Compensation
Rights for air passengers
Remember the Volcanic Ash Cloud chaos in April 2010 - and May 2011 - when flights were grounded across Europe? At Cheapflights.co.uk, we received hundreds of emails from readers who had trouble receiving compensation from their airlines - for meals, hotel stays etc. Here's a rundown of what you can expect by way of compensation (Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 to be precise) should your journey be affected:
Denied boarding?
Airlines overbook. They do this knowing that not all passengers due to fly will turn up on the day. If this happens to you, EU regulations state that the airline should ask passengers to voluntarily give up their seat in exchange for cash or vouchers. And they should also offer volunteers the choice between a refund and re-routing. A passenger may also be entitled to compensation of between €250 and €600 (between £208 and £500) depending on the distance of the flight and the delays experienced before being re-routed. If a passenger chooses to be re-routed, the airline should also offer, if necessary, food, access to a telephone, hotel accommodation and transport between the airport and the hotel.
Flight cancelled?
The rates of compensation are the same if your flight is cancelled. There's a get-out clause for the airlines here however. If the cancellation is caused by an extraordinary event, a volcanic eruption for example, carriers may not have to pay.
If your flight is cancelled, the airline should offer either reimbursement of your ticket or routing to your final destination under similar conditions. It should also help with phone calls, food, accommodation and transport between the hotel and the airport.
Long delays?
You should receive "care" (refreshments, etc) from the airline if the delay is two hours or more for flights of 1,500km or less (that'd be London-Dublin for example), three hours or more for longer flights within the EU or for other flights of between 1,500 and 3,500km (London-Bucharest); or four hours or more for flights of over 3,500km. If the delay is more than five hours, and you decide to return home to the UK, you are entitled to be flown back to your departure airport and have your ticket reimbursed.
If you're still waiting for your flight to take off after five hours' delay, you can either decide not to travel and therefore receive a refund for that flight and for any other flights on that ticket. In that case, you are not entitled to anything else, hotel or transfer costs etc.
If you've made part of your journey (ie, you've travelled from Birmingham to Brussels and you're delayed at Brussels, waiting for your flight to Brindisi to take off) and don't wish to continue, you are entitled to reimbursement of the total cost of the ticket and a free flight back to your first point of departure (Birmingham in this case).
If you get to your final destination with a delay of three hours or more, you may be entitled to the same amount of compensation to that offered when your flight gets cancelled, unless the airline can prove that the delay was caused by extraordinary circumstances.
Keep calm and keep everything
If you are stranded at an airport and your airline is not providing assistance, be frugal and keep all receipts. You have the right to claim a refund on meals and hotels when you get back to the UK.
Updated February 2012