Another victory for passengers against late flights

Travellers have won another battle in the war to get airlines to compensate for delays. The EU Court of Justice has ruled that employers of business travellers affected by delayed flights can claim compensation from the airline.

Up until now airlines have only had to compensate the passengers who were delayed. Now, companies whose business is affected by an employee being late can also seek redress.

Gradually the rights of passengers is being strengthened through court battles. The EU court has already made it clear in other legal cases that passengers are entitled to compensation if their flight lands three or more hours after the scheduled arrival time.

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A separate case established that the arrival time is when the doors open rather than when the wheels hit the runway – an excuse one airline used to try and get out of paying compensation.

In 2013 yet another court battle saw the EU court assert compensation is also due if a connecting flight is delayed, which causes the passenger to be more than three hours late to their final destination.

When can I claim compensation?

All these legal arguments have resulted in clear definition of when you are allowed to seek compensation for a delayed flight.

As a passenger, if your flight is delayed and that means that you are three or more hours late in landing at your final destination then you can claim compensation from the airline - so long as it was the airline’s fault. Businesses can also claim for consequent losses if employees were so delayed.

However these rules only apply to flights that have departed from an EU airport regardless of airline/destination, or a flight on an EU airline that has landed at an EU airport.

So, a flight from London to Singapore would be covered regardless of airline. But, a flight from Singapore to London would only be eligible if the airline was based in the EU so British Airways would be fine but Emirates would not.

Can I claim regardless of what caused the delay?

No. Airlines are only liable if it was their fault you were delayed. If you landed late due to bad weather, political unrest, security issues or air traffic control’s actions then you can’t claim compensation.

How far back can I claim?

If you’ve been delayed on a flight that meets the criteria above you can claim for flights as far back as 2010, because the statute of limitations is six years in England, Wales and Northern Ireland (it’s five years in Scotland).

I can’t remember that far back!

Don’t worry, if you’ve got your flight details you can check FlightStats.com to see if your flight was delayed.

How much will I get?

Compensation is fixed depending on the length of your delay and how far your were travelling. The amount you get varies from €250 for delays of three hours on a flight travelling under 1,500km, to €600 for delays of more than four hours on long flights travelling further than 3,500km. That compensation is per person.

What if the airline says no?

If you feel your claim has been rejected unfairly you can take your case to an ombudsman. The problem is working out which one. The Ombudsman Services is setting up a body to take on aviation complaints but it isn’t up and running yet. It is due in the spring.

Until then who you complain to depends on where you were flying to and from. If your flight took off or landed in the UK you can go to the Civil Aviation Authority. The Civil Aviation Authority should look into your case but if you aren’t happy with the outcome then you could take your case to court.

That is what plenty of people have done, resulting in the EU court rulings that have come in so far.