Does this cover flights booked through a package holiday?

UK261 compensation applies to the flight itself regardless of how it was booked, though you may need to check whether you claim via the airline or your package provider.

What if the airline says the delay was extraordinary circumstances?

They need to be able to show the cause was genuinely outside their control, such as severe weather or a safety risk.

Can I claim if I was given a refund or a replacement flight?

Compensation for the delay itself is separate from your right to a refund, replacement flight, or care during a long delay.

Does a short delay of under 3 hours count for anything?

Compensation specifically doesn't apply below the 3-hour threshold, though airlines still have other duties around care and assistance during shorter delays.

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Flight delay compensation: UK261 explained simply

If a flight to or from the UK was delayed for hours, or cancelled with little warning, you might be owed cash compensation on top of any refund or rebooking — and it's the airline that pays, not a claims company.

Who's eligible

The rules — known as UK261 (the UK's version of the old EU261 regulation, kept after Brexit) — generally apply if:

Your flight departed from a UK airport, on any airline, or
Your flight arrived at a UK airport on a UK or EU airline,

and you arrived at your final destination 3 hours or more later than scheduled, or your flight was cancelled at short notice. This applies regardless of how much you paid for your ticket, and covers children travelling on their own ticket too.

How much you could be owed

Compensation is based on the distance of your flight, not how long the delay was (beyond the 3-hour threshold):

Flights of 1,500km or less: £220 per person.
Flights between 1,500km and 3,500km: £350 per person.
Flights over 3,500km, delayed 3–4 hours: £260 per person.
Flights over 3,500km, delayed 4 hours or more (or cancelled with little notice): £520 per person.

Airlines don't have to pay if the delay was caused by "extraordinary circumstances" genuinely outside their control — things like severe weather, air traffic control strikes, or security threats. Routine issues like crew scheduling, technical faults or overbooking usually don't count as extraordinary.

How to claim — for free

You claim directly from the airline — there's no official government portal that pays out compensation, but the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) publishes the rules and can help if an airline refuses to pay. The CAA's own guidance explains current thresholds and your rights in full.

In practice: contact the airline's customer service team (most have an online claims form), explain your flight number and date, and quote UK261. If they refuse or ignore you, you can escalate to an alternative dispute resolution (ADR) scheme the airline is signed up to, or ultimately the small claims court.

How long it takes

Claim time limits are generally 6 years from the date of the flight in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and 5 years in Scotland — but don't wait that long; claim as soon as you can while you still have your booking details and boarding passes to hand. Airlines vary a lot in how quickly they pay out once a claim is accepted, from days to several weeks.

Watch out for paid "flight claims" companies

Claims companies typically take 25–50% of your compensation for submitting a claim you could send yourself, for free, directly to the airline. Unless your claim has already been refused and you want help escalating it, there's rarely a reason to give away a share of money that's legally owed to you.

Read the official CAA rules

Frequently asked questions

Does this cover flights booked through a package holiday?: UK261 compensation applies to the flight itself regardless of how it was booked, though you may need to check whether you claim via the airline or your package provider.
What if the airline says the delay was "extraordinary circumstances"?: They need to be able to show the cause was genuinely outside their control, such as severe weather or a safety risk. If you're not sure their explanation holds up, you can still escalate the claim rather than accepting the refusal.
Can I claim if I was given a refund or a replacement flight?: Compensation for the delay itself is separate from your right to a refund, replacement flight, or care (meals, hotel) during a long delay — you may be entitled to more than one of these at once.
Does a short delay of under 3 hours count for anything?: Compensation specifically doesn't apply below the 3-hour threshold, though airlines still have other duties around care and assistance during shorter delays.

Information checked against CAA guidance and consolidated UK261 regulation summaries; the claim time limits are drawn from legal commentary on the Limitation Act 1980 rather than a single CAA page, so always confirm current details with the CAA or your airline before relying on a specific figure.