Latest News
HomeColumnsFeatured ArticlesFlight delay compensation – How i discovered my rights
Featured articles

Flight delay compensation – How i discovered my rights

Get the compensation for your flight delay

Steps you should follow to protect your rights and get the flight delay compensation

I can tell you for a fact that flight delay is the most dreaded experience, especially if you fly around the world a lot for business, like me, or for any other reason. Have you ever had more than three hours of flight delays? I have, and I can tell you it is a pretty bad experience.

However, I have since discovered that passengers are entitled to flight delay compensation. If you are like me, before I discovered my aeroplane delay compensation rights, you probably don’t know where to start.

I have worked with experts to claim flight delay compensation. We should all work with these experts because they help us discover our rights and get paid for the inconvenience. Thanks to AirAdvisor for helping me a couple of times.

I first discovered AirAdvisor in 2022 when I was flying from Amsterdam to go back home after a tiring business trip in the Netherlands. Despite being on time for my late evening flight, I got delayed for three and a half hours before I arrived home. As I was perusing the web in the airport lounge, I found the AirAdvisor website, read about them, and lodged my claim without a second thought. Believe it or not, I got 250 EUR in compensation.

While the money paid for the time wasted and the inconvenience I went through, it was a new realisation as I discovered so many of my airline passenger flight delay rights. Before I take you through the rights I discovered, here is information about Flight Delay Compensation, which should be handy if flight delay happens to you.

My flight delay compensation situations
After I used AirAdvisor services, I discovered that every airline passenger, especially in Europe, is entitled to a delayed flight claim in the case of the following situations.

  • My flight is from the EU or operated by EU airlines.
  • The airline is at fault for my flight delays.
  • Flight delayed for more than 3 hours or more.
  • I did check in 45 minutes before the departure time.
  • My flight delays claim is within the three-year deadline.

This is just a summary of situations when I can ask for flight delay compensation. I had a flight delay again in 2022 when flying to Paris for a vacation with my family. Although I did not get compensated because the delay was only for one hour, AirAdvisor came in handy again by letting me know that I have a right to information. In fact, I learned that the flight delays were caused by a hitch at Charles de Gaulle Airport. The airline did apologise for the inconvenience.

The right to information
As mentioned, Air Advisor has helped me discover my flight delay rights. Just to help you understand, it is the responsibility of the flight staff to let passengers know of any anticipated delays. More often, you have heard them announce such situations at the airport or on the plane; it is not a favour but, rather, their obligation.

Additionally, they should explain in writing the detailed cause of the delay, especially if you write to them seeking this information. In my case, I got a detailed explanation and an apology, although I did not qualify for compensation.

The right to care
The worst delay I have gone through is that of waiting for an aeroplane for more than two hours in December 2020 in Madrid, Spain. While I understand that Christmas vacations cause a dramatic increase in travellers, the Adolfo Suarez Madrid-Barajas Airport was full and chaotic. Every minute added to my frustration.

When the flight arrived, we got the best care including complimentary meals and drinks. Fortunately, I had read about this on the AirAdvisor website, and even hotel accommodation and transport would be included if the flight had been delayed until the following day.

Importantly, what I would like everyone to know is that any flight in Europe that delays you should give you care through complimentary meals.

The right to a refund
In my business career, I have discovered numerous refund policies. Airlines are not an exception, and AirAdvisor can help claim one if your flight is delayed for more than five hours. There are detailed policies on refund and flight delay compensation that you should check.

When a passenger is entitled to a flight refund, it is good to return the ticket to the point where you got it from. However, this might not be possible if you decide to proceed with the flight rather than cancel it. In such a case, I have always asked for an upgrade to a premium class. Trust me, you are entitled to this if you do not want to ask for a refund. At least, you can travel in first or business class.

Compensation process
If you are wondering about the process of flight delay compensation, I will tell you how I have done it before. Since I discovered AirAdvisor, I have followed their advice on the process of seeking flight delay compensation, and it has worked. In my latest case, when I had a flight delay for 4 hours at Heathrow Airport due to schedule inconsistencies, here is the process I followed.

  • Seek proof of delay in writing. I did not hesitate to ask for the reason for the delay and ask for a written explanation. Later, this helped me to lodge a complaint to obtain compensation.
  • I kept the written copy of the explanation together with my boarding pass and all other travel documents. They were also part of backup documents when making the claim.
  • Another important thing I did is to note the time I arrived at the airport and the time we departed and when we landed. If you are in such a situation, you will need this time of events to calculate the compensation.
  • I asked for complimentary meals while waiting and later filed for financial compensation. If your case differs from mine, ask for compensation appropriately, and you will not regret it.

My final words
The flight delay compensation process is not something I like going through. In fact, it is a double hassle; there is going through the delay when you have a travel itinerary and going through the process itself. A big thanks to AirAdvisor for being there for me during these challenging moments. They are worth checking and working with.

News Editor - TravelDailyNews Media Network | + Posts

Tatiana is the news coordinator for TravelDailyNews Media Network (traveldailynews.gr, traveldailynews.com and traveldailynews.asia). Her role includes monitoring the hundreds of news sources of TravelDailyNews Media Network and skimming the most important according to our strategy.

She holds a Bachelor's degree in Communication & Mass Media from Panteion University of Political & Social Studies of Athens and she has been editor and editor-in-chief in various economic magazines and newspapers.

19/03/2024
18/03/2024
15/03/2024
14/03/2024
13/03/2024
12/03/2024