TUI delay compensation: what you're owed and how to claim

How much compensation can you get from TUI?

Under UK law (known as UK261), compensation depends on the distance of your flight and how late you arrived at your final destination. TUI flies both short-haul and long-haul holiday routes, so all three bands apply. The amount is per passenger, so a family of four on a qualifying flight can claim four times over.

Lateness is measured by when you arrive at your destination, not when you take off. A flight that leaves 3½ hours late but makes up time and lands 2 hours 50 minutes late doesn't qualify.

Package holiday or flight only: does it matter?

Not for compensation. UK261 compensation is owed by the airline that operated the flight, so if TUI Airways flew you, you claim from TUI whether the flight was part of a package holiday or booked on its own. If your TUI booking used another airline's flight, you claim from that airline instead.

If you were on a package holiday and the delay also cost you part of your holiday, such as a lost night at your hotel, you may have separate rights under the package travel rules. That's a different claim from flight delay compensation.

When TUI doesn't have to pay

TUI doesn't owe compensation if the delay was caused by "extraordinary circumstances" that it couldn't have avoided. According to the Civil Aviation Authority, these mainly include:

• weather that makes it unsafe to fly
• strikes by people who don't work for the airline, such as air traffic control, airport staff or Border Force
• security risks, terrorism, sabotage, or political unrest
• a hidden manufacturing defect that grounds a whole fleet

Technical problems with the aircraft are not extraordinary circumstances. The Court of Appeal confirmed this in Jet2 v Huzar. If TUI blames a "technical issue", that is not on its own a valid reason to refuse.

If TUI rejects your claim as extraordinary, ask it to explain what happened and what it did to try to avoid the delay. It is up to the airline to show that the circumstances really were extraordinary.

How to claim from TUI, step by step

1. Check your flight number. TUI's claim form is for TUI Airways flights, which have flight numbers beginning TOM, BY, OR or BLX.
2. Gather your details: booking reference, flight number, date, and roughly what time you actually arrived. Screenshots of delay notifications help.
3. Use TUI's flight delay claim form, found on the flight delays page of TUI's website. TUI says it aims to process claims within 14 days, though it can take longer at busy times.
4. Claim for every passenger on the booking, and add any receipts for meals, transport or hotels you paid for during the delay.
5. Keep copies of everything you submit and any reply you get, with dates.

You don't need a claims company. If you claim directly, you keep 100% of the compensation instead of losing a share in fees.

If TUI rejects your claim or doesn't reply

The Civil Aviation Authority lists TUI Airways as a member of AviationADR, an approved alternative dispute resolution scheme. It's free to use, and the airline has to follow its decisions.

• You can usually go to AviationADR once TUI has given you a final response you disagree with, or once 8 weeks have passed since you complained without it being resolved.
• Complaints are made online at aviationadr.org.uk.

Going to court is a last resort if ADR doesn't resolve things. For larger or more complicated claims, consider getting independent advice first.

Meals, hotels and expenses during the delay

Separately from compensation, TUI has to look after you while you wait (known as the "right to care"). This applies from 2 hours for flights under 1,500km, 3 hours for flights of 1,500km to 3,500km, and 4 hours for longer flights. It covers:

• food and drink in proportion to the wait
• two phone calls or emails
• hotel accommodation and transport to it, if you're delayed overnight

If TUI didn't provide these and you paid yourself, keep your receipts and claim the reasonable costs back. You're entitled to care even when the delay was caused by extraordinary circumstances.