British Airways · BA · BA 261 · licensed in the UK
British Airways delayed flight compensation
Three hours late at your final destination and the cause wasn't extraordinary? British Airways owes £220, £350 or £520 per passenger under UK261 — the regulation some claimants still call BA 261. Here's the claims portal it actually reads, why the first offer is usually a voucher, and when the rarer euro figure applies instead.
No account. The verdict comes before the payment screen.
Flight BA 117, delayed 4 hours 5 minutes: £520 owed per passenger.
| Distance | Amount |
|---|---|
| Up to 1,500 km | £220 |
| 1,500–3,500 km | £350 |
| Over 3,500 km | £520 |
British Airways delayed flight compensation is the UK261 payment owed when a BA flight reaches its final destination 3 or more hours late: £220, £350 or £520 per passenger by great-circle distance. Almost every BA route touches a Great Britain airport, which is what puts UK261 — rather than the euro-denominated EU261 — in charge of most BA claims.
What British Airways owes, and under which rule
The amount comes off the sterling table above for the overwhelming majority of BA flights. Whether anything is owed, and in which currency, comes off four rules — read them before you write.
- 3 hours at the final destination. Not at the gate, not on departure — the arrival time at the last airport on the ticket. Two hours fifty-nine pays nothing. Authority: CJEU C-402/07 (Sturgeon), carried into UK law as retained EU case law.
- Denied boarding pays from the first minute. If you were bumped from an oversold BA flight, there's no delay threshold at all.
- A cancellation told to you 14 or more days ahead pays nothing. Inside 14 days it's compensable, subject to re-routing.
- UK261 covers a BA flight whenever it touches Great Britain. Leaving a GB airport, or arriving in GB on BA, puts the claim under UK261 in sterling. A BA-operated flight that touches neither end in Great Britain would fall under EU261 in euros instead — genuinely rare on BA's own route map, but see the EU261 bands and who they cover if that's your itinerary. The full two-part test is set out in the UK261 guide.
- CarrierBritish Airways (IATA BA), licensed in the United Kingdom
- Claim channelBritish Airways' Feedback and Claims Portal
- Typical first replyAbout 4 weeks
- Opening offerOften a travel voucher — you're entitled to cash instead
- RegulatorCivil Aviation Authority (CAA), via the Passenger Advice and Complaints Team, after 8 weeks
- Deadline6 years from the flight date, under Great Britain limitation rules
Where to send a British Airways claim — and why claimants search "BA 261"
British Airways takes UK261 and EU261 claims through its own Feedback and Claims Portal. Enough claimants shorten "UK261 claim against BA" to just BA 261 that it's worth knowing both names point at the same thing: this page.
The portal
File at British Airways' Feedback and Claims Portal. Name the flight number, the date, the arrival delay at your final destination, and every passenger on the booking.
The voucher opener
BA often answers first with travel credit rather than cash. UK261 compensation is a cash entitlement — decline the voucher in writing and restate the sterling amount and your bank details.
The clock
A first reply usually takes about 4 weeks — quicker than most of the directory. Diary a follow-up regardless; a dated second letter is what keeps a stalled file moving.
Rebutting the rejection BA sends most often
The recurring BA refusal is a technical fault. It doesn't end the claim.
"A technical fault caused the delay"
Rebuttable. A technical problem that comes to light during maintenance or from a failure in normal operation is inherent in an airline's ordinary activity, so it isn't extraordinary under CJEU C-549/07 (Wallentin-Hermann). Quote the case, say the aircraft was in British Airways' control, and repeat the request for cash. What genuinely does excuse BA is set out in what counts as an extraordinary circumstance.
The 3-hour test is measured on arrival at your final destination, not on departure. A 90-minute late push-back that turns into a 3-hour-20 arrival still qualifies, and a four-hour departure the crew makes up in the air may not. State which number you're claiming on and where it came from.
If nothing comes back: the Civil Aviation Authority
The UK's national enforcement body for UK261 is the Civil Aviation Authority, reached through its Passenger Advice and Complaints Team (PACT), and complaining costs nothing. PACT wants to see that British Airways has had about 8 weeks and either refused or stayed silent, so the sequence matters: portal, wait, follow-up, then PACT. An airline that has gone quiet for two months often finds an answer once a regulator is copied in.
