What to do
if your flight is cancelled?

First steps to take
right after you learn about the cancellation

A cancelled flight is stressful, especially when you find out only after arriving at the airport. The first few minutes matter a lot. Your reaction can affect how quickly you reach your destination and whether you later get the compensation you are legally entitled to.

When a flight is cancelled, the airline must immediately offer you two options: either the earliest possible alternative transport to your final destination, or a full refund of the ticket within 7 days. In some cases, they may also offer meal and drink vouchers.

If your waiting time is longer than 2 hours, the airline must provide food and drinks. If you have to wait overnight, it must provide hotel accommodation and transport to and from the hotel.

Important: accept meal or hotel vouchers if offered, but do not sign anything that waives your right to financial compensation. Some airline forms include such clauses, so read carefully before signing.

What are you entitled to
by law?

Passenger rights in air transport within the European Union are governed by Regulation (EC) No 261/2004. This regulation applies to all flights departing from an EU airport, and also to flights arriving in the EU if operated by an EU-based carrier.

The regulation covers flight cancellations, long delays, and denied boarding. In the event of a cancellation, you have three basic rights.

Right to information

The airline must provide you with written information about your rights when a flight is cancelled — usually a printed notice, leaflet, or email. If it does not, that is already a breach of the regulation.

Right to care

Regardless of the reason for cancellation, the airline must provide food and drinks, means of communication, accommodation if an overnight stay is necessary, and transport to and from that accommodation.

Right to reimbursement or rerouting

You can choose between two options. The first is a full refund of the ticket price within 7 days to the payment method used. The second is rerouting to your final destination under comparable conditions at the earliest opportunity — or later at your convenience.

How much money can you get
for a cancelled flight?

In addition to a refund or alternative flight, you may also be entitled to financial compensation if the legal conditions are met. The amount depends on the flight distance, not on the ticket price. That means even a very cheap ticket can still qualify for 250 euros.

When compensation does not apply

There is no right to financial compensation if the airline informed you of the cancellation more than 14 days in advance. If you were informed 7 to 14 days in advance and given a suitable alternative, compensation may also not apply or may be reduced. Timing matters a lot.

When will you
not receive compensation?

EU Regulation 261/2004 contains one major exception that airlines often rely on: extraordinary circumstances. If the airline proves that the cancellation was caused by an extraordinary circumstance it could not avoid, financial compensation does not apply. Care and rerouting rights still remain.

What counts as an extraordinary circumstance

• Extreme weather conditions storm fronts, dense fog, severe snow disruption
• Air traffic control strikes but not strikes by the airline’s own staff
• Security incidents or terrorist threats
• Political instability in the destination country
• Pandemic restrictions imposed by government decisions

What usually does not count

• Technical faults on the aircraft not caused by an external event
• Strikes by the airline’s own staff (pilots, cabin crew)
• Overbooking
• Administrative problems or predictable knock-on delays from previous flights

In practice: airlines often label situations as extraordinary circumstances even when they are not. Technical issues are a common example. If your claim is rejected on this basis, consider filing a complaint or using a compensation recovery service.

How to claim compensation
the practical process

Claiming compensation is not complicated, but it does require a structured approach. Many passengers get upset but do nothing — and lose money unnecessarily. Here is the exact process.

• Get written confirmation of the cancellation

  At the airport, ask for written confirmation that the flight was cancelled and ideally the stated reason. Write down what happened in your phone with timestamps. Take a photo of the departure board showing your flight status.

  Immediately at the airport

• Keep all receipts and extra expenses

  Meals, drinks, phone calls, taxis, airport parking after hours of waiting — anything you had to pay because of the cancellation. You may later ask the airline to reimburse these costs if it did not provide them itself.

  Keep all evidence

• Send a formal claim to the airline

  Fill in the complaint form on the airline’s website or send an email to customer service. Include the booking number, flight date, flight number, and the amount you are claiming. Keep copies of all communication.

  Within 30 days after the flight

• Wait for a response and stay methodical

  Airlines often have up to 30 days to reply. Some respond quickly, others wait until the last moment. If there is no answer after 30 days, follow up and refer to EU Regulation 261/2004.

  Up to 30 days

• Rejected or ignored? Escalate

  If the airline rejects your claim or does not respond, you have three main options: complain to the Czech Civil Aviation Authority (CAA CR), contact a compensation recovery service such as AirHelp or Flightright, or take legal action. Recovery services usually charge 25% to 35% of the successful payout.

  If rejected

Which documents should you keep
and why it matters

Without the right documentation, getting compensation is much harder. Prepare a folder — physical or digital — where you keep all relevant evidence together.

• Boarding pass or booking confirmation with the flight number
• Written cancellation confirmation from the airline or airport
• Photos of the departure board with a timestamp if possible
• Emails and SMS messages from the airline about the cancellation and alternative offers
• Receipts for meals, drinks, and taxis paid because of the disruption
• Hotel receipts if you had to stay overnight
• Parking cost documents if you parked at the airport
• Correspondence with the airline copies of all sent emails and replies

Practical tip: photograph every paper document immediately and email it to yourself. Paper gets lost; cloud storage does not. A single folder in Google Drive or iCloud makes everything much easier later.

How different carriers
from Prague usually handle claims

Each airline has a slightly different process when dealing with compensation claims. Most have an online form, but the speed and willingness to settle vary.

What about airport parking
if the flight does not happen?

A cancelled flight creates a practical problem that many people forget about: what to do with parking. If your flight was supposed to leave in the morning and your car is already parked near the airport, the cancellation automatically extends your parking time — and your costs.

What to do if your flight is cancelled and your car is parked

• Contact the parking provider immediately and explain the situation.
• Ask to extend the booking for the period of the delay.
• Keep the receipt for the extended parking period among your documents for reimbursement claims.
• If you choose a refund instead of travelling, inform the parking provider as soon as possible.

FixParking and cancelled flights: if you parked at FixParking and your flight was cancelled, call us. We will help find a solution — whether it is extending your booking or adjusting your return. Our team is available 24/7.

FAQ cancelled flight
and your rights