As the UK’s most recommended flight delay claims company, we’ve claimed over £82 million in compensation from the airlines, more than any other UK firm. Join the 700,000 passengers who’ve chosen Bott and Co to claim their flight delay compensation.
When Can I Claim Compensation For A Delayed Flight?
You may be entitled to claim up to £520 per passenger in flight delay compensation if your flight arrives at least three hours later than scheduled and the delay was the airline’s responsibility and not an “extraordinary circumstance.”
You can also claim compensation for a cancelled flight, you were involuntarily denied boarding, or you missed a connecting flight. In some cases you can also claim for a flight refund.
Your rights to claim compensation are protected by EU Regulation 261, a European law that has been integrated into UK Law. Your rights extend to any flight due to depart in the last six years.
Why Choose Bott and Co?
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A History Of Success
We have claimed over £82m in flight compensation from the airlines.
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Expert Legal Advice
Recognised not just within our industry but also by Martin Lewis as “pioneers” in our field.
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On Your Side
Completely independent, our only focus is helping you claim for what you are legally entitled to.
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Fully Regulated
We are members of the Solicitors Regulation Authority. Your claim is in safe hands.
How Do I Know If My Flight Is Eligible For Flight Compensation?
EU Reg261 protects airline passengers whose flights departed from or arrived at a UK or EU airport on a UK or EU airline. You can claim for delayed flights that departed in the last six years.
Under UK law, you will be able to make a claim for EU261 compensation if your flight:
Flights Covered By EU261
| Departing From | Arriving To | Can I Claim? |
|---|---|---|
| Airport inside UK/ EU | Airport inside UK/EU |
Yes (Claimable for any airline) |
| Airport inside UK/ EU | Airport outside UK/EU |
Yes (Claimable for any airline) |
| Airport outside UK/EU | Airport inside UK/EU |
Yes (If on an EU based airline) |
| Airport outside UK/EU | Airport outside UK/EU |
No |
If your flight is covered, you will be able to claim flight delay compensation under the following circumstances:
How Long Does A Flight Have To Be Delayed To Claim For Compensation?
You will be eligible to claim compensation if your flight arrives at least three hours later than originally scheduled.
Compensation is paid based on your arrival time rather than when you leave. Arrival time is clearly defined in EUReg261 when at least one of the plane doors is opened.
How Much Compensation Can I Claim For A Flight Delay?
The maximum amount of compensation you can claim for a delayed flight is £520 per passenger. The amount of compensation you can claim will depend on how many hours your flight was delayed and the flight distance.
The level of compensation increases the longer you are delayed and the further the distance of your flight. You can claim for each passenger individually. If you were a family of four and were due £520 each, the total amount would be £2080.
The compensation amounts for flight delays and cancellations are fixed and unrelated to the ticket cost or the class of the fare you booked, or if you used air miles.
Our table below shows how much flight delay compensation you could claim.
EU261 Flight Delay Compensation Claim Amounts in UK Pounds
| Flight Distance | Less than 3 hours | 3 hours or more | More than 4 hours | Never arrived |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| All flights 1,500km or less |
£0 |
£220 |
£220 |
£220 |
| Internal EU flights over 1,500km |
£0 |
£350 |
£350 |
£350 |
| Non-internal EU flights between 1,500km and 3,500km |
£0 |
£350 |
£350 |
£350 |
| Internal EU flights over 3,500km |
£0 |
£260 |
£520 |
£520 |
Claim Flight Compensation With Bott and Co
How Long After A Flight Delay Can You Claim Compensation?
In the UK, you can claim for eligible flights that departed in the last six years. In Scotland, you have five years from the departure date to start your claim.
Bott and Co. proved this time limit at the Supreme Court in 2014, representing passenger James Dawson vs. Thomson. Following several appeals, Judges ruled in agreement with Bott and Co. that consumers have six years rather than two to bring a flight claim, as Thomson argued.
When Can I Claim Compensation For A Cancelled Flight?
