Kayak flight delayed or cancelled? Get flight compensation of up to €600 per passenger!

Kayak flight delayed — when can I claim flight compensation?

European regulations (EU261) state that when a flight is delayed by more than 3 hours, passengers should receive flight compensation from the airline. 

Flight compensation is however only possible if: 

• Your flight was departing from Europe, or operated by a European airline (more information in the table below)

AND

• The airline was responsible for the delay. In other words, the delay was not due to a third party or unforeseen event (see the “Extraordinary circumstances” section of this article)

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Type of flight	Example	Compensation
Flying with a British carrier	Tokyo to London with British Airways	Yes
Flying with a EU carrier	Amsterdam to London with KLM	Yes
Flying with a non-UK/non-EU carrier from the UK	London to Tokyo with Japan Airlines	Yes
Flying with a non-UK/non-EU carrier to the UK	Tokyo to London with Japan Airlines	No

Type of flight	Example	Compensation
Flying with a British carrier	Tokyo to London with British Airways	Yes
Flying with a EU carrier	Amsterdam to London with KLM	Yes
Flying with a non-UK/non-EU carrier from the UK	London to Tokyo with Japan Airlines	Yes
Flying with a non-UK/non-EU carrier to the UK	Tokyo to London with Japan Airlines	No

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Kayak flight cancelled — compensation and refund policies according to EU261

If your Kayak flight was cancelled, you have several options. You can claim flight compensation, a full monetary refund of your ticket, or even both, in certain circumstances. We go through each case below!

Flight compensation for my Kayak flight cancelled 

According to the EU261, you can claim flight compensation for a Kayak flight cancelled when all of the following conditions are met: 

• Your flight was departing from Europe or operated by a European airline

• The airline announced the cancellation of your flight less than 14 days in advance 

• The cancellation was the airline’s fault, and not cause by a third party or an unforeseen event (see the “Extraordinary circumstances” section of this article to learn more)

Cancellation notice	Alternative flight	Compensation
Fewer than 7 days in advance	Departs 1h+ earlier or arrived 2h+ later	Yes
7-14 days in advance	Departs 2h+ earlier or arrived 4h+ later	Yes
Fewer than 14 days in advance	No alternative flight offered	Yes + refund

Flight refund for cancelled Kayak flight 

No matter the airline or your flight itinerary, you are eligible for a flight refund as soon as your flight was cancelled and: 

• The airline offered you an alternative flight that you decided not to accept

OR

• The airline did not offer you an alternative flight

Kayak flight cancelled — voucher or refund? 

We strongly advise against accepting vouchers from airlines. If you accept a voucher, you will be forced to fly again with the same airline. The company might also set a deadline for redeeming the voucher. Moreover, if the airline goes bankrupt, you could have trouble retrieving your money in a monetary form.

Kayak flight delayed or cancelled — how much money can I get?

The compensation amount depends on the distance of your flight. You will receive it per passenger.

Distance of your flight	Compensation
Flights shorter than 1,500 km	Get £220 per passenger
Flight between 1,500 and 3,500 km	Get £350 per passenger
Flights of over 1,500 kilometres within the EU	Get £350 per passenger
Flights of over 3,500 kilometres outside of the EU	Get €600 per passenger

Extraordinary circumstances — can the airline deny me flight compensation? 

Unfortunately, they can. Even if your flight was delayed by more than 3 hours or cancelled at the last minute, the airline can deny you compensation, calling to the extraordinary circumstances. Those are situations when the airline is not responsible for the delay but a third party or unforeseen event is.

Here are a few examples of the most common extraordinary circumstances: 

• Bad weather conditions, such as thick fog, heavy rain, or thunderstorms.

• A strike, most often specifically within the aviation industry (for example, a strike of air traffic control workers at a specific airport).

  However, a strike of the airline's crew is not considered an extraordinary circumstance!

• Political circumstances, such as a terrorist attack or general security risk due to political unrest.

• Natural disasters, including volcanic eruptions and hurricanes.

• A collision between the aircraft and birds or other foreign objects.

• An ill or unruly passenger.

• Flight delays caused by the airport staff, such as extraordinarily long queues to security checks.

Kayak flight delayed or cancelled — should you reach out to the airline or your travel agency? 

Both are possible. However, we recommend passengers to get a strong legal partner by their side when it comes to claiming flight compensation.

Think no more and claim with Flight-Delayed.com, the easiest and quickest way to get your flight compensation or refund from the airline!

Once you submit all the necessary information regarding your flight on our website, an expert will take over making sure your claim is handled properly. At Flight-Delayed.com, we analyse your claim, make sure to get all of the documents ready, contact the airline and if necessary, we can take your claim to court to make sure you receive your flight compensation! All of this on ‘no win, no fee’ basis.

About Kayak 

Kayak is an online travel agency (OTA) offering a comparison service to travellers all over the world. With their service, travellers can compare flights, hotels, restaurants, holiday packages, car rentals and more to make sure to get the best deals when organising their trip.

Kayak is an American company based in Stamford. On top of KAYAK, the company owns 6 other international brands: SWOODOO, checkfelix, momondo, Cheapflights, Mundi and HotelsCombined.

Useful links

• Expedia flight compensation
• Kiwi flight compensation
• Lastminute.com flight compensation
• More details on delayed flight compensation
• More details on cancelled flight compensation
• Post-Brexit flight compensation rules in the UK
• Rules regarding missed flight compensation
• Rules regarding flight compensation in the case of denied boarding
• Claim Calculator — check if you are eligible for compensation