Claiming flight delay compensation, step by step
Most claims can be won without a lawyer and without paying anyone a share. What matters is doing things in the right order.
Your compensation · BER · Berlin → AYT · Antalya
€400
per passenger, no deduction · owed
- EU Regulation 261/2004€400 · owed
Three hours or more late at the final destination: full compensation (CJEU, Sturgeon).
- Great-circle distance
- 2,186 km
- Distance band
- 1,500 to 3,500 km
- Time limit in Germany (BGB s. 195, 199)
- 31 December 2029
Write the claim letter to the airline
Prepared by Radif Partners · Method · law as of October 22, 2026 · 4,008 airports (OurAirports)
Start by writing to the airline that operated the flight, with your booking reference, flight number and date, the amount you are owed and your bank details; the calculator above produces this letter in your browser. Many airlines also have an online claim form; use it and attach the letter. If the airline rejects the claim or does not resolve it, a UK flight claim can go to the alternative dispute resolution (ADR) body the airline has signed up to; the Civil Aviation Authority publishes the list of airlines in each scheme, and handles complaints about airlines that are not in one. If that fails, you can issue a claim in the small claims track of the county court in England and Wales, or the simple procedure in Scotland, within six or five years. For flights from Germany, the German arbitration bodies and local courts are open to you too, and cross-border claims within the EU can use the European small claims procedure up to €5,000. Claims firms commonly keep 25 to 35% of the payment, VAT included.
Step 1: write to the airline
For Manchester to Antalya, 3,131 km, four hours twenty late because of a technical fault, UK261 gives £350 per passenger. The calculator builds a claim letter in your browser with the flight details, the article relied on, the amount and a deadline. Send it to the operating carrier by email, web form or recorded post, and keep proof. If you flew from Berlin, as in the calculator default, the amount is €400 under EU261.
| Step | When | Cost to you | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Claim to the airline | as soon as possible after the flight | none | payment or rejection |
| 2. ADR body or CAA (UK) | after rejection or no resolution | see the scheme rules on the CAA page | decision on the complaint |
| 2. söp or Federal Office of Justice (Germany) | after rejection or 2 months’ silence | normally free | proposal, binding if both agree |
| 3. Small claims court | if the dispute is still open | court fee, recoverable if you win | enforceable judgment |
Check the amount before you write
EU261 today (1,500 to 3,500 km)
€400
| UK261 | £350 |
| Long haul, 3 to 4 h late | – |
Step 2 in the UK: ADR or the CAA
Most airlines flying from the UK belong to an approved alternative dispute resolution scheme. The Civil Aviation Authority’s ADR page lists which airline belongs to which body and explains the conditions. You must complain to the airline first. If the airline is not in any scheme, the CAA itself can take up the complaint. Using ADR does not prevent you from going to court afterwards.
Step 2 for flights from Germany
German law offers arbitration for claims up to €5,000 under section 57 of the Aviation Act: through söp if the airline is a member, otherwise through the arbitration body at the Federal Office of Justice. It opens once the airline has refused or stayed silent for two months. The Luftfahrt-Bundesamt (LBA) enforces the regulation and can fine airlines, but does not collect individual payments. Full German route: Frankfurt Airport and Munich Airport pages name the local courts.
Step 3: court
In England and Wales you can start a money claim online through GOV.UK; claims of this size go to the small claims track. In Scotland the equivalent is the simple procedure. Within the EU, cross-border claims up to €5,000 can use the European small claims procedure, in writing with standard forms. Under the Court of Justice’s Rehder judgment (C-204/08) you can sue at the place of departure or arrival of the flight. Mind the time limits: how long you have to claim.