Your flight was delayed for 37 hours. The hotel, the one with the infinity pool, the swim-up bar, and the TripAdvisor rating that persuaded you to book, was a building site: the pool empty, the bar unstaffed, and the room next door occupied by a jackhammer at 7.30am. The food poisoning, the seafood platter, the prawns that tasted slightly too much of the sea, and the 36 hours of your holiday you spent in a bathroom in Antalya, has passed, but the anger has not. You are back at your desk, the tan fading and the memory of the holiday hardening into a grievance, and the question, can you claim compensation?, is the first thing you type into Google on your first day back. The answer is yes. The process is not as difficult as you think, the law, European Regulation 261/2004, the Package Travel Regulations, and the common-law right to compensation for breach of contract, is on your side, and the money (up to €600 for a flight delay, a full refund for a ruined hotel, and compensation for the food poisoning that ruined the holiday) is recoverable. Here is how to claim compensation for accidents and disruptions on holiday.

How to Claim Holiday Compensation

• Flight delays and cancellations, European Regulation 261/2004: If your flight was delayed for more than 3 hours, cancelled without at least 14 days’ notice, or you were denied boarding due to overbooking, you are entitled to compensation under European Regulation 261/2004 (which still applies to UK passengers under the retained UK version of the regulation, UK 261). The compensation amounts: €250 for flights under 1,500 km (e.g., London to Barcelona), €400 for flights between 1,500–3,500 km (e.g., London to the Canary Islands, or any European flight between 1,500–3,500 km), and €600 for flights over 3,500 km outside Europe (e.g., London to New York, the delay must be more than 4 hours for these flights). The airline must also provide food, accommodation, and transport while you wait (the “right to care”, the meal vouchers, the hotel, and the transfer to the hotel). If the airline did not provide this, you can claim the cost back. Exceptions: the “extraordinary circumstances” defence, the volcanic ash cloud, the air traffic control strike, the bird strike, the security alert, circumstances beyond the airline’s control. The airline will invoke this defence almost every time. The burden of proof is on them, and the standard is high, technical faults and crew sickness are NOT extraordinary circumstances, and the courts have consistently ruled that the airline must pay in these cases. How to claim: contact the airline directly (the online claims form, every airline has one, and it is the first step). If the airline refuses or does not respond within 8 weeks, escalate to the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) or the Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) body for the airline. The process is free, and the success rate for valid claims is high. No-win, no-fee services: Bott and Co, Flight Delay Claims 4 U, and AirHelp will handle the claim for you and take a percentage (typically 25–35%) of the compensation. If the claim is straightforward, do it yourself. If the airline is fighting, use a service. More travel tips →
• Package holidays, the Package Travel Regulations: If you booked a package holiday (a flight AND a hotel booked together, the key distinction), the tour operator is legally responsible for every element of the holiday, not just the flight. The Package Travel and Linked Travel Arrangements Regulations 2018 (the UK implementation of Europe Package Travel Directive) require the tour operator to provide the holiday as described in the brochure or the website, and if the holiday is not as described, the hotel is a building site, the pool is empty, the beach is 2 km away rather than the “50 metres from the beach” promised in the brochure, you are entitled to a price reduction (typically 10–50% of the cost of the holiday, depending on the severity of the breach) and compensation for the distress and the loss of enjoyment. The amount for distress is modest (typically £50–200 per person), but the principle, that your holiday enjoyment has a legal value, is important. How to claim: complain to the tour operator in writing within 28 days of returning from the holiday (the time limit in the booking conditions, check the terms). Provide evidence: the photographs of the building site, the receipt for the alternative accommodation you booked, and the contemporaneous notes you made (write everything down while you are still on holiday, the notes you take on the third day of the disaster are the most valuable evidence you will have). If the tour operator refuses, escalate to the ABTA arbitration scheme (if the operator is an ABTA member) or the small claims court (the claim under £10,000 can be brought in the County Court for a modest fee)
• Accidents, illness, and personal injury: If you were injured or became ill due to the negligence of the hotel, the tour operator, or the activity provider (the food poisoning from the hotel buffet, the slip on the wet floor that was not signposted, the accident on the badly maintained Jet Ski), you have a claim for personal injury. The claim is made against the tour operator (for a package holiday) or the hotel/activity provider directly (for a non-package booking), and the compensation reflects the pain and suffering, the medical expenses, and the loss of the holiday. Claims of this nature are complex, and a solicitor (a specialist travel law firm, Irwin Mitchell, Leigh Day, or the smaller firms listed on the Travel Law Quarterly directory) is essential. The solicitor will work on a no-win, no-fee basis, and the initial consultation is free. Essential evidence: the medical records (the hospital visit while on holiday, the GP note on your return), the photographs of the hazard, the witness statements (the people you were travelling with), and the complaint you made to the hotel or the tour operator at the time