British Airways
Are you flying with British Airways and your flight was delayed or cancelled? Find out when you are entitled to €250-600 compensation and how to claim it
British Airways (BA) is the UK's flag carrier and a major player on routes to and from London. In 2024, it carried 46 million passengers and offered almost 57.7 million seats - both of which grew year-on-year despite limited capacity at Heathrow.
It retained its lead on transatlantic routes: 7.7 million passengers flew between the UK and the US – the most of any European airline.
Why BA delays and cancellations are important to your rights
EU law 261/2004 applies to all departures from the EU and to BA flights to the EU (BA is an EU carrier, although the UK has left the EU)
In Great Britain, the identical UK 261 applies – practically the same obligations.
When are you entitled to compensation for a British Airways flight?
| Flight situation | Key condition | Minimal delay at destination |
| Flight delay | BA error (e.g. technical failure, crew rotation) | ≥ 3 hour |
| Cancelled flight | information < 14 days before departure, the reason is not an extraordinary circumstance | - |
| Denied boarding | involuntary, without passengers receiving compensation or an alternative flight | - |
⚠️ Extraordinary circumstances without claim: extreme weather, closed airspace, strike of airport/ATC personnel (but not of BA's own employees).
Compensation amount according to distance
Up to 1 500 km
250 € *
1 500 km - 3 500 km
400 € *
Over 3 500 km
Delay 3 – 4 hours
300 € *
Delay ≥ 4 hour
600 € *
⚠️ Important: Compensation is determined by actual arrival at the destination, not the take-off time.
What must BA provide besides financial compensation?
Care
food, drinks, 2 × phone calls/emails while waiting.
Accommodation and transfer
during an overnight stay
Choose between:
- - Rerouting at the earliest opportunity
- - Full refund of the ticket price (including unused segments).
How to proceed - time required for individual steps
1
Obtain evidence (boarding pass, emails, confirmation of delay)→ 5 – 10 min
2
Fill out the online BA form „Delayed or Cancelled Flight“ → 15 min
3
Wait for a response / complete documents → days – weeks
4
Escalation: UK CAA / ADR scheme / court→ weeks – months
Do you want to handle it yourself or delegate?
Self-help: Expect administration, monitoring of deadlines (3 years in the UK and EU) and possible legal proceedings.
Delegation: you pay a % of success, saving hours of communication and the risk of process errors.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
No – you can insist on cash.
Yes, same as UK 261, the conditions are identical.
For a direct BA claim, usually 4-10 weeks. For delegation, it depends on the contract - the service may pay a deposit and then recover the amount in the background.
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