Flight delay compensation: UK261 and EU261 amounts

The short answer

If you reach your destination more than three hours late, you may be owed a fixed sum per person: £220, £350, £260 or £520 under the UK rules (UK261), or €250, €300, €400 or €600 under the EU rules (Regulation 261/2004). The amount depends on the flight distance and, for the longest flights, on how late you arrive. Nothing is owed if the airline shows the delay came from “extraordinary circumstances”, such as weather unsafe for flying. Food, drink and, overnight, a hotel are owed whatever the cause.

This page sets out what the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) and the European Commission’s Your Europe page said on 11 November 2026.

UK261 or EU261: which one covers your flight

The CAA explains that UK rights are set out in “UK Reg (EU) No. 261/2004 – also known as UK261”. The EU rules are in Regulation (EC) No 261/2004. The two lists of covered flights are not the same:

Your Europe adds that EU rules also apply to flights to and from Iceland, Norway and Switzerland, and only if you have not already received compensation or assistance for the same problem under a non-EU country’s law. The CAA links to a document on its cancellations page for checking whether UK law applies to your exact flight.

How much compensation

Compensation “is for a fixed amount and is not linked to the price you paid for your ticket”, the CAA says. It is per person.

The CAA’s wording is “under 1500 kilometres”, “between 1500 and 3500 kilometres” and “over 3500 kilometres”. It gives examples: Glasgow to Amsterdam is under 1500km, East Midlands to Marrakesh is between 1500km and 3500km, and London to New York is over 3500km. The CAA says to calculate the distance “using the Great Circle Route method by using a third-party website”.

The trigger is your arrival time, not your departure. The CAA speaks of reaching “your destination airport more than three hours late”; Your Europe says “a delay of 3 hours or more” at your final destination. For a booking with connecting flights, the CAA says the amount is based on “the distance between the first and last airport in your booking”, and late arrival at the connection point does not count. Separate bookings (“self-transfer”) give no statutory right to care or compensation if one late flight makes you miss the next.

When nothing is owed: extraordinary circumstances

The CAA notes that the Regulation “does not define” extraordinary circumstances, so both regulators give examples. The CAA’s main categories are weather “incompatible with the safe operation of the flight”, strikes “unrelated to the airline such as airport staff, ground handlers, air traffic control or border force”, terrorism or sabotage, security risks, political or civil unrest, and hidden manufacturing defects. Your Europe names air traffic management decisions, political instability, adverse weather and security risks.

Technical faults are usually the airline’s responsibility. The CAA cites the Court of Appeal judgment in Jet2 v Huzar (June 2014), which found “technical problems were not an extraordinary circumstance”, and the European Court’s KLM v van der Lans ruling (September 2015). Your Europe lists “most technical problems” and “strikes by air carrier staff” as not extraordinary. Under EU rules, the airline must prove the link between the event and the delay, and that the delay “could not have been avoided even if all reasonable measures had been taken”.

Care while you wait

Care does not depend on the cause of the delay. The CAA says you should receive food and drink “regardless of the reason for the delay”, two phone calls or emails, and accommodation plus transport if the delay runs overnight. It starts once the delay beyond scheduled departure reaches:

• at least two hours for flights under 1,500km;
• at least three hours for flights between 1,500km and 3,500km;
• at least four hours for flights over 3,500km.

Article 6 of the EU Regulation uses the same 2, 3 and 4 hour thresholds and the same 1500 and 3500 km bands. If the airline provides nothing, the CAA says you can make your own arrangements and claim the costs back later with itemised receipts; airlines “are unlikely to consider alcoholic drinks, luxury hotels or luxury meals to be reasonable”.

Five hours or more: the refund option

If the delay reaches five hours, you can choose not to travel. The CAA says you can “get a refund for the flights you have not yet taken on your booking”. Your Europe says that after “at least 5 hours at departure” the airline must reimburse your ticket and, if you have a connecting flight, offer a flight back to your departure airport.

How to claim

Compensation is not paid automatically. Claim directly with the airline first, using its claim form if there is one. If you disagree with the airline’s final answer, or it takes more than eight weeks to reply, the CAA says you can escalate to an Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) body or, if the airline is not signed up to one, to the CAA’s Passenger Advice and Complaints Team.

Before a trip to Europe, also see the EU Entry/Exit System, ETIAS for UK travellers and passport validity for Europe. For what you can carry through security, see liquids in hand luggage and power banks on a plane.

Before you claim

Check whether UK261 or EU261 covers your flight using the CAA and Your Europe pages above, measure the distance between your first and last airport, and keep every receipt. Ask the airline in writing for the reason for the delay.