We’ve all been there – stuck at the airport when all we want is to be sat by the pool with an ice cold drink.
Delays are an unfortunate fact of life for many of the millions of people who travel by air each year. And research by passenger rights legal service provider refund.me indicate that UK airlines are amongst the worst in Europe.
In the peak travel period of June to September this year, UK passengers sought compensation from more airlines than any other European passengers – lodging claims against 96 different airlines.
Coming up worst in the research was low-cost Spanish airline Vueling, accounting for 11% of claims for compensation from UK passengers. Easyjet followed with 7%, while Ryanair accounted for 6% and British Airways 5%.
Eve Büchner, founder and CEO of refund.me, says: “Our study confirms the trend for an increase in complaints over travel-intensive holiday seasons. While the data is a snapshot from the UK and select European countries, it highlights that overall, charter and low-cost airlines consistently underperform in comparison to scheduled carriers. Passengers endure more travel disruption and we are seeing a significant upsurge in passengers asserting their rights to compensation under EU law.”
The worst performers ranked by percentage of claims per country:
| Germany | UK | France | Spain | World | |
| Airlines claimed against | 68 | 96 | 52 | 30 | 151 |
| 1. | Air Berlin (8%) | Vueling (11%) | Vueling (21%) | Vueling (41%) | Vueling (13%) |
| 2. | Germanwings (7%) | easyJet (7%) | easyJet (16%) | Ryanair (18%) | Ryanair (5%) |
| 3. | Lufthansa (7%) | Ryanair (6%) | Air France (7%) | easyJet (8%) | easyJet (8%) |
| 4. | Condor (6%) | British Airways (5%) | TAP (6%) | Iberia (6%) | Air France (3.5%) |
| 5. | easyJet (5%) | Norwegian (5%) | British Airways (4%) | Air France (4%) | British Airways (3%) |
How to claim compensation after a delayed flight
According to EU law, airlines are obliged to compensate customers if flight delays exceed more than three hours. Compensation is also due in the event of cancellations or rebookings. Compensation ranges from 250 to 600 euros, depending on the nature of the disruption. Approximately one in 400 flights is affected.
Refund.me specialises in helping delayed travelers claim compensation for their troubles. While many people are rejected out of hand when trying to make a claim directly, a specialist company like refund.me can often put enough pressure on airlines to create a successful claim. Indeed, the company proudly claims a 98% success rate in court.
The process is simple: provide refund.me with details of your delay, cancellation or denial of boarding, and they will take care of the rest.
Thanks to the company’s specialised Advanced Business Logic (ABL) technology, claims can be filed directly through their website or through their free app for iOS and Android.
Delayed passengers can also get their money quicker through refund.me. The company will take airlines to court if necessary, but in many cases the airline will pay out without the need for court action.
Have you been the victim of a delayed flight, missed connection or a cancellation that affected your holiday? If you have any comments or questions we would love to hear them, just fill in the boxes below!