The deadline behind all of this is generous by this site's own directory. A claim against British Airways runs on a 6-year limitation period from the flight date — the longest window FlightOwe tracks, matched only by Ireland, and far longer than Germany's 3 years or the Netherlands' 2. Assume it keeps running while you wait on PACT.
Where UK261 doesn't reach
The cases where this page can't help you, first, because a page that oversells coverage is worse than no page.
- A BA flight touching neither Great Britain nor the EU/EEA. If it neither leaves nor lands in Great Britain, and neither leaves an EU/EEA airport, neither UK261 nor EU261 reaches it.
- Weather, ATC or airport strikes, security incidents and medical emergencies. These are extraordinary under Art. 5(3) as retained in UK law, and the compensation duty falls away. Weather rejections in particular are frequent and often correct.
- Care rights survive anyway. On a departure from a GB, EU or EEA airport, the duty of care applies whatever the cause: meals proportionate to the wait, two phone calls or emails, and a hotel with transfers from 8 hours or on a cancellation that keeps you overnight. From 5 hours late you can take a refund instead of travelling.
What sending it yourself costs
Nothing, if you write the letters. A claim company will do it on no-win-no-fee and take a percentage of the payout, which is a fair trade on a contested claim and an expensive one on a clear-cut BA delay.
| Route | Their cut | You keep |
|---|---|---|
| Claim company · 35% | −£182 | £338 |
| FlightOwe · $19 flat | $19 | £520 |
35% is the rate this site compares against; check the current one in any company's own terms. Compensation is per passenger, so two of you in the £520 band is £1,040 — and the $19 kit covers the whole booking either way. It's the wrong buy if you won't send a follow-up in a few weeks.
How the claim runs
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Check the flight, free
Route, date, arrival delay, what British Airways said, how many of you. You get the band, the amount and whether UK261 or EU261 applies, before any payment screen.
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File on the Feedback and Claims Portal
Send the cited claim through BA's portal, name every passenger and the arrival delay, and ask for cash rather than accepting the first voucher offer.
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Follow up if 4 weeks pass with nothing back
If BA has gone quiet, or answered with a technical-fault rejection, send the dated follow-up with the rebuttal attached.
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Complain to PACT at eight weeks
Free, and the point at which many stalled files move. The full claim sequence, with the dates covers what happens if it still doesn't.
Questions people ask about BA claims
How much compensation does British Airways pay for a delayed flight?
£220 up to 1,500 km, £350 between 1,500 and 3,500 km, and £520 over 3,500 km — per passenger, from 3 hours late at the final destination. Heathrow to New York falls in the £520 band.
What is "BA 261"?
Shorthand some claimants use for a UK261 claim against British Airways — the way "EU261" names the European regulation. There's no separate rule called BA 261; it's the same £220–£520 entitlement described on this page.
How long does British Airways take to reply to a claim?
About 4 weeks for a first reply is typical. If nothing has arrived by then, send a dated follow-up. After about 8 weeks the UK regulator, the Civil Aviation Authority, will take a complaint through its Passenger Advice and Complaints Team.
British Airways offered me a voucher. Do I have to accept it?
No. UK261 compensation is cash, and you can decline the voucher and restate the amount in writing with your bank details. BA opening with travel credit is common enough to expect rather than read as a rejection.
Can British Airways refuse because of a technical fault?
Not on its own. A technical problem arising in normal operation is inherent in an airline's activity and so isn't extraordinary, under CJEU C-549/07 (Wallentin-Hermann). Quote the case in your reply.
Is a British Airways claim UK261 or EU261?
UK261, for almost every BA route — it applies whenever the flight leaves a Great Britain airport or arrives in Great Britain on BA. EU261 in euros would only apply to a BA-operated flight that touches neither end in Great Britain, which is rare on BA's own network.
How long do I have to claim against British Airways?
6 years from the flight date, because British Airways is licensed in Great Britain and UK limitation rules apply. That's longer than every other country in this site's directory except Ireland, which matches it.
Find out what your BA flight is worth
The band, whether UK261 or EU261 applies, and whether the reason British Airways gave is one it can hide behind. Free, before any payment screen.
FlightOwe is an information service, not a law firm and not your legal representative. We tell you what the rules say and give you the letters — you file your own claim and keep everything you recover.