How I Claimed €400 for a Flight Delay

Buongiorno!

If your flight was delayed or you missed a connection, you might be entitled to compensation of up to 600 euros. And this isn’t a kind gesture from the airline—it’s the law. Many people don’t know, but under EU rules, airlines pay significant fines to passengers for flight delays. And getting this payment isn’t that difficult. The key is knowing when it applies and what you’re entitled to.

I’ll explain in more detail how it all works based on my own experience. I share exactly how I filed the claim, the required documents, and insider tips to make sure you get the money you deserve, fast and hassle-free. At the end, I’ll summarize it in a more structured way.

So, I needed to get from Rome to Porto. There was no direct flight, so I booked a Vueling ticket with a connection in Barcelona.

Flight delay

The Rome–Barcelona flight was delayed by more than an hour. Already on the plane, I realized I was going to miss my next flight.

Under EU rules, the airline is obliged to rebook you on the next available flight to your final destination.

Before we even took off, I checked Vueling’s schedule—on that day there were two more Barcelona–Porto flights, leaving in two and five hours. There had to be a seat available on at least one of them.

Rebooking on the next flight + meals

For those familiar with Barcelona airport: I ran from gate A21 to gate C68. In the daytime. At peak hour. I still don’t understand why—I mean, the plane had already left. But, as they say, hope dies last. A ground staff member told me that the Vueling office was near gate A26.

Phew… On the way back, I took it easy.

A Vueling representative informed me that I had already been automatically rebooked on the flight leaving in five hours. On one hand, this ruined all my plans for the day in Porto. But, to be honest, I already knew about the compensation and its approximate amount, and I was actually a little happy.

Important: for a delay, what counts is not the departure time, but the arrival time at your final destination. And it’s not the moment at arrival the wheels touch the runway, but the time when the plane doors open and passengers start disembarking.

The new electronic boarding pass was already in the Vueling app, and the airline representative also printed a paper copy as a keepsake. At the same time, I received a meal voucher. It covered anything at the nearest café, but up to 11 euros. A chicken sandwich and a bottle of water cost 12 euros, so I paid the difference.

Submitting a compensation claim

There are a few ways to submit a compensation claim:

On your own, via the airline’s website;
Through third-party services, like AirHelp. This is a middleman, and their lawyers will take 25–30% of the amount for their services. You don’t need to pay upfront — they deal with the airline themselves and transfer the remainder after the payment is received. You only need to fill out the form once.

I’m not ready to just give away 30%. That’s a ton of money. So I went solo. At the time, I didn’t know exactly how.

It turned out to be surprisingly simple. All reputable airlines have a section on their website about delays and cancellations: Delay, Cancellation, Refund. Even low-cost carriers like Wizzair and Ryanair. But there are nuances with them, which I’ll cover later.

With Vueling, submitting a compensation claim is done through a chatbot on the website. It’s straightforward: you enter your booking code, email, specify which segment the compensation is for, and add a comment of your own. After that, you receive an email confirming your claim has been registered. They promise a response within 10 days.

Money, money, money

On the ninth day, I received a reply saying… the compensation was not due. According to the data, the Barcelona–Porto flight had not been canceled.

I suspect this response was either a mistake by the staff or maybe I clicked the wrong option in the chatbot, choosing “flight cancellation” instead of “delay” as the reason for compensation. Either way, the answer didn’t match my situation. Vueling themselves had rebooked me on another flight—they knew perfectly well I arrived five hours late due to their fault. I wrote back explaining this in the email and, to be sure, clarified it clearly on social media as well.

The very next day, I got a response. Vueling agreed that they should pay me compensation. All I had to do was follow the link in the email and fill in my payment details. Five days later, 400 euros were in my account.

As you can see — nothing complicated.

A short summary.

Passenger rights in the EU

The foundation is EU Regulation No. 261/2004. This is the very law that obliges airlines to pay compensation to passengers for delays, cancellations, and denied boarding. It applies to all flights departing from EU countries, as well as to flights arriving in the EU if the airline is European.

When it applies

All flights within the EU, regardless of the airline.
Any flights departing from an EU airport, even if the airline is not European.
Flights arriving in the EU, only if operated by a European airline (registered in the EU, Norway, Iceland, or Switzerland).

Examples:

Rome–Barcelona flight – yes, compensated regardless of the airline;
Paris–Istanbul (operated by Turkish Airlines) – yes, compensated;
Istanbul–Paris (operated by Turkish Airlines) – no, not compensated, the airline is not from the EU;
New York–Lisbon (operated by TAP Air Portugal) – yes, compensated, the airline is from the EU.

When compensation is due

Delays are counted based on the arrival time at the final destination, not the departure time. The difference between the actual and scheduled arrival time:

3 hours or more — you can claim compensation.
Less than 3 hours — no compensation, but basic services are provided (water, meals, etc.).

How much money you can get

Depends on the distance between the departure point and destination:

250 euros – up to 1,500 km
400 euros – 1,500 to 3,500 km
600 euros – over 3,500 km

If the flight falls within these distances but arrives less than 4 hours late, the amount may be reduced by 50%. For example, on a long-haul flight, you could get 300 euros instead of 600.

Other rights while waiting

2+ hours – drinks, two calls/emails
4+ hours – meals, and you can also cancel the trip and get a full refund
Waiting until the next day – free hotel and transfer

Airline responsibility only on a single ticket

If you’re flying with a connection on a single ticket, the whole trip counts—from the starting point to the final destination. If a delay happens on one segment, it still counts.

But there’s a catch. When a passenger has a connecting flight, compensation only applies to flights booked under the same reservation. This is called a single ticket, and it’s what ensures the airline’s responsibility for the entire journey, including connections.

If I had two separate tickets, for example: Rome–Barcelona (WizzAir) and Barcelona–Porto (Vueling), then if the first flight was delayed and I missed the connection, no one would compensate me. These are considered two separate flights, each operating independently.

This setup is called “self-transfer,” and all the risks are entirely on you: delays, baggage, overnight stays—anything that goes wrong.

However, if the Rome–Barcelona flight had arrived in Barcelona five hours late, compensation would apply to that flight. Missing the Barcelona–Porto flight would be my responsibility.

Ryanair and WizzAir do not issue connecting tickets. Their tickets are always sold as separate segments. I’ve had a case where a Ryanair flight from Prague to Budapest was delayed, I missed the next flight, and had to buy another ticket with Ryanair.

Who doesn’t pay

Airlines can refuse payment if the delay is caused by “extraordinary circumstances”: weather conditions, strikes, airport closure.

But! Technical issues, late arrival of the aircraft, or crew shortage do not count as force majeure. Airlines must pay.

Sneaky stuff

I won’t name names, but according to reviews, some airlines offer compensation not in actual euros, but as virtual credits or coupons in your account, sometimes with an extra 20% on top. I would refuse. There’s no guarantee I’ll fly with them soon, and these credits expire within a year. So let them pay what the law requires.