Cancellation of flights

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If your flight is cancelled you are entitled (under EC Regulation 261/2004) to the following (These rights only apply to those passengers flying from an EU airport or from an airport outside the EU to an EU airport on an EU carrier);

Refund or re-routing – you will be given a choice between a refund of the ticket or of re-routing to your final destination. You are not entitled (under EC Regulation 261/2004) to reimbursement of any other components of your trip such as hotel and transfer costs.

Compensation – If there is a delay in getting to your destination due to re-routing, compensation is owed at the following levels:

Length Of Journey	Delay To Destination	Compensation
Up to 1500km	Up to 2 hours	€125
Up to 1500km	More than 2 hours	€250
1500km to 3500km	Up to 3 hours	€200
1500km to 3500km	more than 3 hours	€400
More than 3500km	Up to 4 hours	€300
More than 3500km	More than 4 hours	€600

The airline is not obliged to pay compensation if it can prove that the cancellation was caused by "extraordinary circumstances, which could not have been avoided even if all reasonable measures had been taken". Such extraordinary circumstances might occur "in cases of political instability, meteorological conditions incompatible with the operation of the flight concerned, security risks, unexpected flight safety shortcomings and strikes that affect the operation of an operating air carrier".

Assistance at the airport - Free meals and refreshments as well as two free phone calls/emails/faxes should also be provided when waiting for the re-routed flights. In the event of re-routing when the flight is the next day free accommodation and transfer to and from that accommodation should be provided by the airline.

If you are in a dispute with an Airline we would always recommend contacting them first with details of your problem, to allow them the opportunity to resolve the situation. In order to help you the European Commission has created an EU Complaint Form for Air Passengers, we would recommend completing this form and sending it to the airline.

If you do not receive a reply, or a positive response, please feel free to contact us with a copy of the completed EU Complaint Form for Air Passengers, having this completed form will allow us to deal with your complaint more effectively.

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