Cyprus News | Compensation for Delayed or Cancelled Flights

Cyprus News | Compensation for Delayed or Cancelled Flights

What if your flight to Cyprus was over two hours late or was cancelled? The first thing to say is that you will only be entitled to compensation for flights which depart from an EU airport, or you were on an EU airline where the flight landed at an EU airport. This means that if you departed from an EU airport, e.g. Stansted, and landed over two hours late in the south then you are entitled to compensation. For a similar flight to the north, you would probably only be entitled compensation for the section of the flight landing in Turkey and not the part of the flight landing in Ercan.

Secondly, the flight problem has to be the fault of the airline, e.g. bad weather, industrial action, political problems or  security or safety issues. For example, say I was delayed flying into Ercan and arrived three hours late. Let’s say that I was delayed for 1 hours arriving at Antalya in Turkey and a further 2 hours taking off for Ercan. No compensation would be given. However if the flight arrived 3 hours late at Antalya, this would be a different matter. But what if the flight was delayed leaving Stansted because a passenger did not turn up and baggage had to be off loaded, it could be argued that this was for safety reason. Or what if a piece of equipment failed and for safety reason the plane could not be used? I think you get the picture; it may not be easy claiming.

If you do manage to convince the airline you are eligible for compensation then the payout potential is considerable:

• Two Hours – this is when communication costs and food and drink provision cuts in, and accommodation if the delay is over night; keep the receipts
• Three Hours – in addition to the above, between €250 (£212) and €600 (£508) compensation becomes payable
• Five Hours or more – if you decide not to fly you will be eligible for everything above, plus the ticket price, no matter whose fault it is, but the compensation will only apply if it is the airline’s fault.

If you have insurance which includes legal costs then let the insurance company do the work for you contacting the airline and putting your case.

Further details can be found at www.moneysavingexpert.com/travel/flight-delays