Complain to British Airways

Airlines should respond within 8 weeks. After that, you can escalate to their ADR scheme (CEDR or AviationADR) for free.

If UK261 covers your flight, yes, once you arrive 3 hours or more late: £220 under 1,500km, £350 for 1,500km to 3,500km, and over 3,500km £260 for 3 to 4 hours or £520 beyond 4 hours. Airlines can refuse only by proving extraordinary circumstances.

Two situations. Any flight departing a UK airport, whichever airline operates it. And flights arriving at a UK airport only when the operator is a UK or EU airline. So a delayed flight home on a non-UK, non-EU airline falls outside UK261 even if you booked it in Britain, while the same airline flying you out of the UK is covered.

The Montreal Convention still applies to international flights and covers losses you can prove, such as a missed connection you had to rebook or a night in a hotel, though not a flat compensation payment. Check the airline’s own delay policy, claim on travel insurance, and if you paid by card ask your provider about a chargeback. Where the flight left another country, that country’s own passenger rules may also apply.

You can claim for flights up to 6 years old in England and Wales, or 5 years in Scotland.

Severe weather, air traffic control strikes, and security risks qualify. Crew shortages, technical faults, and IT issues generally do not.

We haven't found a complaints email address that British Airways publishes itself, so start from the complaints route on British Airways' own site: https://www.britishairways.com/content/information/help-and-contacts/complaints-and-claims. Put "Formal complaint" at the top, with your account or order number, what went wrong, and the outcome you want. Keep a copy of what you send, or a note of the call with the date, so you have a paper trail. If British Airways hasn't sorted it within 8 weeks, you can escalate free to CEDR.

British Airways complaints can be escalated to CEDR, free of charge, after 8 weeks or a deadlock letter. Complain to British Airways directly first: the ombudsman only takes your case once the company has had a chance to fix it, and its decision is binding on British Airways.

Not for an individual dispute: the CAA regulates the industry but doesn't resolve personal complaints. Your route is to complain to British Airways in writing, then escalate to CEDR for a free, binding decision. You can still report British Airways to the CAA to flag systemic problems.

Both directions, yes. British Airways is a UK or EU airline, so UK261 covers your flight whether it left the UK or was flying you back into it. Arrive 3 hours or more late and compensation runs from £220 to £520 by distance and delay, unless British Airways can prove extraordinary circumstances.