Start with the departure airport, arrival airport and operating airline. EU261 and UK261 may provide care, rerouting or a refund and conditional fixed compensation. U.S. DOT rules instead focus on refunds for cancellations or defined significant changes when you do not accept the alternative; they do not create an automatic EU-style delay payment.
Content last reviewed: 3 September 2026
Framework scope rechecked: 17 September 2026
Direct framework comparison
These frameworks can overlap on some routes, but they do not stack automatically. Check the exact operating flight, disruption, notice and alternative offered before relying on an estimate.
Check first: A flight leaving the EU, Iceland, Norway or Switzerland can be covered on any airline. A flight arriving there from outside generally needs an EU airline.
Keep separate: Care and refund or rerouting can still matter when extraordinary circumstances prevent fixed compensation.
Check first: UK law covers departures from the UK on any airline, arrivals in the UK on a UK or EU airline, and arrivals in the EU on a UK airline.
Keep separate: More than three hours late may open a compensation question; a delay of at least five hours can instead support choosing not to travel and seeking a refund.
Check first: For travel to, from or within the United States, ask whether the airline cancelled the flight or made a defined significant change and whether you rejected travel, credit or another offer.
Keep separate: A required refund is not the same as automatic fixed cash compensation for an ordinary delay. Airline-specific controllable-delay commitments may differ.
This comparison is preliminary information, not a decision on eligibility or payment. Recheck the airline and regulator sources for the event date and exact itinerary.
Coverage, €250 / €400 / €600 bands, 3-hour arrival, 50% reduction, care, 5-hour refund and national time limits.
Read the guideCAA £220 / £350 / £260 / £520 bands, UK coverage, care and writing to the airline.
Read the guideRefund and involuntary denied-boarding information—not an EU-style fixed-compensation tool.
Read the guideCAA-style £220 / £350 / £260 / £520 table, long-haul 3–4 hour split, and a free letter.
Open this pageCheck route and airline coverage, possible EU261 compensation bands, arrival timing and the evidence needed for a direct request.
Open this pageSeparate refund, rerouting and care questions from possible compensation. Start with the cancellation notice and replacement-flight details.
Open this pageFive DIY steps: calculator, evidence, letter, airline form, then ADR or CAA PACT after eight weeks.
Open this pageOfficial statutory compensation bands
| Framework | Distance / arrival context | Reference amount |
|---|---|---|
| EU261 | Flights of 1,500 km or less | €250 per passenger |
| EU261 | More than 1,500 km inside the EU/EEA, or other flights between 1,500 and 3,500 km | €400 per passenger |
| EU261 | More than 3,500 km to or from a non-EU country, arrives 4+ hours late | €600 per passenger |
| EU261 long-haul arrival delay | More than 3,500 km to or from a non-EU country, arrives at least 3h but under 4h | €300 per passenger |
| UK261 | Under 1,500 km, arrives 3+ hours late | £220 per passenger |
| UK261 | 1,500–3,500 km, arrives 3+ hours late | £350 per passenger |
| UK261 | Over 3,500 km, arrives 3–4 hours late | £260 per passenger |
| UK261 | Over 3,500 km, arrives more than 4 hours late | £520 per passenger |
| U.S. DOT | Refunds and involuntary denied boarding — not a fixed delay cash table | No EU/UK-style delay band |
Amounts are official reference bands, not a payout promise. Coverage, final arrival, notice, rerouting and extraordinary circumstances still decide the case.
Official EU and UK guidance gives examples such as serious weather, air-traffic-control decisions, political instability, security events and some external strikes. This does not automatically remove care, rerouting or refund rights. A normal maintenance technical fault is not automatically extraordinary under EU guidance; ask the operating airline for its recorded reason.
Read the extraordinary-circumstances guideThe EU’s official FAQ says the time limit for legal action varies by national law. Preserve your booking, notices, final-arrival evidence and receipts now; then check the national enforcement body, a consumer centre or the airline’s official process for the route concerned.
Read the time-limits guideOfficial starting points
Official EU information on cancellation, delay, rerouting, care, compensation, connections and operating carriers.
Your Europe FAQThe UK CAA explains care, compensation bands, refunds after long delays and final-destination timing.
UK CAA delay guidanceThe U.S. Department of Transportation explains refund protections and airline consumer information.
U.S. DOT refundsThe U.S. Department of Transportation explains voluntary and involuntary bumping protections.
U.S. DOT bumping guidanceSituation-specific guides
These pages keep connection, denied boarding, baggage, strike and India DGCA facts separate from the main calculator.
High-value route guides
Every published page gives an evidence checklist, route-specific framework note and a prefilled calculator handoff. These are educational pages, not compensation guarantees.
FlightRefundCalc provides preliminary information and an evidence-first checklist. It does not decide claims, guarantee compensation or act as your legal representative.