ANSWER · UK 261 AND EC 261

The airline offered a voucher instead of cash. What do the rules say?

Art. 7(3) allows payment in travel vouchers only with the signed agreement of the passenger. Cash, electronic bank transfer, bank order or cheque is the default, and the passenger chooses. A voucher offered at a service desk without that signed agreement does not discharge the airline's obligation to pay the Art. 7 sum.

REVIEWED AGAINST RULE SET V6 AND THE CITED PRIMARY SOURCES · UPDATED 7 AUGUST 2026

What Art. 7(3) actually says

Compensation is paid in cash, by electronic bank transfer, bank orders or bank cheques, or, with the signed agreement of the passenger, in travel vouchers or other services. The signature requirement is the operative part: without it the voucher route is not open to the airline.

Comparing an offer against the statutory amount

THE FIGURE A VOUCHER IS BEING COMPARED AGAINST
DISTANCE BAND	EC 261	UK 261
Up to 1,500 km	€250	£220
1,500 to 3,500 km	€400	£350
Over 3,500 km	€600	£520

Bands and amounts read from rule set v5, the same data the free check evaluates. EC 261 figures are set by Art. 7(1); the sterling figures were substituted by SI 2019/278 for flights covered by the retained regulation.

Things worth reading on a voucher

Expiry date, and whether it survives a route the airline later drops.
Whether it is transferable or tied to the named passenger.
Whether accepting it is expressed as full and final settlement of all claims arising from the flight.
Whether it can be used against taxes and charges or only against the base fare.

A separate question from care vouchers

Meal and hotel vouchers handed out during a wait are the Art. 9 care duty being performed. They are not compensation and accepting them settles nothing under Art. 7.

SOURCES

Regulation (EC) No 261/2004, Art. 7(3) · EUR-Lex · checked 7 August 2026
Regulation (EC) No 261/2004, Art. 9 · EUR-Lex · checked 7 August 2026