How to claim flight delay or cancellation compensation for free
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In short. Check the route, operating airline, cause and arrival or cancellation timings. Submit the evidence through the airline's own claim channel for free. After a final rejection or eight weeks without a response, use its ADR scheme or the appropriate CAA route.
This walkthrough helps you prepare and submit your own claim. Compensation, ticket refunds and care expenses are different requests, so separate them clearly. Use our UK261 rights and amounts guide for the detailed rules. Settlement time varies: eight weeks is an escalation threshold, not a promise that the airline will pay within that period.
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What you'll need
- Booking confirmation, operating airline, flight number and travel date
- Original itinerary, actual arrival time and any replacement-flight details
- Cancellation notice and airline messages explaining the cause
- Itemised receipts and a record of requests for assistance
- Copies of the submitted claim and the airline's replies
Free preparation tool
Copy a flight compensation claim letter
Copy this starting point into your own document or the airline's form. Replace the square brackets, delete requests that do not apply, and only include facts you can support. This page does not collect your details or submit anything to an airline or claims company.
You can also select the text manually and use your device's Copy command. Keep the finished letter and evidence private; send them only through the airline's official channel.
The steps
- 01
Deal with immediate care and travel needs
If you are still waiting, ask airline staff for meals, communication, necessary overnight accommodation and transport. After cancellation, decide whether you need the earliest rerouting, a later suitable flight or the applicable refund. Do not select a refund if you still expect the airline to arrange your journey. Care can remain available even when weather means no fixed compensation is due.
- 02
Check the route and operating carrier
UK261 covers departures from the UK on any airline, arrivals in the UK on UK/EU carriers and arrivals in the EU on UK carriers, subject to the complete itinerary and other statutory conditions. Identify who operated the flight rather than only the booking brand. Keep your reservation and evidence that you met check-in requirements, where applicable. Single-booking connections and separate self-transfer tickets need different treatment.
- 03
Record the exact times and the reason
For delays, compare the scheduled and actual final-destination arrival times. For cancellations, record when you were notified and the offered replacement's departure and arrival times. Ask for the disruption reason in writing. If the airline says extraordinary circumstances apply, ask it to explain the specific event and the reasonable measures taken; do not guess a cause just to complete a form.
- 04
Work out which amount or remedy to request
Full UK261 distance bands are £220 for 1,500 km or less, £350 for over 1,500 to 3,500 km, and £520 for longer flights, per eligible passenger. A £260 long-haul delay band and £110/£175/£260 rerouting reductions can apply. Check cancellation notice exceptions before choosing a sum. Keep fixed compensation separate from a ticket refund and actual care expenses. If the facts are incomplete, ask the airline to assess them and explain the calculation.
- 05
Build a short evidence pack
Save your itinerary, boarding passes, airline messages, tracking screenshots, cancellation notice and itemised receipts. Add a timeline with dates and times and explain any necessary expense the airline failed to arrange. Keep copies of requests for assistance and any response. A photo of a departure board can support your account but does not by itself establish the final arrival delay. Send documents through the official claim channel, not a public social-media post.
- 06
Submit directly to the operating airline
Use its official UK261/compensation form or customer-relations address. Copy the free letter template above into your own document, replace all placeholders and delete requests that do not apply. State the booking, flight, timings, cause and remedy clearly; ask for an assessment rather than inventing a compensation figure if facts are uncertain. Include your separate expenses or refund request and supporting documents. Ask the airline to explain any rejection or reduction and identify its ADR provider.
- 07
Keep the claim reference and review any offer
Save the submission, date, attachments and acknowledgement. Check whether an offer covers fixed compensation, a refund, expenses or all three. Ask for the basis of any reduction. Do not assume a voucher is compulsory or accept a full-and-final settlement without understanding its scope. If paid, keep the statement and close duplicate requests for the same entitlement.
- 08
Use ADR or PACT if the claim remains unresolved
After a final response you disagree with, or eight weeks without a final response, check the airline's current approved ADR membership. Submit your timeline, evidence and correspondence to that scheme. If the airline has no approved ADR arrangement, check whether the CAA's Passenger Advice and Complaints Team can assist. ADR can make a binding decision if you accept it; PACT cannot impose one. The CAA is not an appeal body for a rejected ADR decision.
- 09
Check deadlines before taking the next step
CAA guidance currently describes the approved ADR routes as free. It specifies submission within 12 months of the airline's final response, or your last written communication where there is no response, alongside incident-age limits of six years or five in Scotland. Court procedure, limitation and fees require a separate check for the relevant jurisdiction. Seek advice if time is running short; do not assume continued correspondence stops a court deadline.
- 10
Compare optional paid help with keeping the full award
You do not need a claims firm. AirHelp's standard published success fee is 35% including applicable VAT, plus 15% if legal action is necessary: up to 50% combined. For a £520 award, that leaves £338 after the standard fee or £260 with the additional legal-action fee, before any applicable currency/bank effects. Ad · affiliate link: check your flight with AirHelp* if you prefer paid representation after reading its terms. Money Guide may receive commission from a qualifying referral. Do not instruct multiple firms for the same claim.
Common pitfalls
- Using departure delay instead of final arrival delay for a delay claim, or ignoring cancellation notice and replacement timings
- Assuming no compensation means no right to meals, necessary accommodation or a cancellation refund
- Requesting £520 automatically without checking distance, cause and reductions
- Treating the CAA as an appeal stage after an ADR adjudicator's decision
- Paying a claims-company fee without comparing the free airline route and the amount you would retain
- Waiting for correspondence while an ADR or court deadline expires
FAQ
- How long does a flight compensation claim take?
- There is no universal settlement time. You can normally escalate after a final airline response or eight weeks without one. The CAA says an ADR decision can take up to three months after the relevant process; missing evidence or legal action can extend the overall time.
- Can I claim flight compensation without a solicitor or claims company?
- Yes. Submit directly through the operating airline's official process. There is no claims-company percentage deduction when you do it yourself. Approved ADR and PACT routes may help with unresolved claims; court action is a separate step and can involve fees.
- Where can I check a more complicated UK261 itinerary?
- FlightLogic's detailed UK261 guide explains route, notice and rerouting scenarios and links to preparation tools. For journeys outside UK coverage, TravelShifu's passenger rights by region* is additional context. Both sites share Money Guide's operator; use the relevant regulator and airline for an individual decision.
- What if the airline refuses to explain the cause?
- Ask in writing for the specific reason and evidence behind any extraordinary-circumstances defence. Keep your original claim and the refusal, then submit the available evidence through the applicable ADR or PACT route. Do not invent a reason or alter supporting documents.
- Can I submit a claim for another passenger?
- Follow the airline's authority-to-act requirements. Each passenger's eligibility matters, and an adult may need to consent to a representative handling their claim. Do not share another person's identity or bank details without permission.