Passengers flying with easyJet may be entitled to compensation, which is sometimes paid as vouchers. But in some cases, you may be due money back.
On its website, easyJet notes that depending on the delay, it may provide you with a refreshment voucher to the value of £6 or €9. If your flight is delayed by two hours on a journey of up to 1,500km (for example, London to Zurich), you’re entitled to vouchers.
If your flight is delayed by three hours on a journey of more than 1,500km (for example, London to Dubrovnik), you’re also entitled to vouchers. However, in a separate section, it confirms you could be due compensation.
EC261 compensation rules
The airline explains: "If your flight arrives more than three hours after the scheduled time of arrival, or is cancelled within 14 days of departure, or you are involuntarily denied boarding, you may be able to claim EC261 compensation. You can claim compensation here."
If the cause of your delay or cancellation is classified as an extraordinary circumstance (like an air traffic control strike or bad weather), you will not be entitled to EC261 Flight Compensation.
To check what you are entitled to, you can read easyJet's notice of rights for delayed and cancelled flights. It adds that passengers "must apply directly to us to receive your compensation".
Receipts and rebooking
The airline says that if they are unable to provide vouchers for any reason, they will reimburse you for the same amount, as long as you can provide suitable receipts.
If your delay is more than five hours, you can move your flight to a later date, subject to seat availability. It notes that the alternative is to cancel your delayed flight and request a full refund. To cancel or change your flight, it asks people to speak to easyJet's Ground Crew at the airport or contact its Customer Service team.
Overnight delays
In some cases, a flight delay means passengers can’t depart until the following day. If that happens, easyJet’s ground crew will arrange overnight accommodation for each passenger.
easyJet advises: "Please wait at the airport to be given the details of the hotel and the transport available to get there. We will provide transport between hotels and the airport where possible."
"If you do not require a hotel and would prefer to return to your own accommodation, we may be able to reimburse the cost of reasonable transport to a local address, such as public transport or a shared taxi." If this occurs, travellers should retain their receipts and fill in this form to submit a claim.
If passengers book and pay for a hotel themselves when easyJet could have arranged it free of charge, it says that they will not be able to reimburse those costs.
If easyJet is unable to provide travellers with transport, it confirms the airline will cover taxis, buses or local metro services to and from the airports. However it cannot cover unreasonable costs such as private limousines.
Stressing to passengers to "please keep all receipts to claim back your expenses", it confirms that where possible, they will arrange for the hotel to provide an evening meal (excluding alcohol) and breakfast. If the hotel can’t offer food, easyJet will reimburse you up to £25 per person, per day (or the equivalent in euros/Swiss francs).
Money-saving tips and claims
In a helpful tip, Money Saving Expert (MSE) has shared a number of tips and tricks to make your holiday - and flight - as stress-free as possible. It suggests: "Mid-air picnics are perfectly within the rules - it's only liquids over 100ml that are banned for security reasons."
"Protect your pennies and plan ahead – stocking up on snacks could save a fortune compared to flight prices, and even prices in the shops after security. For instance, when we checked, an easyJet meal deal (sandwich, soft drink and snack) cost £9.75."
"Even at inflated airport prices, a Boots meal deal is around £5. Bringing your own food may mean you win on taste as well as price."
Founded by Martin Lewis, MSE also noted that passengers could still claim - even if the delay was years ago. Surprisingly, it said: "If you're delayed more than three hours, or your Easyjet flight is cancelled, you could be entitled to up to £520 in compensation. You've got six years to claim (five in Scotland)."
"Whether you can claim depends on factors such as where your plane took off from, when it arrived and whether the delay was the airline's fault."
"In July 2024, a major court ruling clarified that pilot sickness does count as airline fault (and not an 'extraordinary circumstance'). This has opened the door for a huge number of retrospective claims, including some which were previously rejected. See our MSE News story: Landmark court ruling opens door to 100,000s of 'crew sickness' flight compensation claims."
For more information on delays, compensation and what you are entitled to, visit the official easyJet website.
