Missed connecting flight: compensation rules by regime

Checked 15 Sep 2026·12 min read

Missed connection compensation turns on where you finally land, not on the layover airport where you ran for the gate. On one booking, UK261 pays £220 to £520 and EU261 €250 to €600 once you reach your last airport 3 hours or more late. Separately booked flights are judged one by one.

Canada’s Air Passenger Protection Regulations cover connecting flights too, and US federal rules require no compensation for a delayed domestic flight. Check which law covers your flight first, then run the numbers in the compensation calculator.

#When does a missed connection qualify for UK261 or EU261 compensation?

3 hours or more late at your final destination is the trigger. UK261 or EU261 compensation is owed if every leg sits on one booking, and the journey falls within the Regulation’s scope, and the airline cannot prove extraordinary circumstances. Missing the connection is not itself the test; the arrival time at the last airport is.

Source: UK261 art. 3(1A), art. 6(3)-(4) (inserted by SI 2023/1370) — legislation.gov.uk; Folkerts (C-11/11, 2013) — eur-lex.europa.eu, checked 2026-09-15.

Missed connections: what counts under each regime

Source: UK261 arts. 3(1A), 6(3), 7(1) — legislation.gov.uk; Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 art. 7(1) — eur-lex.europa.eu; Canada Transportation Act s.86.11(1), SOR/2019-150 s.19(1) — laws-lois.justice.gc.ca; US DOT Fly Rights — transportation.gov; 14 CFR 260.2, 260.6 — ecfr.gov, checked 2026-09-15.

The UK261 and EU261 rows pay a fixed sum by distance; APPR pays by hours late, and the US row pays nothing for the delay itself.

Under UK261 the rule is statutory. Article 6(3), inserted by SI 2023/1370 from 14 December 2023, grants article 7 compensation for a delay of three hours or more in reaching the final destination. Article 6(4) removes that payment where extraordinary circumstances could not have been avoided with all reasonable measures, but leaves the article 6(1) duty of care in place. Arrival means the time passengers are permitted to exit the aircraft, not touchdown.

EU261 gets there through case law. The Folkerts ruling (C-11/11, 2013) counts the delay at the final destination of a connecting journey. A first leg that leaves 50 minutes late and costs you the connection is a 3-hour case if you reach your last airport 3 hours 5 minutes behind schedule. At 2 hours 59 minutes, neither Regulation pays.

Write down the time the doors opened at your final airport, and keep the confirmation that lists every leg.

#Why does a single booking matter, and what about self-transfer?

14 December 2023 is when UK261 article 3(1A) took effect: a multi-leg flight booked as a single unit is treated as a whole, departing from the first leg’s point of departure. Under EU261, Wegener (C-537/17, 2018) treats connecting flights on one booking as a single transport unit. Separate bookings get neither rule.

Source: UK261 art. 3(1A) (inserted by SI 2023/1370) — legislation.gov.uk; Wegener (C-537/17, 2018) — eur-lex.europa.eu, checked 2026-09-15.

The booking is the unit, not the airline. Legs booked together, which your confirmation shows by listing every flight under one reservation, form what travellers call one ticket or a through ticket. The late arrival at the end of that chain is the delay you claim for, however short the delay on the first leg was.

Self-transfer works differently. You buy the flights separately and link them yourself, so each booking is its own flight, measured at its own arrival airport. Suppose a first flight lands 1 hour 40 minutes late and you miss a separately booked onward flight: the first flight arrived less than 3 hours late, so neither Regulation pays for it, and the onward flight left on time. Nothing in article 3(1A) or in Wegener carries the late arrival of one booking over to another.

Before you fly, check that the confirmation lists every leg under one booking; if it shows two, treat the trip as two separate journeys.

On separate tickets, trip delay insurance vs airline duties explains what a card or insurer covers instead.

#Which distance sets the amount on a connecting journey?

5,270 km, not 650 km, sets the band when an Aberdeen to London leg makes you miss a New York flight on the same booking. Both Regulations measure the great-circle distance to the final destination, and the Flightright v Eurowings order (C-939/19, 2020) counts from the first departure point even if only the last leg ran late.

Source: UK261 art. 7(1), 7(4) (“delay” inserted by SI 2023/1370) — legislation.gov.uk; Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 art. 7(1), 7(4); Flightright v Eurowings (C-939/19), order of 30 April 2020 — eur-lex.europa.eu, checked 2026-09-15.

Connecting journey: which distance sets the amount

Source: distances are the Air Travel Rights editorial team’s own great-circle calculation from airport coordinates, rounded to the nearest 10 km, not official figures; amounts UK261 art. 7(1)-(2) — legislation.gov.uk; CAA, Delays — caa.co.uk; Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 art. 7(1) — eur-lex.europa.eu, checked 2026-09-15.