You’re legally entitled to claim compensation for a cancelled flight if the flight cancellation is the airline’s responsibility and if your flight was cancelled less than 14 days before departure and you arrived at your final destination on a replacement flight by two hours or more.
Your rights to claim compensation for cancelled flights extend further depending on your circumstances, including having the option to claim a full refund for your flight.
Recent Successful Flight Compensation Claims
Bott and Co help couple receive £350 each in compensation after arriving on holiday to Corfu late.
We secured compensation for family of 3 who missed a day of their holiday due to flight cancellation.
Family receive £350 compensation each after Jet2 flight to Manchester from Antalya was delayed for 22.5 hours.
Family instruct Bott and Co after missing connecting flight to London due to BA departure delay at JFK Airport.
We helped family of 4 flying from Lithuania to London receive £350 each for flight cancellation.
Family of 4 returning from their holiday in Turkey arrive home 2 days late following flight cancellation.
Passengers receive £350 each after their flight to Tunisia was cancelled and rescheduled for 24 hours later.
Family going to Miami with American Airlines were rerouted to New York AND Dallas before arriving in California.
Family of 4's delay at Birmingham Airport led to missed connection in Dubai and new flight given 3 days later.
When Can I Claim For Denied Boarding Compensation?
If you were involuntarily denied boarding your scheduled flight because the airline overbooked the flight, you have legal rights to claim compensation for denied boarding if you arrived at your final destination more than three hours later than the originally scheduled flight.
When Can I Claim Compensation For A Missed Connection?
Under EU Regulation 261, you can claim flight compensation if your flight delay means you missed your connecting flight and arrived at your final destination more than three hours late.
Additionally, the airline is responsible for booking you on the next available flight on any airline and providing care and assistance, including accommodation if necessary.
Your rights to claim for a missed connecting flight due to a delay under EU261 are limited to passengers who have their flights booked on a single ticket.
Claiming With Bott and Co
When Can I Claim Compensation For A Diverted Flight?
You may be entitled to claim flight diversion compensation if your flight was diverted to a different airport and you arrived at your final destination more than three hours later than planned.
You can claim compensation for a diverted flight as long as the cause of the diversion is not an extraordinary circumstance, such as an unexpected technical fault with the aircraft.
When Can I Claim A Refund For A Flight Delay?
Flight refunds for delays are possible if your flight is delayed by more than 5 hours. EU Regulation 261 classifies a flight delay of five hours or more the same as a cancellation. So, if your flight is delayed by more than five hours, you have the right to get a full refund on the price of your ticket.
Additionally, if your original flight is cancelled and your replacement flight is delayed, you will be able to receive both a refund for the original flight and compensation for the delay on the replacement flight.
Flight Delay Compensation – What Are Extraordinary Circumstances?
Circumstances classed as extraordinary in EU261 are instances where events outside the airline’s responsibility cause the delay.
The term “extraordinary circumstances” may apply to events where the delay was caused by something unexpected and not easily anticipated by the airline.
Examples Of Extraordinary Circumstances
Situations when you wouldn’t be able to claim flight compensation due to extraordinary circumstances:
Examples That Are Not Extraordinary Circumstances
Situations when you would be able to claim flight compensation that are not classes as extraordinary circumstances include:
Citing “extraordinary circumstances” is the only valid defence an airline has against paying compensation for flight delays over three hours, and the majority of the court battles we’ve encountered test the definition of what an extraordinary circumstance is.
Several landmark court cases, many involving Bott and Co clients, have helped clarify this area of EU261.
Award Winning Customer Service
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The UK's Most Recommended
4.7/5 Feefo score and over 700,000 happy clients
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No Win No Fee
Our No Win No Fee Promise means you are at no financial risk when making a claim
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Claim In Less Than A Minute
Claim up to £520 in less than a minute with our simple form
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Get Compensation Quicker
Many of our flight compensation claims are settled within 60 days.
