Missed Your Connecting Flight Due To Delay? Claim Missed Connection Flight Compensation

When Can I Claim Compensation For A Missed Flight Connection?

You may be entitled to claim compensation if you have arrived at your final destination more than 3 hours later than scheduled because you missed a connecting flight, as long as the delay was the airline’s fault and not caused by an extraordinary circumstance.

Under EU261 or UK261, you will be able to claim compensation for a missed connection if:

• Your flights were booked as part of the same reservation, even if on different airlines
• Your flight departed from a UK or EU airport, or
• Your flight was operated by a UK or EU airline arriving at a UK or EU airport
• Your flight took off in the last 6 years.

Additionally, if your flight was delayed and caused you to miss your onward connection, the airline is still responsible for getting you to your final destination, even if the second flight departed on time.

What Happens If You Miss A Connecting Flight?

If you miss a connecting flight, what happens next will depend on whether all of your flights were booked as part of the same reservation or on separate tickets.

If your connecting flights were booked on the same ticket, the airline is responsible for getting you to your final destination. Depending on the circumstances, this means the airline must:

• Book you onto the next available flight, even if it’s with another airline
• Provide care and assistance while you wait, including meals, refreshments and, where necessary, hotel accommodation
• Offer you a full refund and, if required, a return flight to your original departure airport if your delay exceeds five hours and you no longer wish to travel.

Unfortunately, if you have purchased tickets for each flight separately, the airline is not responsible for any of the above, including providing a replacement flight.

How Do I Claim Compensation If I’ve Missed A Connecting Flight?

If you have are at the airport and have missed your connection, we recommend that you ask the airline for written confirmation of the cause of your delayed flight, collect all relevant documentation, including boarding passes, and receipts, and exercise your rights to care and assistance.

Depending on your circumstances, and the number of airlines involved, knowing which airline to claim from and who might be responsible might not be straightforward.

The simplest way to find out your rights to claim compensation for a missed connection is to put your flight details into our free flight claims calculator. It’ll provide an instant answer on your rights under EU261 and how much you may be eligible to claim.

Which Missed Connecting Flights Are Covered By EU261 And UK261?

To claim flight compensation for a missed connection under EU261 or UK261, your flight must either depart from a UK or EU airport, or arrive at a UK or EU airport on a UK or EU airline.

You may be able to claim compensation for:

• Any flight departing from a UK or EU airport, regardless of the airline.
• Any flight arriving at a UK or EU airport if it was operated by a UK or EU airline.

For flights arriving in the UK or EU from outside these regions, your rights will depend on the airline operating the flight.

For example, if you flew from Orlando to Gatwick with British Airways, your flight would be covered because British Airways is a UK airline.

However, if you travelled on the same route with American Airlines, you wouldn’t be covered by EU261 or UK261 because the flight was operated by a non-UK and non-EU airline.

How Much Compensation Can I Claim For A Missed Connection?

The amount of compensation you can claim for a missed connection depends on the length of your delay and the distance of your journey.

The maximum compensation you can claim for a missed connection is £520 per passenger. The compensation amounts for flight delays and cancellations are fixed and unrelated to the ticket cost or the class of the fare you booked.

Our table below shows how much compensation you could claim if you have been delayed because of a missed connection.

When Can I Claim A Refund For A Missed Connecting Flight?

If your missed connection results in a delay of more than five hours and you decide not to accept a replacement flight, you are entitled to a full refund from the airline.

The same applies if your connecting flight is cancelled and the airline doesn’t offer a replacement flight, or you decide not to accept the alternative flight provided.

The airline would only be legally bound to provide either a replacement flight or a refund as long as your flights were booked on the same ticket.

What Are The Airlines Responsibilities For Passengers At The Airport Who Have Missed Their Connecting Flight?

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 1,500 km), delayed at least 3 hours (for flights between 1,500 km and 3,500 km), or at least 4 hours for flights over 3,500 km.