The leg that ran late never sets the band; the distance from the first airport to the last one does.

UK261 article 7 sets the band by the last destination at which the delay makes you arrive late, measured by great circle. EU261’s text names only denied boarding and cancellation; the Flightright v Eurowings order, which has no official English text, applies the total-distance method to a delayed connection. Great circle means the shortest line over the globe, not the sum of the legs: about 2,900 km flown via Frankfurt still counts as 2,880 km. The distances here are the editorial team’s own calculation from airport coordinates, not official figures.

The Aberdeen leg alone would sit in the lowest band, £220 up to 1,500 km. On one booking the whole journey decides: over 3,500 km, £520, or £260 when you arrive “between three and four hours late”, in the CAA’s words. Article 7(2)(c) says the airline “may” reduce the sum, so the cut is its option. Dublin to Athens is intra-Community and over 1,500 km: €400 under EU261 article 7(1)(b), with no cut at 3 to 4 hours late, against €250 for the Dublin to Frankfurt leg alone.

Enter your first departure airport and your final destination, not the leg that ran late, in the compensation calculator.

#Does a missed connection outside the UK or EU still count?

3 hours or more late at the final destination still counts when a one-booking journey leaves a UK or EU airport, even if you miss the connection in a third country on a non-EU airline. A journey that starts outside both is covered only when the operating carrier holds a qualifying UK or EU licence.

Source: UK261 art. 3(1)(a)-(b), 3(1A) — legislation.gov.uk; Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 art. 3(1)(a)-(b) — eur-lex.europa.eu, checked 2026-09-15.

EU261 article 3(1)(a) covers every passenger departing an airport in a Member State, on any carrier. Flying in from outside, EU261 needs a Community carrier, licensed by a Member State. Each Regulation’s inbound rule also switches off if you received benefits or compensation and were given assistance in the country you flew from.

A connection inside the United States is a different case: US federal rules require no compensation for a delayed domestic flight. If a flight arrives 3 hours or more late on a domestic itinerary, or 6 hours or more on an international one, and you reject the alternative offered, or do not respond to it and do not take the flight, the fare is refundable under the US DOT refund rules.

#How does UK261 treat a missed connection outside the EU?

In Gahan v Emirates [2017] EWCA Civ 1530, the Court of Appeal held that for a single booking from an EU airport (the UK was then an EU Member State) on a non-EU carrier, Manchester to Dubai to Bangkok or Sydney, compensation is assessed on the delay at the final destination, including a missed onward connection outside the EU. The decision binds lower courts in England and Wales.

Article 3(1A) now treats such a booking as departing from its first airport, so a Manchester start meets UK261’s departure test on any airline. Into the UK, UK261 needs a UK or Community carrier. Emirates is a third-country operator, so UK261 does not cover its flights into the UK.

Read the “operated by” line for every leg before you decide which law to claim under.

#APPR C$What does APPR say about missed connections in Canada?

C$400 to C$1,000 is what a large carrier pays under Canada’s Air Passenger Protection Regulations for arriving 3 hours or more late after a disruption within its control and not required for safety; a small carrier pays C$125 to C$500. The Regulations cover flights to, from and within Canada, including connecting flights.

Source: Canada Transportation Act s.86.11(1) — laws-lois.justice.gc.ca; Air Passenger Protection Regulations (SOR/2019-150) ss. 1(2), 12, 19(1) — laws-lois.justice.gc.ca, checked 2026-09-15.

The cause decides whether money is owed at all. A disruption outside the carrier’s control brings alternative arrangements or a refund, and no compensation. One within its control but required for safety, which excludes scheduled maintenance, pays no compensation either. Within its control and not required for safety, compensation is owed only if you were informed 14 days or less before departure.

Amounts run by hours late, and arrival is the moment an aircraft door opens to let passengers leave. A large carrier pays C$400 for 3 to under 6 hours, C$700 for 6 to under 9 hours and C$1,000 from 9 hours. A small carrier pays C$125, C$250 or C$500 on the same bands. Large means 2 million passengers or more worldwide in each of the two preceding calendar years.

For a delay of 3 hours or more within its control, the re-routing rule makes a large carrier book you on its own or a partner’s next available flight departing within 9 hours of the original departure, then on any carrier’s flight within 48 hours. A small carrier’s rebooking stays on its own or a partner’s next available flight. APPR compensation is not owed once you have received compensation for the same event under another regime.

