Flight delayed by 5 hours:refund or compensation?
From five hours of departure delay, you may normally abandon the trip and request reimbursement of the unused ticket. Compensation of up to €600 is separate and depends on final delay, route and cause.
This guide provides general information. Eligibility always depends on the precise facts.
After five hours, choose whether to abandon or continue
If the journey no longer serves its purpose, request reimbursement of unused parts and, where needed, a return to the original departure point.
If you still travel, the ticket is not automatically refunded, but care, expenses and fixed compensation may remain possible.
Compensation may reach €600
Where the applicable rules are satisfied, the amount mainly depends on the journey distance.
The amounts are not automatic. The route, final-arrival delay, cause and any rerouting offer must be checked.
Refund and compensation are separate rights
The same delay may trigger several rights, each with its own conditions.
Abandon the journey
After five hours at departure, reimbursement is normally available if you choose not to continue.
Continue travelling
Care remains and compensation can be checked using final arrival.
Return to origin
It may be due promptly if a completed part has become useless.
Separate compensation
It depends on scope, distance, final delay and cause.
What you can request after five hours
State your choice clearly and retain supporting documents.
Ticket reimbursement
It covers unused sectors and sometimes those already used but now pointless.
Return to origin
It may be required where the trip no longer serves its purpose.
Continuing care
Meals, drinks, communications and sometimes a hotel remain relevant.
Separate compensation
€250, €400 or €600 may be added when all conditions are met.
Ticket reimbursement and compensation may coexist
Reimbursement concerns abandoned transport; fixed compensation addresses disruption where its conditions are met.
The cause mainly affects fixed compensation
Even with extraordinary circumstances, refund choice and care may remain.
Ordinary fault
It may allow compensation where the airline controls the problem.
Dangerous weather
It may remove fixed compensation without removing the chosen refund.
Operational issue
Crew, rotation and internal organisation require case-by-case review.
Documents to keep
Booking confirmation
Keep the complete itinerary and reservation reference.
Boarding pass
Retain the document or check-in evidence.
Actual times
Record departure and the door-opening time at destination.
Reason provided
Save texts, emails and airport-screen photographs.
Airline correspondence
Keep the claim, refusal and every response.
Relevant receipts
Retain reasonable expenses caused by the disruption.
Your request in four steps
Identify the flight
Add the number, date and complete journey.
Describe the facts
State the timings and reason communicated.
Attach evidence
Provide messages, travel documents and receipts.
Check the conditions
Review every requirement before taking action.
Related pages to consult
5-hour flight delay FAQ
Can I request a refund after five hours?
Yes, where departure delay reaches at least five hours and you choose not to travel.
Can I still travel and obtain a ticket refund?
Not automatically. Once transport is used, a full ticket refund follows a different logic.
Can I also receive €600?
Potentially, when distance and every compensation condition are satisfied.
Do extraordinary circumstances remove the refund?
No. They may remove fixed compensation without removing the refund choice.
What about a connection that is now pointless?
Completed parts may be reimbursable if the journey has lost its purpose, with a return to origin where needed.
Must the airline provide a hotel?
Yes where the new departure requires an overnight stay and care is due.
Could your flight qualify for compensation?
Enter the journey for an initial review with no upfront fee.