Why airlines deny valid claims (and how to push back)

Most first-time UK261 claims get a denial letter. Not because the claims are weak — the denial is the airline’s opening move. They lose nothing by saying no, and a chunk of passengers walk away. Here are the four excuses they reach for, and what each one is really worth.

1. “Extraordinary circumstances”

The greatest hits: bad weather, ATC strikes, “operational reasons.” Genuine ones do exempt the airline. The catch is that the airline has to prove it, and most can’t.

What’s not extraordinary, despite what the letter says:

• Technical faults — the airline is responsible for keeping the plane airworthy.
• Crew sickness or hours running out — staffing is on them.
• A bird strike that grounded a previous rotation — the knock-on effect doesn’t inherit the original cause.

Push back with: “Please provide specific evidence that the cause was unforeseeable and unavoidable, including whether the aircraft was the same airframe across earlier rotations that day.”

2. “You missed the deadline”

In the UK, you have six years from the date of the disruption to bring a claim. Airlines sometimes quote shorter periods (often two years) hoping you won’t check.

Push back with: “Under English law the limitation period for a contract claim is six years (Limitation Act 1980, s.5). The flight in question was within that period.”

3. “The delay was under 3 hours”

The 3-hour clock runs to arrival at your final destination, not departure. If the plane left 90 minutes late but landed 3h15 late, you qualify. Airlines occasionally measure to the wrong point.

Push back with: Your boarding pass, the actual arrival time logged on FlightAware or similar, and the maths.

4. “You weren’t inconvenienced”

Compensation isn’t damages for hassle — it’s a fixed statutory payment. The airline doesn’t get to assess how put-out you were. If you arrived late and the cause was on them, you’re owed it.

Push back with: Don’t engage with this argument. Cite UK261 directly and ask for the compensation owed.

If the second letter still says no, the next stops are CAA-approved ADR or the small claims track. Most of our cases settle long before that — once an airline knows there’s a paralegal at the other end of the email rather than a tired passenger, the tone changes fast.

Start a claim and we’ll handle the back-and-forth.