Flight delay compensation table
| Compensation for delay | ||
| Flight distance | How late arriving | Entitlement |
| Up to 1,500km (932 miles) | More than 3 hours | €250 |
| Any flight within the EU over 1,500km (932 miles) or any other flight between 1,500km-3,500 km (2,175 miles) | More than 3 hours | €400 |
| More than 3,500km (2,175 miles) | Between 3-4 hours | €300 |
| More than 3,500km (2,175 miles) | More than 4 hours | €600 |
Court ruling on compensation
This right to compensation is not set out specifically by the Denied Boarding Regulation, but was upheld by the European Court of Justice (ECJ) on 23 October 2012.
The 2012 ruling upheld an earlier ECJ decision of 19 November 2009 and stated that the Denied Boarding Regulation must be interpreted as giving passengers the right to compensation for delays of three or more hours.
Three British companies – British Airways, Easy-Jet and Tui Travel – had disputed the 2009 decision and claims from UK customers were put on hold, meaning airlines could not be compelled to pay compensation for delays.
Cases that were on hold should now be dealt with, and airlines should no longer argue they do not have to pay out if you claim for compensation after a flight delay of three or more hours.
However, they can still argue that they do not have to pay compensation as a result of extraordinary circumstances in the same way they can with cancelled flights.
In the first test case since the 2012 ECJ decision, in January 2013, Stoke-on-Trent county court ruled that Thomas Cook are required to pay compensation to passengers who, in 2009, had experienced a 22-hour delay caused by a mechanical fault.
November 2014 Update
A court ruling in June 2014 against airline Jet2 helped clarify the situation for extraordinary circumstances – with a consumer winning a case after a flight delay was caused by faulty wiring. The airline claimed this was an extraordinary circumstance.
Jet2 applied to appeal this ruling at the Supreme Court. However the appeal has been rejected.
Many airlines had been telling passengers, who made claims after technical issues delayed or cancelled their flight that a decision on paying compensation was on hold until this ruling.
The hold on these claims has now been lifted, potentially opening the floodgates for many more new claims.
Smartphone app for passenger rights
The European Commission has launched an app for passengers travelling in the EU.
For more information regarding this article or assistance in any other timeshare related issues please contact the TCA on 01908 881058 or email: info@TimeshareConsumerAssociation.org.uk