Missed connecting flight

Did you miss your connecting flight due to a flight cancellation or a delay of the previous flight? Under EU law, you may be eligible for compensation. In EU judgment C-537/17 of 31 May 2018, it is clarified that EU Regulation 261/2004 justifies compensation for air passengers in case of a missed connecting flight when the following conditions apply:

• The journey is booked as a single ticket (with one booking reference for your entire journey including both your inbound and outbound flight to/from the airport you are connecting in)
• You are minimum 3 hours delayed upon arrival to your final destination compared to your original time of arrival because of your missed connecting flight
• The delay to your transit airport is not due to extraordinary circumstances that are beyond the control of the airline.
• At least one of your flights must be departing from an airport in an EU Member State or served by an airline based in an EU Member State.

If these conditions apply to your case, you can claim compensation for your flight delay caused by missing your connecting flight.

Your rights if you missed your connecting flight

If above conditions apply, you may be eligible for compensation of between €250 and €600 per person, depending on the circumstances and length of your delay.

If you miss your connecting flight due to a delayed or cancelled previous flight you will most often have additional expenses related to your extended waiting time. In many cases, you are entitled to compensation for the meals and hotel expenses accumulated during this unwanted layover. Read more about how to get reimbursed for your extra expenses in the section reimbursement of extra expenses.

Cases where you might not be entitled to compensation

In some cases, you might not receive compensation if you miss a connecting flight. Examples of situations where the airline is not responsible for paying compensation are:

• if you did not check-in in time for your original flight
• if you have purchased separate tickets for two flights
• if your connection time between your two flights was shorter than required by the airline or airport
• if you were denied boarding on your original flight due to safety reasons, lack of valid ID or visa or in other ways violated the terms and conditions of the airline

How to find out if you can get compensation?

The EU-rules can be difficult to interpret so the easiest way to find out if you are entitled to a compensation for your missed connecting flight is to try our free compensation calculator. By entering a few travel details, you can easily find out if you are eligible for a compensation from the airline servicing your flight.