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ANSWER · UK 261 AND EC 261

My airline stopped flying. Can I still claim compensation?

The right survives the airline; recovering the money often does not. A compensation claim under Art. 7 becomes a debt in the insolvency, ranking with other unsecured creditors, so payment depends on what the administrators recover. Card chargeback, travel insurance and ATOL protection for package holidays are separate routes that are not affected by Art. 7.

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

Why the claim is worth less than the paperwork suggests

Regulation 261/2004 creates an obligation on the operating carrier. It does not create a compensation fund, a state backstop or priority in an insolvency, so an unpaid compensation claim joins the queue.

Routes that sit outside the regulation

  • A chargeback through the card scheme, where the flight was paid for by card and was not delivered.
  • Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974 for UK credit card purchases above the statutory floor.
  • Travel insurance with scheduled airline failure cover.
  • ATOL protection, where the flight formed part of a package sold by an ATOL holder.

What we do with these claims

We do not take on claims against carriers in insolvency, because the honest expectation of recovery does not support a no win no fee model. Saying so up front is more useful than signing a mandate that leads nowhere.

SOURCES

  1. Regulation (EC) No 261/2004, Art. 7 · EUR-Lex · checked 7 August 2026
  2. Regulation (EC) No 261/2004, Art. 5 · EUR-Lex · checked 7 August 2026

RELATED QUESTIONS

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