Delayed flight? You may be owed £220 to £520 per person.

How much depends on the distance and the delay. UK261 can pay £220, £350, £260 or £520 per person if you arrive more than 3 hours late and it wasn't an "extraordinary circumstance". You claim from the airline directly, free, and keep 100%.

Check your flight

Your flight

Where did the flight take off from?

Where did it land?

Which airline operated the flight? (the one that flew the plane, which may not be the one you booked with)

Flight distance in km (great-circle)

Use the distance between the first and last airport on your booking. The CAA suggests a great-circle distance calculator. Examples from the CAA: Glasgow to Amsterdam is under 1,500 km, East Midlands to Marrakesh is 1,500 to 3,500 km, and London to New York is over 3,500 km.

Number of passengers

The delay How late did you arrive at your final destination? Did the airline blame "extraordinary circumstances" (for example severe weather, or a strike by air traffic control)?

How to claim, free

Check. Use the tool above to see what you may be owed.
Collect evidence. Your booking reference, flight number, date, boarding pass and proof of when you arrived. Keep receipts for any food, drink or accommodation you paid for.
Claim from the airline. Compensation is not paid automatically. Claim on the airline's own claim page or by email. Airlines may want expenses and compensation claimed separately.
Escalate if needed. If the airline rejects your claim, or hasn't replied within 8 weeks, take it to an approved ADR scheme, which is free, if your airline is signed up to one (AviationADR or CEDR). If it isn't signed up to one, the CAA's Passenger Advice and Complaints Team (PACT) may be able to help. Do this within 12 months of the airline's final response, or of your last written contact if you got no reply.

CAA: your rights when a flight is delayed CAA: ADR schemes

Claim it yourself, or use a firm?

Claims firm

Claims firms often keep 25% to 50% including VAT. For example, AirHelp's price list says 35% including VAT, plus a 15% legal action fee in the rare cases it is needed. Check any firm's terms before you sign.

Do it yourself

You keep 100% of any compensation. Claim directly from the airline with a short form or email, and ADR is free if it says no.

Email template for your claim

Copy this, fill in the square brackets and send it to the airline. It runs in your browser; nothing is stored. The 14 days is our suggested reply date, not a legal deadline.

Dear [airline],

I was a passenger on flight [number] from [A] to [B] on [date]. It arrived [X] hours late. Under UK261 I am claiming £[amount] per passenger for [number] passenger(s). Booking reference: [ref].

Please respond within 14 days.

Regards,
[name]

Free download

Flight delay compensation guide and letter (PDF, 5 pages)

Which flights does UK261 cover?

According to the CAA, UK261 covers:

every flight leaving a UK airport, on any airline;
flights arriving in the UK on a UK or EU airline; and
flights arriving in the EU on a UK airline.

Flights into the UK from outside the UK or EU on a non-UK, non-EU airline are not covered. If your flight left an EU airport, EU rules may apply instead. Package holidays can carry extra rights.

Compensation amounts (per person)

UK261 delay compensation by distance and delay
Flight distance	Arrive more than 3 hours late	Arrive more than 4 hours late
1,500 km or under	£220	£220
More than 1,500 km, up to 3,500 km	£350	£350
More than 3,500 km	£260 (3 to 4 hours late)	£520

The amount is fixed and does not depend on the price you paid. For bookings with more than one flight, the CAA says to use the distance between the first and last airport and your arrival time at your final destination.

Delayed but not 3 hours late?

You may still be entitled to care while you wait, whatever the cause: food and drink, two phone calls or emails, and accommodation and transport if you are delayed overnight. The CAA says the delay needed to trigger care is at least 2 hours for flights under 1,500 km, 3 hours for 1,500 to 3,500 km, and 4 hours for flights over 3,500 km. If the airline does not provide care, you can make your own arrangements and claim back reasonable costs with itemised receipts.

Source: UK Civil Aviation Authority, "Delays" and "Does UK law apply to your flight incident?", checked 26 October 2026. Amounts are per person. This is general information, not legal advice; eligibility and "extraordinary circumstances" are decided case by case.

Time limits

Court: the CAA says the legal limit to issue a claim in court is 6 years from the date of the flight in England and Wales, and 5 years in Scotland. It doesn't say what applies in Northern Ireland, so check. It still suggests contacting the airline as soon as possible.
ADR: you can use ADR for incidents in the last six years (five if you live in Scotland), and you must go to the ADR provider within 12 months of the airline's final response.

Source: CAA, how the CAA can help and ADR; AirHelp price list, updated 11 August 2026. Checked 26 October 2026.