a consumer complaint with the DOT - Department of Transportation.

If the airline is at fault for the flight delay or cancellation, you can receive up to €600 (~$650) in compensation from the airline. The airline must also provide you with accommodation and transportation to and from the airport if necessary. If you’ve had to book a hotel yourself due to the disruption, then you can also ask the airline to reimburse you for reasonable costs — so save your receipts.

For AirHelp+ members, we also offer assistance in reimbursing these reasonable lost expenses.

Your right to claim compensation under EC 261 does eventually expire, so it’s important to know the Statute of Limitations. This varies from one country to the next, some only give you a few months to file a claim, others up to 10 years. Which time limit applies is determined by where the headquarters of the airline is and where the flight was travelling. You can read the full list here.

If an airline refuses to pay your compensation, the next step is to take them to court. Thankfully, if you claim with AirHelp, we handle all the legal procedures for you. We operate on a no win, no fee policy, which means that you only pay if we manage to successfully get you your compensation.