Flight Delay Compensation Calculator

Check if your delayed, cancelled or overbooked flight pays UK261 or EU261 compensation, how much per passenger, and get a claim letter to send the airline.

Reviewed by Dany, RightSums team · Updated

Runs in your browser. Free, no sign-up.

car-travel · Daily life · UK

Pick your departure and destination airports, the airline's home country and what happened, and the calculator works out the great-circle distance, which law covers the flight and the compensation per passenger and in total. It applies UK261 (£220, £350 or £520) and EU261 (€250, €400 or €600) side by side, including the intra-EU rule for flights over 1,500 km, the half rate for 3 to 4 hour delays on long flights and the 50% cut when an alternative flight arrives within 2, 3 or 4 hours. For cancellations it checks the 14 day and 7 day notice rules. It tells you whether the reason the airline gave is likely to be an extraordinary circumstance, with the court cases behind it, lists the meals, hotel and refund rights you have whatever the cause, and gives the date your time to claim runs out in England and Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland. It then writes a claim letter citing the right articles, ready to copy. Everything runs in your browser and nothing is sent anywhere.

Accepted inputs

  • Departure and final destination airports, searched by name, city or IATA code (3,244 airports with scheduled flights)
  • Where the operating airline is based: UK, EU (including Iceland, Norway and Switzerland) or elsewhere
  • Number of passengers
  • What happened: delay, cancellation or denied boarding
  • Delay: hours and minutes late at the final destination, optional departure delay, and whether the flight left the next day
  • Cancellation: when you were told (under 7 days, 7 to 13 days, 14 days or more) and the alternative flight's departure and arrival times
  • Denied boarding: whether you volunteered, and the alternative flight's arrival delay
  • Reason the airline gave, from a list of 12 common causes
  • Flight date and where you would go to court (England or Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland)
  • Optional letter details: passenger names, booking reference, flight number, airline, address and unpaid expenses

Outputs

  • Great-circle distance between the airports, with a warning within 1% of the 1,500 km and 3,500 km boundaries
  • Whether UK261, EU261 or both cover the flight, with the Article 3 reason
  • Compensation per passenger and in total, in pounds and euros, with any 50% reduction explained
  • Extraordinary circumstances verdict for the cause, citing CAA guidance and court decisions
  • Right to care: meals, calls, hotel and the 5 hour refund option
  • Last date to start a court claim, and days left
  • Claim letter citing UK261 or EU261 articles, to copy or download as a text file

How to use the Flight Delay Compensation Calculator

  1. Search for your first departure airport and final destination; the calculator measures the great-circle distance, the method UK261 and EU261 Article 7(4) require.
  2. It applies Article 3 of each law to your route and the operating airline's home country to see whether UK261, EU261 or both cover the flight.
  3. It sets the amount by distance band and what happened: 3 hours or more late on arrival, the cancellation notice and rerouting rules, or denied boarding, halving it where the rules allow.
  4. It checks the reason the airline gave against CAA guidance and court decisions, lists your care and refund rights, and gives your claim deadline.
  5. Add your booking details and it writes a claim letter citing the right articles, ready to paste into the airline's claim form.

Frequently asked questions

How much is flight delay compensation in the UK?

UK261 pays £220 per passenger for flights of 1,500 km or less, £350 for 1,500 to 3,500 km and £520 for longer flights, when you arrive 3 hours or more late. On flights over 3,500 km a delay of 3 to 4 hours pays £260. EU261 pays €250, €400 and €600 instead.

How long does a flight need to be delayed for compensation?

You need to arrive at your final destination 3 hours or more after the scheduled time. The delay is measured on arrival, not departure, so a flight that leaves 3 hours late but makes up time and lands 2 hours 50 minutes late pays no compensation.

Which flights does UK261 cover?

UK261 covers every flight departing 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, according to the CAA. A flight into the UK from outside the EU on a non-UK, non-EU airline is not covered.

Does the airline have to pay if the delay was caused by a technical fault?

Yes, a routine technical fault is not an extraordinary circumstance, so the airline should pay. The CAA cites Jet2 v Huzar (June 2014) and KLM v van der Lans (September 2015). Pilot illness is not extraordinary either, after the UK Supreme Court's decision in Lipton v BA Cityflyer on 10 July 2024.

How is the flight distance worked out?

The distance is the great-circle distance between your first departure airport and your final destination, as Article 7(4) requires. The calculator uses the haversine formula on airport coordinates from OurAirports. Formulas differ by under 0.5%, so routes within 1% of 1,500 km or 3,500 km are flagged.

Can I claim under both UK261 and EU261?

No, you can claim once, even when both laws cover the flight. A flight from Faro to London on an EU airline is covered by EU261 at €400 and by UK261 at £350. The calculator shows both and suggests the law of the departure country.

How long do I have to claim flight delay compensation?

You have 6 years from the flight in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and 5 years in Scotland, to start a court claim. Claim much sooner: ADR schemes need you to apply within 12 months of the airline's final response, and evidence is easier to find.

Is this calculator free, and does it take a cut?

Yes, it is free and takes nothing. Claims companies keep a share of your payout: AirHelp's price list shows 35% including VAT, and Flightright usually 20% to 30% plus VAT. Claiming direct with the letter this tool writes lets you keep the full amount.

Sources

The rates and rules in this tool come from:

Guides that use this tool

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