Regardless of the reason for the delay, the airline must provide passengers with:

• To keep you informed about the status of your flight
• Food and drink in reasonable relation to waiting time
• Free hotel accommodation when a stay of one night or more is necessary
• Free transport between the airport and the hotel
• Two free telephone calls, emails, telex or fax messages
• The airline should cover all these costs during the delay as part of their ‘care and assistance’ obligations.

Can I Claim Compensation For A Missed Connection If My Flights Are Operated By Different Airlines?

Yes, you can claim compensation for a missed connection if your flights were operated by different airlines, as long as they were booked together under a single reservation or booking reference.

However, if your flights were booked separately using different tickets, they won’t be treated as a single journey under EU261 or UK261. This means you won’t be protected if a delay to one flight causes you to miss your onward connection.

If you’re not sure how your flights were booked, the easiest way to check your booking confirmation. If your entire journey is covered by a single booking reference, your flights were booked together. If you have separate booking references for each flight, they were booked as separate tickets.

As long as all of your flights were booked under the same reservation, you can still claim compensation even if you’re travelling with different airlines.

If I Am Flying On Two Separate Airlines, Which Airline Do I Claim Against?

If you are flying on two different airlines, your claim will be with the airline that caused the delay. In most cases, this will be the first flight you took, or if you have more than two flights, it is usually the flight directly before your missed connection.

Can I Claim Compensation For A Missed Connection If I Have Separate Tickets?

Unfortunately, no. If you booked your flights on separate tickets, you won’t be able to claim compensation for a missed connection under EU261 or UK261.

This is because each ticket is treated as a separate contract. If your first flight is delayed and you miss your onward flight, the second airline isn’t responsible for rebooking you or paying compensation.

If you’re booking a journey with a connecting flight, it’s always worth checking whether your flights are covered under the same booking reference. This gives you greater protection if a delay causes you to miss your connection.

Can I Claim Compensation For A Missed Connection If I Didn’t Pay For The Ticket?

Yes, you may still be able to claim even if you didn’t purchase the ticket. Your rights to claim are based on the inconvenience of your delay, not the value of your ticket. So if someone purchased the ticket for you, you flew on air miles, or you are flying with an infant, your rights remain the same as those who have paid for their ticket.

When Isn’t The Airline Responsible For Compensation If I’ve Missed My Connecting Flight?

The airline would not be liable to pay compensation if the delay or cancellation that caused the missed connection was an extraordinary circumstance.

An extraordinary circumstance is when the reason for the delay is considered out of the usual and outside of the airline’s control.

Examples Of Extraordinary Circumstances Include:

• Extreme and unexpected weather conditions
• Strikes and industrial action, including strikes unrelated to the airline, such as air traffic control strikes, baggage handler strikes, or border force strikes
• Air traffic control decisions affecting flight scheduling
• Hidden manufacturing defects or technical issues with the plane
• Bird strikes, flying into and damaging the engine
• A passenger or member of airline staff taken ill on the flight, including a medical emergency on board
• An unruly passenger on the flight
• Acts of terrorism or civil unrest
• Foreign and Commonwealth Office travel bans
• Security risks
• Disease outbreaks
• Disruptions to airspace, including drones.
• Unexpected IT outages that are beyond the responsibility of the airline

Extraordinary circumstances for flight delays do not include situations where a known technical issue with the aircraft, insufficient staff or crew, an overbooked flight, strikes by airline staff, or bad weather affecting a previous flight causes your flight to be delayed.

Situations when you would be able to claim flight compensation that are not classed as an extraordinary circumstance include:

• Insufficient airline staff, pilots, cabin crew, check-in staff, or ground staff
• Airline staff sickness, including pilots and cabin crew
• Airline staff strikes
• Known technical issues or defects with the aircraft
• Technical problems with in-person or online check-in, boarding the flight
• Flight overbooking or involuntarily denied passenger boarding
• Expected bad weather
• Lightening strikes
• Bad weather affecting a previous flight causes your flight to be delayed.