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Cancelled flight: what you are owed

A cancellation is compensated only if the airline gave short notice and did not offer a close replacement. A refund is a separate right.

Updated

EU261 and UK261

14 days or more14 to 7 daysUnder 7 daysNo compensationLeave within 2 h,land under 4 h lateLeave within 1 h,land under 2 h lateA replacement that meets these limits removes the claim.
Cancellation notice and replacement limits.

Notice of 14 days or more: no compensation. Under that, a replacement flight that leaves within the limits above removes the claim. Amounts follow the distance: EUR 250, EUR 400, EUR 600 for EU261 and GBP 220, GBP 350, GBP 520 for UK261.

Example: Amsterdam to Barcelona cancelled five days before departure, no replacement: EU261 EUR 250. With 15 days of notice: Nothing owed under these rules.

Canada

Canada APPR applies when the airline cancelled 14 days before departure or less, the cause was in its control, and you reach your destination 3 hours or more late. See Canada APPR.

United States

A refund is owed when the airline cancels and you do not take the alternative: within 7 business days on a card and 20 calendar days otherwise. See US refunds.

Check your flight

Where the trip started. For one booking with connections, the first airport.

Where the trip ended: the final destination.

The operating airline, not the one on the ticket. A boarding pass or the flight status page names it.

What happened

At the final destination, when the aircraft door opened.

We read this to explain the result. We never decide whether it counts as extraordinary.

Carried into the claim letter. It does not change the amount.

Results

Enter both airports and the airline to see a result.

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Choose where the trip started, where it ended, the airline and what happened. The result updates as you type.

Information, not advice

Hours Late is not a law firm and not a claims company. It does not file claims for you. The results are estimates from published rules and the details you enter. They are not legal advice. Airlines and courts decide each case.

Sources