Ryanair compensation: delayed or cancelled flight

Ryanair (code FR, Ryanair DAC, Ireland) is the largest low-cost airline in Europe. Ryanair is a European Union airline, so Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 applies to all its flights departing from the EU and those arriving in the EU, including those from outside the Union. Some flights also feature airlines from the group: Malta Air (AL), Ryanair UK (RK), and Buzz.

When you receive compensation from Ryanair

• The flight arrived at its final destination with at least a 3-hour delay (arrival time counts, not departure time).
• The flight was cancelled and you found out less than 14 days before departure.
• You were denied boarding (overbooking).
• Amount: €250 for distances up to 1,500 km, €400 between 1,500 and 3,500 km (and for all EU flights over 1,500 km), €600 for distances over 3,500 km.
• You do not receive compensation if the delay was caused by weather, an air traffic control strike, or other extraordinary circumstances.

How to claim your money

1. Submit your claim via the EU261 compensation form in the Ryanair help centre (https://www.ryanair.com/gb/en/useful-info/help-centre/claims), providing the flight number, date, booking code, and a bank account in your name.
2. Ryanair's terms (art. 15.2) require that the claim be submitted first directly to Ryanair, which has 14 days (or the legally prescribed period, if shorter) to respond, before involving a third party.
3. If they refuse or do not respond, you can file a complaint with ANPC for flights departing from Romania; for flights from other countries, contact the national body in the country of departure (the official list is on the European Commission website).

Assignment and representation at Ryanair

Ryanair's conditions (Article 15) establish a clear order:

1. First, you submit the claim, directly to Ryanair, using their form for Regulation 261/2004, with a bank account in your name.
2. Ryanair has 14 days to respond to you.
3. If they do not respond within 14 days or you are not satisfied with the response (for example, if they refuse citing "extraordinary circumstances"), you can turn to a company or a lawyer, who can claim and collect the money on your behalf.

If a company submits a claim before you have requested it directly, Ryanair will still only pay into your account. Ryanair's clause prohibiting assignment (15.4) does not apply to Regulation 261/2004 claims if you have followed the steps above (15.2.9). Furthermore, the CJEU ruled in 2024 (case C-11/23) that the regulation does not allow clauses that prohibit the transfer of these rights.

In Romania, you have 3 years from the flight to claim your money.

Sources, verified on October 17, 2026: Ryanair general terms and conditions, Article 15 (https://www.ryanair.com/gb/en/useful-info/help-centre/terms-and-conditions/termsandconditionsar_197583062) and CJEU ruling C-11/23 (https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/C/2024/2579/oj).