Stuck In A Delay At The Airport? You Have A Right To Care and Assistance
Article 9 of EU Reg 261 states that airlines must provide passengers with a level of “care and assistance” if their flight is delayed beyond a certain number of hours.
Airline passengers are eligible for “care and assistance” if their flight is delayed at least 2 hours (for flights under 1,500km), delayed at least 3 hours (for flights between 1,500km and 3,500km), or at least 4 hours for flights over 3,500km.
Care and Assistance – Your Rights When Your Flight Is Delayed
| Flight Distance | Length of Delay |
|---|---|
| Up to 1,500km |
After 2 hours |
| 1,500km-3,500km |
After 3 hours |
| Over 1,500km and between two EU States |
After 3 hour |
| Over 3,500km |
After 4 hours |
Regardless of the reason for the delay, the airline must provide passengers with:
The airline should cover all these costs during the delay as part of their ‘care and assistance’ obligations. However, we see cases where passengers have had to use their money to buy food and drink or get taxis to and from the airports.
This right applies to delays, even if caused by what the regulation calls an ‘”extraordinary circumstance.”
Claim By Airline
What To Do When Your Flight Is Delayed
Your airline should inform you if your flight is delayed, advise you on the length of the delay, and provide care and assistance if the delay is significant.
However, if your airline isn’t communicating as expected, and it is likely that your delay may be potentially eligible for compensation, we recommend you gather the following information as it may help if you have a right to claim compensation.
No Win No Fee Flight Delay Compensation Claim Solicitors
Since 2013, Bott and Co. have been leading the fight for airline passenger rights under EUReg 261.
Winning multiple landmark cases at the Supreme Court, Bott and Co. has helped millions of passengers claim compensation from the airline.
For those who choose to have our industry-leading legal team represent them, we provide our services on a no win no fee basis, meaning you are at no financial risk if your claim is unsuccessful.
We Are The Only Company That Provides Full Legal Support as Standard
As the law firm who won the most important landmark court cases in 2013, and have been fighting for the rights of hundreds of thousands of clients since, our legal team has an unmatched pedigree in successfully representing UK airline passengers for over a decade.
Unlike many other firms, we provide this legal support as standard for every claim we take on, and with a fee that is more than competitive.
Couple this with our no win no fee guarantee and simple pricing, and you can enjoy the comfort of knowing your claim is in the best possible hands while being at no financial risk.
What You Get With Bott and Co
- Our legal team reviews every single claim to ensure you're legally entitled to compensation
- Unparalleled legal expertise with over a decade of negotiating successfully with the airlines
- We will compile your case, handling all paperwork, and present the claim to the airline
- We issue court proceedings within 30 days to ensure the claim is processed as quickly as legally possible
- We will pay for all court fees, and any costs relating to your claim
- We will handle all communication with the airline and the court if necessary
- Regular and timely updates on the status of your claim
- UK based legal team available by phone and email for anything you may need during your claim
Our Fees
Our award winning legal services are priced at a simple flat fee of 42% of the compensation amount.
* Fees are exclusive of VAT. See more about our fees.
How To Claim Compensation For A Delayed Flight
Just add your flight details to our flight compensation calculator to start your claim with us. Instantly, we will check the eligibility of your flight and tell you how much you can claim. Then, we only need a few more details to submit your claim.
Your claim is handled on a no-win, no-fee basis, so you will pay nothing if we can’t recover your compensation.
We helped establish this area of law by winning multiple landmark cases at the Supreme Court and have since helped hundreds of thousands of UK airline passengers claim flight delay compensation from the airlines. Many of them have been turned down after trying to claim directly with the airline.
If you wish to claim directly with the airline, your next step will be to write to them. Set out exactly what happened with your flight, why you believe you are entitled to compensation, and the amount you wish to claim as per your rights under Regulation EU 261/2004. We have a flight compensation claim template letter you can download and send to the airline if you need help.
