a group of different currency bills and coins

AirHelp: It really, really is that simple…

Do you remember all the juicy details of your last six years of flights? We certainly don’t blame you, we don’t either with ours.

For most people, flying is an exercise in patience, and one where the operating principle is to pass out as quickly as possible, and block out the boring flight details as soon as you land. Travel is about the amazing destinations, after all.

But occasionally, a little trip down (good and bad) flight memory lane can put some unexpected cash into your pocket, perhaps even to the tune of $1000 or more. We know this, because it recently happened to a good friend, after our recommendation. We’re talking about AirHelp.

a screenshot of a flight scheduleOld Flight Delays

If you’ve traveled to or from Europe in the last six years, there’s a fair chance you’ve experienced a length flight delay. A

ny delay on a European airline, or any delay from Europe going anywhere in the world of more than 3 hours from the scheduled landing time can be entitled to up to €600 in flight compensation. Yep, if you landed 3h 01m late, you’re very likely entitled to some dough, because airlines shouldn’t get away with everything, right?

We’re talking actual cash money, not silly airline play money, and as long as it wasn’t due to bad weather or an act of god, there’s a seriously good chance you’re eligible!

a hand holding a cell phoneA Quick Inbox Scan For Delayed Flights

We were talking travel with a friend about how their travels seem to always go array. After a quick convo about the where and whens we suggested they let AirHelp scan their inbox, to see if there were any flights which experienced issues such as long delays or cancellations are actually owed money.

Now naturally, the first thought is *eeeek*, give someone access to my inbox?!?!?!

But it’s not like that. The AirHelp app simple looks for airline flight confirmations and checks them against their database of delayed or cancelled flights which are due legal compensation, even flights that are years old.

They’re not interested in your amateur photography, and if you’re really worried, you could create a new account and forward all your flight itineraries to that new email address. Not a bad idea, right?

You don’t even need to use the service if it finds any flights eligible for delay compensation thanks to EC261 traveler rights, but if you do, you’ll find money in the bank faster than you’d possibly imagine. You can always deal with the claims yourself, but some airlines purposely make it painfully slow, and if your time is limited, these services can be worth every penny.

a group of currency bills and coins$1000 Later

After a few minutes AirHelp had found multiple flights in the last few years which were eligible for €600 in compensation each.

Now, a true customer relations pro,with unlimited time could totally then go and file claims with the airline themselves, but for those with limited time, like our friend, AirHelp or one of the other great services like Bott & Co make a lot of sense.

The AirHelp service takes a 25% fee, or more, but does all the legal work and paperwork required to get you money for your flight delay. In less than two weeks, our friend had $1000 in the bank from AirHelp.

Doing it on their own, they may have had more like $1250, but for the lack of effort and expedited time frame, $1000 is still pretty cool. And given that airlines lie to get out of compensation, he may have ended up with nothing. It’s really that simple.

Have you ever received cash from flight delay compensation?

Gilbert Ott is an ever curious traveler and one of the world's leading travel experts. His adventures take him all over the globe, often spanning over 200,000 miles a year and his travel exploits are regularly...

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6 Comments

  1. I used Airhelp to assist in getting a reimbursement for a Norwegian Air flight from OSL to JFK. The ticket was $99 but I ended up getting (after Airhelp fees) $430 in EU reimbursement. That paid for my entire trip!

  2. If you have a flight with a connection in Europe, and you misconnect because your incoming flight is only 1 hour late, but you’re put on the next flight (which is on time) and you arrive at your destination more than 3 hours later than the original arrival time, are you still eligible for compensation?

  3. How far back can they go? I have a trip from 2007 (first time traveling abroad alone) and my flight from NBO to LHR was late throwing off everything from there on. If I find the itinerary would it be eligible?

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