Send your written request to the carrier before the first anniversary of the delay; it must pay or explain within 30 days, and the APPR delay compensation guide covers the Canadian Transportation Agency complaint after that.

#How do you claim for a missed connection yourself?

8 weeks without an answer lets a UK261 claim move from the airline to an approved ADR scheme, where the airline belongs to one. Under EU261 article 3(5), the claim goes to the operating air carrier, and a connection claim needs the one-booking confirmation plus the time you could leave the aircraft at your final airport.

Source: Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 art. 3(5) — eur-lex.europa.eu; Civil Aviation Authority, Alternative Dispute Resolution — caa.co.uk, checked 2026-09-15.

The operating air carrier is the airline in the “operated by” line of the leg that ran late, which need not be the one that sold the ticket. Cite article 3(1A) and article 6(3) for UK261, or Folkerts for EU261, and attach boarding passes for every leg.

On the UK route, complain to the airline first. With no response within eight weeks, you may go to ADR: submit within 12 months of the airline’s final response, for an incident within the last six years (five if you live in Scotland).

ADR is free, and an accepted decision binds the airline; if you reject it, court stays open. For an airline outside ADR, the CAA’s Passenger Advice and Complaints Team can help but cannot make a binding decision. The UK261 delay compensation guide has a claim letter.

On the EU route, the national enforcement body takes complaints; the Irish Aviation Authority asks passengers to use the body of the State the disrupted flight was due to leave from. Court is the other path. Under flightright v Air Nostrum (C-274/16, 2018), a passenger on a single-contract connecting itinerary may sue at the final-destination airport, even against the carrier that operated only the first leg. The EU261 delay compensation guide sets out the rest.

Put the claim in writing to the operating carrier this week and diary the 8-week mark.

Missed a connection on one booking from a UK or EU airport and would rather not claim yourself? AirHelp (third-party claim service) handles claims no win no fee and keeps a fee from any payout; the airline’s own claim form and ADR stay open.

Do it yourself · freeClaim with the airline yourself

• Write to the airline and keep the reference
• Refused: the regulator for your route, free
• You keep all of the compensation

Check your flight in the calculator →

Hand it overAirHelp takes the claim, no win no fee

• They deal with the airline for you
• AirHelp's fee is 35% of the compensation, VAT included, and nothing if the claim fails.

Start with AirHelp →Third-party claim service

General information, not legal advice. For your specific case: the Civil Aviation Authority, your European Consumer Centre, the Canadian Transportation Agency or a solicitor.

#Sources

• Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 as it forms part of UK law, arts. 3, 6, 7 - legislation.gov.uk, checked 2026-09-15.
• The Aviation (Consumers) (Amendment) Regulations 2023 (SI 2023/1370) - legislation.gov.uk, checked 2026-09-15.
• Regulation (EC) No 261/2004, arts. 3, 7 - eur-lex.europa.eu, checked 2026-09-15.
• Civil Aviation Authority, Delays - caa.co.uk, checked 2026-09-15.
• Civil Aviation Authority, Alternative Dispute Resolution - caa.co.uk, checked 2026-09-15.
• Irish Aviation Authority, Air passenger rights - iaa.ie, checked 2026-09-15.
• Canada Transportation Act, s.86.11 - laws-lois.justice.gc.ca, checked 2026-09-15.
• Air Passenger Protection Regulations (SOR/2019-150), ss. 1, 3, 10-12, 17, 19 - laws-lois.justice.gc.ca, checked 2026-09-15.
• US DOT, Fly Rights - transportation.gov, checked 2026-09-15.
• 14 CFR Part 260 (refunds) - ecfr.gov, checked 2026-09-15.
• EASA, Authorised Third Country Operators list - easa.europa.eu, checked 2026-09-15.
• Civil Aviation Authority, Airline licence holders - caa.co.uk, checked 2026-09-15.
• Folkerts (C-11/11, 2013), CJEU - eur-lex.europa.eu.
• Wegener (C-537/17, 2018), CJEU - eur-lex.europa.eu.
• Flightright v Eurowings (C-939/19), order of 30 April 2020, CJEU - eur-lex.europa.eu.
• flightright v Air Nostrum (C-274/16, 2018), CJEU - eur-lex.europa.eu.
• Gahan v Emirates [2017] EWCA Civ 1530, Court of Appeal (Civil Division) - caselaw.nationalarchives.gov.uk.

#FAQ

Do I get compensation for a missed connecting flight?

3 hours or more late at your final destination is the test under UK261 and EU261, provided every leg sits on one booking and the journey is in scope. Under Canada's Air Passenger Protection Regulations, compensation needs a disruption within the carrier's control and not required for safety. US federal rules require no compensation for a delayed domestic flight.