You need to get on the plane and your flight is significantly delayed. This situation, which is quite common, wastes your time and upsets your plans. To deal with this, a European regulation, adopted in 2004, defends the rights of passengers and can offer them, in the event of delay of their plane, compensation and compensation.
Summary
Conditions to be fulfilled
To benefit from the provisions of European regulations, your destination must be taken into account. You must depart from or land in an airport located in a European Union country. If you are flying with a non-European company and you come from a country outside the Union, the airline with which you have traveled must have its head office in the European Union.
It should be noted that some countries that are not members of the European Union are still affected by the 2004 regulation. This is the case of Norway, Switzerland and Iceland. Similarly, if you take off or land at an airport located in one of France’s overseas territories, you can claim the rights provided for by European regulations.
To exercise your rights, you must also have a valid ticket. A free ticket, or one obtained at a reduced rate, must meet certain conditions to enable you to benefit from these provisions.
Finally, all types of travel are concerned by these measures, both business trips and tourist trips or low-cost flights.
The right to compensation
You should first know that these compensations will be granted to you whatever the cost of your flight. Whether you have chosen a low-cost formula or whether you are traveling in economy class, you are entitled to these compensations.
It is in fact the importance of the delay of your plane which allows you to benefit from these compensations. To take advantage of this, your flight must be delayed by more than two hours. To be entitled to the provisions provided for in the regulations, the delay in question must not be due to cases of force majeure or to so-called extraordinary circumstances.
If a delay of more than two hours is not caused by such circumstances, you will therefore be entitled to drinks and snacks. If the delay causes the flight to be postponed until the next day, you can also claim a hotel night. Transfers between the hotel and the airport are also included in the compensation provided for by European regulations.
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How to get compensation?
Again, it is the length of the delay that triggers the right to compensation. To claim it, your plane must be late for more than three hours.
Therefore, the compensation will be calculated according to the nature of the theft. The further your destination is, the better you will be compensated. For a short flight, not exceeding 1500 kilometers, the compensation provided is 250 euros. If your plane travels between 1500 and 3500 kilometres, you will receive 400 euros. Finally, compensation amounts to 600 euros for long-haul flights.
It is therefore a lump sum compensation, which does not take into account the price of your ticket. To claim compensation, passengers have a time limit which varies according to the country. In France, for example, you have five years to make your request. In certain cases, the European regulation authorizes companies to reduce the compensation provided for by half. This can happen for long-haul flights, especially if the delay of the plane does not exceed four hours.
It is also possible, under certain conditions, to request compensation for the return flight to your departure airport. This circumstance may arise if the delay caused you to miss a connection and, as a result, you give up continuing your journey.
To make your claim for compensation, it is more prudent to collect, if you can, all the documents which establish with certainty the delay and its duration. However, this process remains a bit complex and it may be advantageous to delegate it to professionals.
This is how compensation for a delayed flight with AirHelp will be much easier to obtain. You then trust specialists in the matter, who have a long experience of compensation files. Millions of passengers have used AirHelp’s services and declared themselves satisfied.
Your steps are therefore much simpler. All you have to do is send the details of the delayed flight to the service. From that moment, AirHelp takes care of things for you. It is his advisers who inquire about your rights. Throughout the procedure, they keep you informed of the progress of your file. At any time, you can therefore know where you are.
And it is still AirHelp who is responsible for sending you the amount of your compensation.
