Millions go unclaimed by airline passengers
A company that specialises in helping airline passengers get compensation says 1000 people are entitled to £430 every day in the UK.
Dutch company EUclaim gathers and analyses flight data and uses the information to prove the cases of travellers who have suffered delays or cancellations and want compensation from the airlines.
It has based the figures on an average UK flight cancellation rate of 1.2% and concludes that £115m is going unclaimed. The company says few people know about the EC regulation 261/2004 introduced in 2005 which gives air passengers rights to compensation and help if boarding is denied, flights cancelled, delays suffered or downgrades made.
EU law states that airlines don’t have to pay out if flights are cancelled at the last minute due to extraordinary circumstances such as technical problems but EUclaim says carriers use this law to their advantage.
Said EUclaim chief executive officer Hendrik Noorderhaven: “It is virtually impossible for passengers to object to airline statements about technical circumstances. As a result the airlines have been able to effectively hide behind the claim of extraordinary circumstance – until now.”
The company says it monitors every aircraft of every airline 24/7 and uses this flight intelligence to successfully prove that airlines have delayed or cancelled flights for economic reasons rather than technical ones.
By Dinah Hatch
Bev
Editor in chief Bev Fearis has been a travel journalist for 25 years. She started her career at Travel Weekly, where she became deputy news editor, before joining Business Traveller as deputy editor and launching the magazine’s website. She has also written travel features, news and expert comment for the Guardian, Observer, Times, Telegraph, Boundless and other consumer titles and was named one of the top 50 UK travel journalists by the Press Gazette.
Vegas’s Billion-Dollar Secrets – What They Don’t Want Tourists to Know
Visit Florida’s New CEO Bryan Griffin Shares His Vision for State Tourism with Graham
Chicago’s Tourism Renaissance: Graham Interviews Kristin Reynolds of Choose Chicago
Graham Talks with Cassandra McCauley of MMGY NextFactor About the Latest Industry Research
Destination International’s Andreas Weissenborn: Research, Advocacy, and Destination Impact
Graham and Don Welsh Discuss the Success of Destinations International’s Annual Conference
Graham and CEO Andre Kiwitz on Ventura Travel’s UK Move and Recruitment for the Role
Brett Laiken and Graham Discuss Florida’s Tourism Momentum and Global Appeal
Graham and Elliot Ferguson on Positioning DC as a Cultural and Inclusive Global Destination
Graham Talks to Fraser Last About His England-to-Ireland Trek for Mental Health Awareness
Kathy Nelson Tells Graham About the Honour of Hosting the World Cup and Kansas City’s Future
Graham McKenzie on Sir Richie Richardson’s Dual Passion for Golf and His Homeland, Antigua
ADS PRO 
TAP Air Portugal to operate 29 flights due to strike on December 11
Qatar Airways offers flexible payment options for European travellers
Airlines suspend Madagascar services following unrest and army revolt
Air Mauritius reduces frequencies to Europe and Asia for the holiday season
Major rail disruptions around and in Berlin until early 2026