To ask what happens now my flight has been cancelled?

[tpwk]

I was due on a flight that was cancelled tonight and the communication from the airline has been woeful.

Everyone at the airport just shrugged and said it wasn’t their problem, to go through the app and sort it out there.

I did that and I have a new flight tomorrow, and I’m in a hotel. I know things like dinner tonight and food tomorrow can be claimed back, but what about things like the Airbnb I’ve paid for for tonight in my original destination? I’ve messaged the hosts and explained that I won’t be there tonight, so I’m hopeful they’re going to keep the reservation for me, but if they don’t, then what?

How do I claim the compensation due under UK 261? What do I do now?

You should get hotel, food, flight and any associated transportation to the airport then compensation based on hours delayed. Nothing specifically for not using a nights accommodation

Not really because that's ultimately the reality of what the airlines are liable for and what they aren't.

You can't expect to get compensated for your new hotel tonight AND the accommodation you haven't stayed in today by the airline.

You need additional insurance to cover other losses. For example a couple getting married abroad should probably take out wedding insurance to cover it if they missed their own wedding. General travel insurance will cover other options.

This comes down to you not understanding what's covered - or not covered - by operator liability and travel insurance.

This isn't being harsh. This is explaining that the legal liability isn't the same as customer service which may go further than legal liability because they understand it makes good business sense and this is built into the pricing scheme.

This is the downside of budget airlines. No they don't give much of a shit if it goes wrong. You get your basics refunded and that's about it.

BA left myself and Mr Benson stranded in Italy over New Years. They could not have cared less. We only made it out on New Year's Day because my FIL is a gold card holder and had access to a phone line where you could actually talk to someone. We saw on Twitter that some of the people on our flight were still stuck out there on the 4th January. I don't think they're necessarily any better than the budget airlines.

Definitely put a claim in for the cost of 1 night. The worst they can say is no

They're already paying for your accommodation tonight in the hotel, right?
They don't pay for your accommodation at the AirBnB as well. That would be double dipping.

It is true see link for advice

https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/consumer/holiday-cancellations-and-compensation/if-your-flights-delayed-or-cancelled/

My child recently received compensation for a flight delayed by 7 hours out of Heathrow.

A cancelled flight you go to the airline for a refund

no, it’s normal. You can try your travel insurance but the airline won’t pay for a night in two different hotels for the same person.

If BA had to pay for everybody’s Airbnb plus their temporary accommodation I suspect there wouldn’t be much of a business!

I had a flight cancelled by EasyJet a couple of summers ago and got hee-haw out of them. Missed two days of holiday but still had to pay accommodation costs and had to rebook airport parking at a different airport so incurred extra costs. Absolutely no compensation whatsoever. I hope you have better luck with your airline, OP.

I don’t really see how a night in a crappy hotel is the same as the first night of your holiday (and the next whole day, as my flight now doesn’t land until 11pm tomorrow!)

My experience with BA when they cancelled my flight last Thursday evening was completely different. And I was flying in Club and have status with them!

My flight was delayed and delayed and delayed. No announcements were made and there were no sign of any staff. I had been sitting on the floor for 4 hours when the gate screen finally showed cancelled. The BA app was still showing delayed. Still no sign of any staff. At this point I’d been at the (very overcrowded) airport for 7+ hours.

So I went online via my phone and booked the nearest reasonable looking hotel room I could find (being aware that rooms would disappear fast). Got the police to show my how to get back into the country and out of the airport, then spent 30 mins waiting in a taxi queue that never moved. I ended up using my phone to navigate the 10 min walk to the hotel I’d booked and was then online until after 1am trying to get BA to rebook my flight. They would only offer me a flight in 2 days time from a city over 100 miles away (and said they wouldn’t cover transport costs to get there!). I threw a wobbly and by 6am I was booked on a new flight leaving later that afternoon (which was then also delayed but at least it left this time).

BA have approved my expenses claim so that should get paid to me soon. But if I wasn’t an experienced traveller (and a grumpy menopausal woman with fuck all patience) I could quite possibly be standing at the damn airport gate even now waiting for a member of staff to actually show to turn up with some information.

I don’t think you can claim for hotel tonight and also for unused Airbnb tonight

I hope you get sorted. I’m surprised you got that much information out of them regarding the staffing issue.

I don’t think it matters what airline it’s always stressful with a cancellation of a flight. I hope you are safe tonight and get your accommodation paid for. All the best x x

It’s not true. They pay compensation at a flat rate, not the cost of the AirBNB. Read the other posts on the thread.

It is a scale according to lateness, and it's not specific to things like air bnb bookings. It's a flat payment in addition to reorganized flight and accommodation. My daughter was to fly via USA, that flight was cancelled. She was accommodated on a different flight the next day, given a hotel overnight in London and compensation for the delay. She was not directly compensated for the hotel fee in USA but the money given covered it and more.

Can't edit, @OneStepForwardsTenStepsBack I think I misunderstood you. You can't claim specific cost, you get a "late rate". In our case, my daughter didn't lose out. If the compensation had not covered her costs, we might have resorted to insurance. Though I think if airline is at fault, they should cover everything

I think losing the night in your airBnB is just a risk you took as the flip side of the savings you made by booking your flight and hotel separately, and in your choice of AirBnB. Do you think an airline is going to pay for someone else thousands more than you in compensation because they happened to book an expensive penthouse? If they did you'd be paying a lot more than you did for your flight. Flexible hotel booking that can be cancelled up to check in time exist and people pay extra for them because it reduces the risk of paying out for something you can't use. Booking your own accom, transfers and flights separately tends to be cheaper than booking a package holiday and with those savings come some risks.

Don't let this eat any further into your enjoyment of the holiday. Get some sleep as best you can and crack on with making the best of your remaining holiday. Later check all the paperwork and make sure you are claiming everything you can in line with their policy.

It's crappy, but you aren't out of pocket (or won't be, once they've refunded you for tonight's accommodation, if necessary). Compensation for your missed enjoyment of your holiday would come out of your travel insurance.

Yes, for the hotel that you actually stayed in, plus transport, food, etc.

Not for the cost of the hotel that you didn't stay in.

The compensation you're entitled to, upto £520 will more than cover your AirBnB for one night.
The airline should have booked you a hotel, food and transport this evening.

You need to use your travel insurance for the air b&m that’s what it’s for.

Under UK law, airlines must provide you with care and assistance if your flight is cancelled.
This means they must provide:

• A reasonable amount of food and drink (often provided in the form of vouchers)
• A means for you to communicate (often by refunding the cost of your calls)
• Accommodation, if you are re-routed the next day (usually in a nearby hotel)
• Transport to and from the accommodation (or your home, if you are able to return there)

thats all their liable for and I say that as someone who worked for easyJet years ago. They are notorious for cancellations sadly.

It doesn't matter if you do or not.

It's the only thing they are liable for regardless.

BA cancelled my flight last week and put me on a flight 30 hours later, meaning I missed my first hotel night and separate connecting flight that I had booked 24 hours after I landed (thought I was being cautious enough with potential delays!)

I had to book a new connecting flight at twice the price but won’t be able to claim that, or the original flight or the 1st hotel night back (these are “consequential losses” - will try with my travel insurance but one has already declined).

However I can claim back the cost of the new hotel at the departure point along with food/taxi costs between the time of original departure and when I did eventually depart. I will also get the EU261 compensation which is a fixed amount depending on length of delay and flight distance.

Then do your research and get better insurance without a huge excess

No. Not all costs. Usually it is the delay amount plus hotel. They won’t pay for your Airbnb that you’ve not reached. You need travel insurance for that.