Claim With The UK’s Best Flight Compensation Claims Company
We’re the UK’s most recommended and successful flight compensation claims company. Bott and Co have been at the forefront of flight compensation law since 2013, winning multiple landmark cases at the Supreme Court, including both Huzar V Jet2, and Dawson V Thomson which enabled millions of delayed airline passengers claim compensation.
Since 2013, we’ve successfully claimed over £81 million from the airlines, more than any other UK firm. Our award winning legal services have helped over 690,000 UK passengers claim compensation.
Unlike many other firms in the industry, we are fully regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority and are completely independent, so our only focus is on getting you the compensation you are legally entitled to.
We’re also the only firm to provide full legal support, rather than an expensive add on. We take pride in representing our clients, which is why our legal team reviews every single claim, and has achieved industry leading success rates over the last decade.
How Long Does It Take To Claim For Flight Compensation?
The length of time it may take to receive compensation for a delayed flight will depend on the airline and how you have chosen to claim.
We have been legally representing clients against the airlines since 2014 and have a very good relationship with each airline, from negotiating thousands of claims each year.
As we submit so many claims against airlines on behalf of passengers, we have a regular dialogue with their legal departments, making it much more likely that a quick settlement is reached.
We often receive instructions from passengers who have given up claiming directly after being rejected by the airline.
What Is Flight Delay Compensation?
Flight delay compensation rights fall under an EU law called EU Regulation 261. EU261 provides legal rights for passengers to claim compensation when their flight is delayed or cancelled or if they were denied boarding.
The regulation aims to compensate passengers for the time lost and inconvenience they suffered when significant disruptions to their travel arrangements occurred.
Does EU Regulation 261 Still Apply In The UK After Brexit?
The UK Government wrote EU Regulation 261 into UK law at the end of the Brexit transition period in December 2020. The name of the new law is Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 (as amended by The Air Passenger Rights and Air Travel Organisers’ Licensing (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019).” It can sometimes be referred to as “UK261.”
UK passengers enjoy the same rights as before. Except now, depending on where they are flying, they are protected by the UK law or the existing EU version. Additionally, compensation is now paid in UK Pounds rather than Euros.
Frequently Asked Questions
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No, you are under no legal obligation to accept airline vouchers instead of compensation. However, if you have signed an agreement to accept vouchers, it is unlikely you will be able to receive compensation following that signed agreement.
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Yes. Compensation for flight delays is in place to compensate passengers for the loss of time and inconvenience caused by the delay.
So, as long as you were travelling on a paid-for ticket (i.e. somebody paid for your ticket), you are still entitled to compensation. This could include any passenger, but it is most relevant to business travellers who may have had their employer purchase their ticket.
It is important to note that only the person travelling is entitled to claim compensation, not the person who paid for the ticket.
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Yes. Flight compensation is based on the principle that passengers who have suffered the inconvenience of a flight delay should be compensated for the loss of their time.
Therefore, as long as you have paid something for your flight, even if using air miles, you can claim the relevant compensation amount you are due under EU261.
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The amount of compensation you can claim for your delay is not affected by how much you paid for your ticket.
Whether you used air miles or paid £50 or £5,000 for your ticket, the compensation you may get will stay the same.
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Yes, you can claim on behalf of a family member. We often find that families and groups of passengers who are claiming together like to nominate one person to handle the claim on behalf of them all and we are perfectly happy to do this for you.
If you wish to act as the lead passenger for your family’s compensation claim we will still need each individual member of your party to sign their own copy of our Terms and Conditions. It’s also important to note that we will always pay compensation to individual passengers on the claim, as opposed to paying a lump sum to the lead passenger, unless we have written authority from them to do otherwise.
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Yes, you can. Children have exactly the same right to claim flight compensation as adults do.
Compensation amounts under EU261 are calculated by flight distance and length of delay: It doesn’t matter what age the passenger, everyone is eligible to claim the same amount of money. The only caveat is that the child you are claiming for must have paid something for their ticket, even if it was a reduced fare or they didn’t have their own seat. In other words, you can claim for a child as long as they were not travelling free of charge.
