Your Rights Under UK261
After Brexit, the UK retained EU261 as domestic law. UK261 provides the same core protections for passengers on UK flights, up to £520 compensation for delays, cancellations, and denied boarding.
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Who is covered
UK261 applies to: (1) any flight departing from a UK airport, regardless of the airline, including US, EU, and other international carriers; and (2) flights arriving at a UK airport operated by a UK-based carrier (British Airways, easyJet, Virgin Atlantic, TUI Airways, Wizz Air UK, and others). If you flew Ryanair from London Gatwick to Madrid, the UK261 departure rules apply. If you flew Iberia from Madrid to London, only EU261 applies (since Iberia is not UK-based).
Fixed compensation amounts
Like EU261, UK261 compensation is a fixed amount that doesn't depend on your ticket price. The amounts are denominated in pounds sterling and updated periodically.
Under 1,500 km
£220
e.g. London to Amsterdam
1,500 to 3,500 km
£350
e.g. London to Cairo
Over 3,500 km
£520
e.g. London to New York
When you qualify
UK261 triggers are the same as EU261: (1) your flight arrives 3 or more hours late at the final destination; (2) your flight is canceled with less than 14 days' notice and the airline doesn't reroute you to arrive within 2-4 hours of your original schedule; or (3) you are involuntarily denied boarding due to overbooking. Voluntary bumping, where you accept the airline's offer to take a later flight, does not trigger UK261, though you can still negotiate compensation in that case.
Key difference from EU261 after Brexit
Before Brexit, all flights between the UK and EU were covered by EU261. Now, coverage depends on the airline and direction: UK to EU: UK261 applies (departure from UK airport). EU to UK on a UK carrier: UK261 applies (UK-based airline arriving in UK). EU to UK on an EU carrier: EU261 applies (EU-based airline, EU departure rules). For flights between the UK and EU, both regulations can potentially apply on different legs of a round trip. TravelStacks checks both automatically and claims under whichever regulation provides better coverage for your specific itinerary.
How far back can I claim?
The UK261 claim window is determined by general limitation law, not UK261 itself. Both windows are more generous than most EU countries, meaning passengers with flights from 2019, 2020, or 2021 may still have valid claims:
England / Wales / NI
6 years
Limitation Act 1980
Scotland
5 years
Prescription Act 1973
Airlines apply the same denial tactics as EU261
UK airlines have adopted the same playbook as their EU counterparts: deny on first submission hoping passengers accept it, cite 'extraordinary circumstances' for technical faults that don't qualify, and offer vouchers rather than cash. The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) is the UK enforcement body, filing a CAA complaint after an airline denial is free and often prompts a settlement. TravelStacks escalates to the CAA automatically when airlines don't respond.
How TravelStacks helps
TravelStacks checks your UK flight against UK261 criteria, calculates your exact compensation in pounds sterling, and handles the full claim process, including escalation to the CAA if the airline delays or denies. We charge 25% of what we recover, nothing if we don't. No paperwork, no calls to the airline.
Check my UK flightUK261 passenger rights, frequently asked questions
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Check my UK flightWorks for past flights too. US DOT: up to 1 year. EU261 and UK261: up to 6 years back.