Missed connecting flight, rights & obligations – backpacking tips

What to do if you missed your connecting flight

You are on the way from Germany to New Zealand or on the way back and your plane is late, you miss your connecting flight or the flight is cancelled completely? Air travellers have a lot of rights, especially in Europe, and we want to explain to you today what options you have in these cases.

 

1. First flight delay
2. Missed connecting flight
3. Flight cancellation

 

Missed connecting flight

Waiting and delays in the flight can be annoying, but it will be particularly annoying when the connection flight is delayed due to a delay.

What rights you have in this case we explain here in this section.

 

Who will take care of me if my connecting flight is already gone

The responsibility here depends on your booking. If you have booked all sections of an airline, the situation is clear. In this case, the airline has to provide passengers with food and drink. In addition, she must ensure the fastest possible further transport. Normally you will get in touch with the service desk of the airline, sometimes you will be greeted by an airline employee with a name tag and then cared for and taken care of.

If you have booked both routes separately, unfortunately you are unlucky. In this case, neither airline is responsible and the second ticket expires unused and without a refund.

 

 

Do I have to certify the delay

Some airlines will automatically issue you a certificate of delay; unfortunately this is not the case everywhere. Alternatively you can ask for a certificate yourself at the airline or at the service desk. Even without certification, there are usually no problems, as flight delays for months on the computer of the airline are detectable.

 

How can I prevent problems when changing flights within the airport

Basically, it makes sense to book the entire flight with an airline or at least an airline association. If the first flight is delayed, then the airline can look, for example, whether the connecting aircraft can wait a few minutes or whether you are better rebooked to a later flight. But you too have a responsibility. When changing trains you must not dawdle and, for example, make a short shopping stop when you are already late.

 

How much transfer time should I plan

The transfer time is different at each airport. It makes sense to plan but rather a little more transfer time than too little. At the larger airports on the way to New Zealand, it makes sense to have at least 1.5 hours but rather a bit more buffer. With 2-3 hours you are usually on the relatively safe side, still have time for a stroll through the duty-free area and can reach even as a novice aviator everything relaxed.

 

Can I have a possible claim checked

Under certain you have a claim for compensation even with a missed connecting flight. Since these cases are more complex, we would recommend this for one of the paid services. These services take exactly the work from you and check for free, only in the case of compensation; the respective service gets a commission.

Here are several ways to help:

1. Fairplane: Fairplane is a passenger rights portal in Europe. If your flight was delayed for more than 3 hours, the flight was cancelled or overbooked, the flight was diverted or you missed your connecting flight, then Fairplane allows you to check your claims against the airline. In the case of a claim, you will receive compensation from the Fairplane for a portion of the work done. We have always been lucky with our flights, but know some of the nice sums of compensation. You can use the following link* to claim your claim for free.
2. Flightright: Flighright is also a passenger rights portal. Just look at both sides and decide who you would like to hire. In the event of a claim against the airline, you can expect to receive between €250 – €600 in compensation per person minus commission (usually 20 – 30% plus VAT). You can try Flightright for free via the following link*.
3. Flugrecht: A German portal for the problems with the flight already mentioned above, compare and then decide which portal will appeal to you the most. Flugrecht.de you can use the following link*.

 

Which of these websites you use is up to you, some take a commission for their work. The arbitration board works free of charge. Depending on how much time you want to invest yourself, you should both consider the commission level and then decide. I wish you success!

 

Questions, comments or ideas

Questions, comments or ideas? Then we look forward to your comment under this article. Frequent questions will be added later in the article. Thank you and have a good time in New Zealand!

 

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