Flight Delay Compensation- Passenger Rights Under EU Regulations

Imagine that you are travelling from New York to London to celebrate Christmas with your family after long years, and as you reach the airport and complete all security check in formalities, you come to know that your flight is delayed. This means that everything you planned for so long to do in this Christmas are about to go in vain because of the flight delay. Most travelers don't bother to claim compensation for flight delays as they don't want to get involved in a long, tiring conversation with the airline authorities, who are barely interested to give you flight delay compensation.

Flight delays are not very uncommon to experience, and thus it is always better know your rights as an air passenger. Different regulations apply to different airlines and also from which country the airline belong or their departure and arrival city. Passengers travelling on airlines based in EU or a non-EU airline departing from an EU airport are protected by Denied Boarding Regulation. However, this regulation doesn't apply to non-EU airlines or flight departing from a non-EU airport and arriving at a non-EU airport. Further, the Regulation applies, if:

• The passenger has a confirmed booking
• The passenger has checked in on time; in case no check in time is mentioned, the passenger should check in at least 45 minutes prior the scheduled departure time
• The passenger is flying from an EU airport, or from a non-EU airport and flying into an EU airport on a community carrier (NB: a community carrier is an airline with its headquarters and main places of operation within the EU. The community airline includes all European discount and no-frill airlines).

The amount and type of Compensation for delayed flights depends on two factors - the length of the delay and the length of flight.

Flight Distance Delayed by Approximate Compensation Amount Up to 1500 Kilometer (932 miles) More than 3 hours E 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 E 400 More than 3,500km (2,175 miles) Between 3-4 hours E 300 More than 3,500km (2,175 miles) More than 4 hours E 600

While the EU regulations has clearly mentioned about the flight delay compensation, there are some circumstances where the airline carrier is not bound to offer any compensation even if the flight is delayed for more than 4 hours. The exceptions include:

• Bird strikes are considered extraordinary circumstances, in case of both mid-flight or at the airport before take off
• Strikes by the ground crew or air traffic control is generally treated under extraordinary circumstance except the strike was announced well in advance and the airlines could have taken measures to prevent flight delays
• Adverse weather condition like snow, lightning, heavy fog, strong wind etc. that may hinder flight operation or may be fatal for the safety and security of the passengers and the crew members are considered to be extraordinary circumstances
• Technical errors occurred mid-flight or before the take-off. However, if such a problem occurs due to the negligence of the airline operators or management, it won't be considered under extraordinary circumstances
• Due to air traffic control restrictions
• If a passenger or crew member falls ill right before the flight takes-off.

Though in case of extraordinary circumstances the airline is not obliged to give any monetary compensation to the passenger, it must provide some basic facilities to the passengers depending on their hours of delay and distance of journey. Other than delay, there are other circumstances like overbooking where the passenger is entitled to flight compensation. However, the rules for compensation on flight overbooking are different.

Albert Rolland works for TripMole.He has authered many articles about air passengers rights. He has good knowledge about Compensation for flight delay, Refund for unused flight tickets etc.

You can claim for your delayed flight. Check to see if you’re entitled to compensation-