How to claim flight compensation yourself

Check what you are owed

Compensation under the UK rules depends on two things: how far the flight was going, and how late you arrived. Not how late you left.

• £220 for shorter flights, up to 1,500 km
• £350 for medium flights, 1,500 to 3,500 km
• £520 for longer flights over 3,500 km

The threshold is three hours late at your destination. On the longest flights a delay between three and four hours pays half. Our estimator works it out from the flight without an account, and the guide to flight compensation covers the eligibility rules properly.

What to gather

Four things, and you probably have all of them already.

1. The booking reference and the flight number
2. The scheduled arrival time and the time you actually arrived
3. Boarding passes if you kept them, or the booking email
4. Anything the airline told you at the time about why, including a text or an announcement you noted down

That last one matters more than it looks. Airlines sometimes give a reason at the airport and a different reason months later, once a compensation claim is attached to it.

What to send

Use the airline's own claim form if it has one, because it routes to the right team. If it does not, write to customer relations. Keep it short and factual, and say plainly what you want.

State the flight number and date, the scheduled and actual arrival times, the length of the delay, and the amount you are claiming. Say that you are claiming under the UK air passenger rights rules. Do not argue the case in advance, and do not pad it. You are establishing four facts, not writing a letter of complaint.

Our complaint letter guide has the structure if you want it, though for this one the airline form is usually enough.

When they refuse

This is the step that decides whether you get paid, and it is the step that claims companies are really selling. Most refusals cite an extraordinary circumstance, which is the legal term for something outside the airline's control.

If you think that is wrong, say so once, in writing, and ask for the specific reason for the delay along with any evidence for it. Then escalate. Airlines belong to an independent adjudicator, and where an airline is not signed up to one, the aviation regulator's own passenger complaints team will look at it.

Escalation is free, and it is the point at which a fair number of refusals are reversed. It is also the point most people never reach, which is precisely why paying somebody a third of the money can still beat abandoning it.

The last step

If the adjudicator route does not resolve it, the remaining option is the small claims track, which is designed to be used without a solicitor. It carries a fee and it takes time.

Be honest with yourself here. If you know you will not go this far, a no win no fee company that takes a share is worth more than a claim you drop. That calculation is set out on the fees page.

How long you have

Six years in England and Wales, five in Scotland, counted from the flight. That is far longer than most people assume and it means an old delay is often still claimable.

One catch at the end of it. The aviation regulator will not take on a complaint when less than a year of that window remains, so leaving it to the last minute closes the free escalation route while the court route is still technically open.