Date: 7 February 2012

If you have been affected by the bad weather and your flight has been delayed or cancelled, what you're entitled to will depend on your situation.

Flights from European Union (EU) airports or on EU airlines

If you are flying with an EU airline or from an EU airport and your flight is cancelled, there are EU rules which state that you must be offered a refund or the chance to be rerouted onto a later flight.

If you're abroad and your flight home is cancelled or substantially delayed you are entitled to meals and refreshments and any necessary hotel accommodation, while waiting for the airline to reroute you onto a later flight. The airline is not obliged to pay further compensation if the cancellation was caused by bad weather.

If you decide to accept a refund from your airline, you will not be entitled to any meals, refreshments or hotel accommodation.

Flights from non-EU airports

If you are flying with a non-EU airline to a non-EU destination you are not covered by EU rules and you should check the airline’s terms and conditions. You are likely to be offered a refund or the chance to rebook.

Complaints against the airline

If you think the airline did not do what it's supposed to according to EU rules, you can make a complaint.

You must complain to the airline first of all. If you get nowhere, you can complain to the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).

The CAA will need to see the airline's response to your complaint and will then decide if you have a real grievance or not.

If it thinks you do, CAA will take it up with the airline. You will then be advised if your complaint has been successful or not.

If not, CAA will offer further advice. If you want to take your claim further, you can as a last resort make a claim in your local county court for any losses you have suffered which the airline have refused to refund.

For more information about complaining to the CAA, go to www.caa.co.uk.

Package holidays

If you booked a package holiday, your tour operator is responsible for providing you with a suitable alternative holiday or a complete refund and you will need to contact them. However, if you booked your hotel and flights separately you are not covered by the package holiday rules and could face hotel cancellation charges and other costs. These may be covered by your travel insurance.

For more information about package holidays and problems with travel, see Problems with holidays.

Claiming on travel insurance

If you have travel insurance that you bought before the disruption started you should check what cover it provides. Some travel insurance policies will cover hotel and other costs if your flight is cancelled. You should check your insurance policy and contact your insurer to find out what is covered by your policy and how to make a claim.

If you paid by credit card

If you paid for your holiday by credit card, there is a potential claim against your credit card provider if you cannot recover your costs from your airline or travel insurer.

Further information

For more information about your rights when your air travel has been disrupted, see the CAA website at www.caa.co.uk.