Air passenger rights
EU air passenger rights apply:
- If your flight is within the EU and is operated either by an EU or a non-EU airline
- If your flight arrives in the EU from outside the EU and is operated by an EU airline
- If your flight departs from the EU to a non-EU country operated by an EU or a non-EU airline
- If you have not already received benefits (compensation, re-routing, assistance from the airline) for flight related problems for this journey under the relevant law of a non-EU country.
Travelling from the UK to an EU country
From 1 January 2021, EU rules on air passenger rights do not apply to cases of denied boarding, cancellations or delays to flights from the UK to the EU if your flight was operated by a UK carrier or another non-EU carrier, even if you booked your flight before this date. However, EU rules continue to apply from 1 January 2021 if your flight from the UK to the EU was operated by an EU carrier, unless you have already received compensation or benefits under UK law.
EU means the 27 EU countries, including Guadeloupe, French Guiana, Martinique, Réunion Island, Mayotte, Saint-Martin (French Antilles), the Azores, Madeira and the Canary Islands (but not the Faeroe Islands). EU rules also apply to flights to and from Iceland, Norway and Switzerland.
Warning
The outbound and return flights are always considered as two separate flights even if they were booked as part of one reservation. In some cases the airline operating the flight (also known as the operating air carrier) may not be the same as the one from which you bought your ticket. In case of any difficulties only the airline which operates the flight can be held responsible. In cases where an airline hires (under a wet lease) an aircraft including crew from another airline, the airline which hires the aircraft has operational responsibility for the flight and is regarded as the operating airline under EU rules (specifically Regulation 261/2004).
What went wrong?
- Your flight was cancelled
- Your flight was delayed
- You were denied boarding
- Your flight was overbooked
- Your flight was upgraded or downgraded
- You missed your connecting flight
- Your luggage was lost, damaged or delayed
How to claim your rights?
Denied boarding
You may be denied boarding by the airline:
- For safety, security or health reasons (for example if you did not inform the airline in advance of any severe infectious diseases or allergies) or if you don't have the correct travel documents (more information on documents you need for travel in Europe)
- If you didn't take the outbound flight of a reservation which included a return flight
- If you didn't take the other flight(s) included in a reservation with consecutive flights
- If you don't have the relevant documentation for your pet when it is travelling with you
If you have presented yourself on time for check-in with a valid flight reservation and travel documentation and you're denied boarding by the airline due to overbooking or for operational reasons, and you don't voluntarily give up your seat, you are entitled to:
- compensation
- the right to choose between reimbursement, re-routing or rebooking at a later stage and
- assistance
Warning
A printed or electronic notice informing you of your EU air passenger rights must be clearly displayed at the airport check-in desk, at check-in kiosks and on-line. If you were denied boarding, your flight was cancelled, you experienced a delay of more than 2 hours at departure or you arrive with a long delay at your final destination, the airline must give you a written notice setting out the rules for compensation and assistance.
Cancelled flight
Cancellation occurs when:
- your original flight schedule is abandoned and you are transferred to another scheduled flight
- the aircraft took off but, was forced to return to the airport of departure and you were transferred to another flight
-
your flight arrives at an airport which is not the final destination indicated on
your ticket, unless:
- You accepted re-routing (under comparable transport conditions at the earliest opportunity) to the airport of your original final destination or to any other destination agreed by you. In this case it is considered as a delay and not a cancellation.
- The airport of arrival and the airport of the original final destination serve the same town, city or region. In this case it is considered as a delay and not a cancellation.
If your flight is cancelled you have the right to choose between reimbursement, re-routing or return.
You are also entitled to assistance at the airport.
If you were informed of the cancellation less than 14 days prior to the scheduled departure date, you have a right to compensation. The airline has the obligation to prove if and when you were personally informed that the flight was cancelled. If this is not the case you can contact your national authority for further assistance.
However, compensation is not due if the carrier can prove that the cancellation is caused by extraordinary circumstances which could not have been avoided even if all reasonable measures had been taken. The airline has to prove this by providing, for example, extracts from logbooks or incident reports. The air carrier should give this evidence to the relevant national enforcement body as well as to the passengers concerned in line with national provisions on access to documents.
Warning
A printed or electronic notice informing you of your EU air passenger rights must be clearly displayed at the airport check-in desk, at check-in kiosks and on-line. If you were denied boarding, your flight was cancelled, you experienced a delay of more than 2 hours at departure or you arrive with a long delay at your final destination, the airline must give you a written notice setting out the rules for compensation and assistance.