How to get compensation for volcanic ash cloud flight cancellations

15th April 2010

This morning saw extraordinary scenes at UK airports as volcanic ash from Iceland caused hundreds of flights to be cancelled.

Thousands of passengers are being left stranded and out of pocket as airlines grounded all flights due to fears of the ash causing engine failure in their planes.

The UK air traffic control service (Nats) said there will be no flights allowed out of the UK until at least 0600am BST on Friday.

Under certain circumstances it is possible to claim flight compensation for cancellations, for example strike action. However as volcanic activity is out of the airlines' control it is unlikely they will award redress for flights cancelled for this reason.

However, there may be another way that passengers can seek recompense. Where tickets have been purchased with a credit card it may be possible under Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act to claim flight cancellation compensation from the credit card provider.

As long as the tickets cost over £100 (and below £30,000) then they should be covered. To find out how to make a claim please see our FREE guide on Section 75 claims.

Claims Financial