London’s Heathrow Airport has been forced to close until midnight tonight due to a “significant power outage” which has impacted thousands of flights – but what are you rights?
According to officials, a fire at a nearby electrical substation, which supplies the airport, is to blame for today’s chaos. In a statement posted to Heathrow’s X account, the airport warned passengers of “significant disruption” over the coming few days and advised people are being advised not to travel.
The closure has caused major travel disruptions, with more than 1,300 flights to and from London Heathrow Airport being disrupted today. When the closure was announced this morning, around 120 had already been forced to divert, according to FlightRadar24.
The situation is being described as “extraordinary” by some travel experts, so what are your rights if your flight is delayed, cancelled, or diverted? Here, we explain everything you need to know.
Under UK law, passengers are covered if they depart from an airport in the UK from any airline, arrive at an airport in the UK on an EU or UK airline, or arrive at an airport in the EU on a UK airline.
Under normal circumstances, passengers delayed by more than two hours must be offered “care and assistance” from the airline. This includes food and drinks, means of communication – usually a refund of call costs – accommodation if the new flight is the next day, and transport to and from the accommodation or their home.
Detailed by the consumer group Which? care and assistance needs to be offered under the following:
If these criteria meet your situation, then you should approach airline staff for more information on what care and assistance are being offered. If an airline is unable to cover these costs upfront due to being stretched by a major disruption, then travellers should keep all receipts of costs incurred and claim the money back from the airline. Although, you shouldn’t splash out – as you may not be entitled to be covered. So, it is advisable to stay away from bottles of champagne while you wait.
According to the Civil Aviation Authority, the airline must provide passengers with this type of support until it is able to fly them to their destination, no matter how long the delay lasts or what has caused it.
Passengers of delayed flights are protected by the Denied Boarding Regulation if their flight departs from the UK or Europe or is operated by a UK or European airline. Which? noted that if you are travelling with a non-EU based airline flying from a non-EU destination, the airline doesn’t have the same duty to look after you. So you should check the airline’s ‘conditions of carriage’ to see what compensation you are entitled to.
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If your flight is cancelled, the airline must either refund you or book you on an alternative flight. According to the CAA, you can get your money back for all parts of a ticket you haven’t used. For example, if you have not used your inbound ticket as the flight was cancelled, then you could get the full costs of the return flight back from your airline.
If you still want to travel, your airline must find you an alternative flight – whether it is the next available one, or a flight at an alternative, later date. British Airways is the biggest operator at Heathrow.
Its cancellation policy states: “We’ll do our best to offer you a new flight and you’ll be able to change it once for free. If you’d prefer, you can apply for a refund. If you made your booking via a travel agent or tour operator and your departure time is more than 24 hours away, get in touch with them directly to find out more about your options or request a refund.”
If a passenger received less than 14 days notice of a cancellation, they may also be able to claim compensation. However, this is unlikely if the cancellation was not the airline’s fault. Situations such as extreme weather, strikes, or other “extraordinary circumstances” are not eligible for compensation.
Under the current rules, if your flight arrives at its destination more than three hours late, each affected passenger is entitled to claim flight delay compensation. Although, the total value of the compensation depends on the length and distance of the delayed flight as well as the reason for the delay. Again, “extraordinary circumstances” are not eligible for compensation.
Passengers can make a claim under the EU Denied Boarding Regulation if they meet the criteria, listed in a table by Which?, below:
The figures above are for flights cancelled less than seven days before departure.
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