Flight delayed or cancelled this half-term? How to claim up to £520 each under UK261

What's happened

Thousands of families fly over October half-term. After last month's air traffic control failure, it's worth knowing exactly what you can claim if your flight is late or cancelled, and when you can't.

On Tuesday 8 September, a technical problem with the flight planning system at NATS, the UK's air traffic control provider, led to hundreds of UK flights being delayed or cancelled. The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) said the next day that this was likely to count as "extraordinary circumstances", so passengers were unlikely to get compensation, but airlines still had to look after them with meals, refreshments and hotels.

That distinction matters: compensation depends on the cause, but care and your choice of refund or rerouting apply whatever went wrong.

What the law says

The rules are in the UK's version of Regulation (EC) No 261/2004, kept in UK law after Brexit and usually called UK261. The CAA says it covers flights departing the UK, and flights arriving in the UK on a UK or EU airline.

• Delays of three hours or more. The CAA says you may be entitled to compensation if you "arrive more than three hours late at your destination airport". It's paid per passenger.
• How much (Article 7). £220 for flights of 1,500km or less, £350 for flights of 1,500km to 3,500km, and £520 for longer flights. For the longest flights, the CAA says it's £260 if you arrive three to four hours late, and £520 if you're more than four hours late.
• Cancellations (Article 5). You can choose a refund for the unused parts of your ticket or an alternative flight. If you were told less than 14 days before departure, you may also be owed compensation, unless the airline offered a replacement flight close enough to your original times. With 7 to 14 days' notice, that means leaving no more than two hours early and arriving less than four hours late. With under seven days' notice, it means leaving no more than one hour early and arriving less than two hours late.
• Care. If your departure is delayed by at least two hours (flights under 1,500km), three hours (1,500km to 3,500km) or four hours (longer flights), the airline must provide food and drink, two phone calls or emails, and a hotel plus transport if you're stuck overnight. If it doesn't, buy reasonable care yourself and claim it back.
• Five hours or more. You can choose not to fly and get a refund for the unused flights.

Under Article 5(3), an airline doesn't have to pay compensation if it can prove the problem was caused by extraordinary circumstances that couldn't have been avoided even if it had taken all reasonable measures. Which? lists severe weather, security risks, air traffic control restrictions and strikes by non-airline staff, such as airport baggage handlers. Staff shortages and strikes by the airline's own staff are not usually covered, and a technical fault is not normally an extraordinary circumstance, following the Van der Lans v KLM ruling.

What it means in pounds: a worked example

This is an illustration, not a real case.

A family of four is booked from Manchester to Tenerife for half-term. That's roughly 3,000km, so the £350 band applies. A technical fault with the aircraft holds the flight on the ground for nearly four hours, and the family lands 3 hours 45 minutes late.

• Compensation: 4 x £350 = £1,400, because the delay at arrival is more than three hours and a technical fault isn't usually an extraordinary circumstance.
• Care: the delay passed three hours, so the airline should have provided food and drink. If it didn't and the family spent £48 on a meal at the airport, they can claim that back too, with receipts.

If the same delay had been caused by an air traffic control failure like the one in September, the family would most likely get £0 in compensation. They would still be entitled to the meals, and to claim back reasonable costs if the airline didn't provide them.

What to do now

1. Note the arrival time. Compensation depends on when you reach your destination, not when you take off.
2. Ask the airline why. Note what staff say caused it, and screenshot any messages.
3. Keep every receipt. Citizens Advice says airlines only pay "reasonable" expenses, so don't go overboard.
4. Claim from the airline that operated the flight. Use its claim form, or email so you have a record. Citizens Advice says to contact the operating airline, not just the booking agent.
5. Escalate if you're turned down. If the airline belongs to an alternative dispute resolution scheme (AviationADR or CEDR), you can go to the scheme free of charge if you've had no reply within eight weeks, or within 12 months of the airline's final response. If it isn't in a scheme, the CAA's Passenger Advice and Complaints Team may be able to help. You can also go to the small claims court.

Your questions answered

How long do I have to claim?

Which? says you have up to six years to make a claim for a flight in or out of a UK airport. In Scotland the time limit is shorter, so claim as soon as you can.

What if I fly home on a non-UK, non-EU airline?

The CAA says the rules cover flights leaving the UK, and flights arriving in the UK on UK or EU airlines. A non-UK, non-EU airline flying into the UK isn't covered by UK261, so you'd rely on its conditions of carriage.

Are the rules about to change?

Not the compensation amounts. The government announced plans on 1 October to make airlines seat children under 14 with a parent for free, but those depend on the Civil Aviation Bill becoming law, and no start date has been set.

Sources: Regulation 261/2004, Article 5, Article 7, CAA: delays, CAA: cancellations, CAA: alternative dispute resolution, CAA statement on the NATS disruption, Which?: flight delay compensation, Citizens Advice: delayed or cancelled flights, Department for Transport