Letter Requesting Refund for a Cancelled or Delayed Flight

The purpose of this document is to facilitate users in requesting financial compensation for inconvenience suffered as a result of a cancelled or delayed flight. It includes all relevant information airlines require to validate the customer's claim that a flight of purchased and subsequently cancelled or delayed in its departure or arrival. It also provides space for users to articulate the negative consequences endured as a result of airline fault. As such, this letter functions not only as a demand for compensation but as as means of delivering customer feedback. Airlines, like all commercial enterprises relying on the general public for the majority of their custom, appreciate insights into their customer experience and how their errors, such as delaying or cancelling flights, impact their customers.

This letter requesting a refund for cancelled or delayed flights can be used by any passenger, travelling to or from, any corner of the world. However, customer's legal entitlements to compensation vary according to the location of the flight's departure and landing destination. At the beginning of the document, users can indicate if they are travelling to or from an airport in the European Union. This is important because if a flight was scheduled to depart from or land within the EU's jurisdiction, it triggers the applicability of EU Passenger Rights Regulation which confers rights on passengers in the event of a flight's cancellation or delay.

Specifically, if a flight (travelling from or into the EU) was cancelled less than 14 days prior to its scheduled departure, customers are entitled, not only to a refund of the flight's cost but extra financial compensation, in recognition of the inconvenience and increased costs associated with a sudden change in travel plans. If a flight (travelling from or into the EU) is delayed three hours or more in taking off or landing, passengers also become entitled to financial compensation. The amount of compensation depends on the distance of the journey. This document allows users to indicate whether their intended journey was of a short, medium or long distance. The document calculates their compensation entitlement on this basis.

Users whose cancelled or delayed flight did not originate or land in the EU, still have recourse, and this document provides for this. If the user indicates that they were travelling outside of the European Union, the rules regulating compensation are different. Typically, airlines are required to rebook or refund the cost of a cancelled flight, but not required to give compensation beyond this. If a flight is delayed, airlines are not required by law to compensate their customers. This is the legal situation. However, many airlines will have their own, internal policies which grant some form of compensation beyond this legal minimum. As such, it is advised that users consult the airline's individual policy on delayed or cancelled flights. The document provides space for the user to reference this. If the user indicates that the airline's policy awards compensation in certain circumstances, there is space for them to indicate the exact clause or rule under which they are claiming compensation.

In any event, even if travelling outside of the EU, and with an airline with no discernible compensation policy for delayed or cancelled flights, it is still worthwhile to formally request some sort of refund. Airlines, like all businesses, have an interest in keeping customers happy. If a customer feels that they have been treated badly or unfairly and had a very bad experience travelling as a result of the airline's mistake, the airline should be informed (from a customer relations perspective) and some sort of remedy sought, even if there is no formally legal entitlement thereto. In this scenario, it is advised that users describe in detail the negative consequences of the flight's delay or cancellation.

This letter includes all vital information that an airline could need to determine if compensation is owed: flight number, booking references, scheduled departure dates and times, the impact of the airline error and more. The user need only fill in the form and the send the letter. This document is formatted in a professional manner, but includes space for the user to include more personal information if they deem it appropriate.

How to Use this Document

This document can be used by any passenger of any airline who experienced a delayed or cancelled flight. Any sort of delay or cancellation can motivate sending this letter. However, in most cases longer delays or short notice cancellations are more likely to generate a positive response from airlines. A delay of 30 minutes or cancellation 6 months in advance is less egregious than seven hours sitting on the runway. It is in recognition of this, that the EU Passenger Right's Regulation limits compensation to delays over three hours, and cancellations within 14 days of the scheduled flight. This notwithstanding, if there are other reasons why the user thinks compensation is deserved, there is space to include this and this letter can serve to allow the user articulate their grievance in a formal and professional manner. It is advised that the user fill in this template as soon as possible after the flight was delayed or cancelled. This letter should be printed out and sent it to the airline by post as soon as it is written. A hard and soft copy of this document should be retained by the user for their personal records.

Applicable Law

This document is written to incorporate the rules of the EU Passenger Right's Regulation. However, if the user did not travel within the EU, this document can still be used. They just need to indicate at the start of the document if they travelled to or from the EU and the document will adjust accordingly. This document is written in contemplation of global standards for compensation in light of flight delays or cancellation, in light of different jurisdictional rules and different airline policies. It can accommodate any form of travel throughout the world.

How to modify the template

You fill out a form. The document is created before your eyes as you respond to the questions.

At the end, you receive it in Word and PDF formats. You can modify it and reuse it.