‘Compensation is unlikely’: Experts on what passengers on delayed or cancelled flights need to know

23.07.2024 - 23:30 / euronews.com / Angela Symons

Airports around the world have been hit by a major IT outage, causing widespread chaos.

Passengers all over Europe and the world are experiencing long delays at check-in and flights are taking off late. Some airlines have grounded flights completely.

If you are due to travel today, you should check your flight status before leaving home and allow plenty of time for check-in and security.

It is not yet clear whether passengers will be owed compensation or who will be liable for delays and cancellations.

Under European law, however, passengers are entitled to certain protections.

Here’s everything you need to know about compensation and insurance coverage.

Under European law, if a flight is delayed by more than three hours or cancelled entirely, the airline has to offer the passenger another flight or give them a full refund and sometimes compensation.

Compensation ranges from €250 for a short-haul flight to €600 for long-haul.

However there are exceptions to this rule, such as weather conditions and security risks as these are out of airlines’ control.

It remains to be seen who will be liable for today's major issues, but it is likely that airlines will consider the outage as an ‘extraordinary circumstance’ beyond their control.

“If it is not the fault of the airline, compensation is unlikely,” Anita Mendiratta, author and special advisor to the secretary general of UN Tourism, tells Euronews Travel.

European airlines and other airlines operating in the EU and UK must also offer assistance in the event of delays and cancellations, including food and accommodation when necessary. Though this is only if it is their fault or an issue within their control.

Many airline websites have also been affected by the outage, including their compensation application pages. It is therefore best to consult a member of staff at the airport. 

You will be able to contact airlines once their websites and apps are working again, though this could take days according to some experts.

"Compensation may come from the airline, depending on the location and terms of ticket purchase, but that is not the only route," Mendiratta says.

"Credit cards used for purchase of air tickets may have compensation clauses built in to address disruptions. And of course, there is travel insurance.

"Whatever the case, there are options and travellers should look into when and how they may be compensated. But that comes only after we address priority #1: getting everyone safely flying again."

If you are unable to claim compensation through your airline, you may be able to fall back on your travel insurance.

This depends on your policy agreement, which may only cover delays or cancellations too. Often, travel insurance only covers delays of more than eight or 12