Children under 18 will, however, need to appoint a litigation friend to handle the claim on their behalf. A litigation friend is a responsible adult who agrees to oversee the claim on the child’s behalf.
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es, the rules we explained above apply to all children, even those under two years old: As long as you paid something for the child’s ticket (even if it was a reduced fare) you can claim. All children and infants will however have to appoint a litigation friend, who is a responsible adult that has agreed to handle the claim on behalf of the child.
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Yes. The key element is not how long you were delayed in taking off, but how long you were delayed at your final destination. You need to have arrived three hours or more after your originally scheduled arrival time to be eligible to claim delayed flight compensation. If your flight meets this ‘test’ then you should qualify for compensation, even if you agreed to travel on a later plane with the same airline.
That means that even if you accepted a later flight with your air carrier you will still be able to claim flight compensation if the replacement flight arrived three hours or more after the scheduled arrival time of your original plane.
It’s important to remember that just because your plane has left more than three hours late, it doesn’t necessarily mean you will have landed at your destination more than three hours late: On occasion, often due to favourable weather conditions, planes can make up time in the air.
So for example, your replacement plane may have departed 3 ½ hours after you were scheduled to leave on your original booking but the pilot makes up time in the air so that your plane only lands two hours and 58 minutes late: In this case you would not be able to claim compensation against neither the original air carrier, nor the airline operating the replacement flight.
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Your entitlement to claim compensation depends on the time that your replacement flight arrived at your destination, regardless of the airline you were flying on: You must have arrived three hours or more after the time your original flight was scheduled to land in order to qualify to claim.
In some cases the replacement flight leaves more than three hours after the original flight was due to leave but makes up time in the air, actually arriving under three hours after the original scheduled arrival time. In this case you would not be able to claim flight compensation.
If you have booked with one airline but ended up flying with another, who would you make your claim against? Even though you ended up flying with another carrier, you would still put your claim in against the original airline that you made your booking with.
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It is usually possible to make a flight compensation claim even if you can’t find your booking reference number. The key bits of information to make sure that you have available are your flight number, the airline you were travelling with, the date of your flight and your departure and arrival airports. With this information we will be able to work out whether or not we believe you have a valid claim.
We find that clients are often worried that without their booking paperwork that won’t be able to prove how much they paid for their flight. The reality is that how much you paid for your plane ticket has no relation at all to the amount of compensation you are entitled to claim under EU Regulation 261/2004. Flight delay compensation is calculated according to the length of your delay and the distance you were travelling and passengers can claim a fixed amount of between £200 and £470.
It is definitely useful if you have an old boarding pass or email booking confirmation that you can send to us as this will help us prove that you were on the flight. However, in some cases, there are some additional steps that we can take to provide evidence that you were on the flight, should this be necessary.
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Unfortunately, it is very rare to be able to claim for flight delays caused by air traffic control, as most circumstances of flight delays caused by ATF are classed as extraordinary circumstances and are not the responsibility of the airline.
Delayed flights caused by air traffic control strikes which affect your flight are not claimable. Similarly, if air traffic control limits the number of flights allowed to fly, compensation would not be due.
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You would not be able to claim compensation if your flight was affected in the unfortuate situation when a person on the flight is taken ill, as this would be classed as an extraordinary circumstance and outside of the airline's control.
This would include if a member of the airline staff was taken ill, such as a pilot or cabin crew.
Meet Our Solicitors
Coby Benson
A member of The Law Society and a SRA Registered Solicitor, Coby has been instrumental in establishing flight delay compensation law in the UK, including playing a significant part in the landmark cases of Huzar v Jet2 and Dawson v Thomson at The Supreme Court.
Coby is regularly asked for comment in the national media, regularly featuring in The Daily Telegraph, The Times, The Guardian and The Independent as well as appearing on BBC Television, Sky News, ITV and BBC Radio 4 and Radio Five Live.
