Aurélien Fleurot // Credits: BERTRAND GUAY / AFP 6:58 a.m., March 28, 2024

On the occasion of the 20th anniversary of European regulations allowing compensation for passengers for a canceled or delayed flight of more than 3 hours, Europe 1 reveals to you this Thursday that almost one in two French passengers does not know that he is entitled to financial compensation, according to an investigation by Flightright, Europe's leader in traveler compensation.

The rules are however clear. Travelers departing from a European Union country whose flight is canceled due to non-extraordinary conditions, or delayed by more than three hours, have the right not only to be assisted, rerouted and reimbursed, but also compensated up to 'at 600 euros. Compensation is also possible for a flight departing from a city outside Europe to the EU, provided that the airline is from the old continent. 

It took more than a year, but Théo finally won his case. While he was supposed to go to Brazil as part of his studies, his return flight was canceled and postponed 3 days later. “Given that it was the faculty who had made the reservation, personally, each student, we were not able to have all the reservation information to obtain the compensation offered by Air France. But it was very quick subsequently, I was able to get compensation of 600 euros just by giving some information,” he explains to Europe 1. 600 euros because it was a long-haul flight. The compensation will be €250 for a short flight such as Paris-Toulouse and €400 for a medium-haul flight such as Lyon-Athens. 

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Airlines organized to respond to complaints 

Théo's approach ended up succeeding thanks to the intervention of a specialized company. “We have a strike force because we work with partner lawyers, because we have volume and because the airlines are organized to respond to our complaints,” indicates Imane El Bouanani, legal manager for France at Flightright.  

If successful, the company recovers 30% of the amount. In case of failure, the bill will amount to 0 euros. To optimize the chances of winning your case, you must remember to ask for “compensation” and not a refund. A strike by airline staff now gives rise to compensation, which is not the case with a strike by air traffic controllers. For companies like Flightright, Air Indemnités or Retard Vol, the files are more and more numerous. Last year, France was the second European country most affected by delayed or canceled flights.