Placement in a lower class

Have you booked a seat in comfort or business class and are you placed in a lower class such as the economy class? Then you are entitled to a refund of part of your ticket according to Regulation 261/2004.

Refund of the ticket

If you are placed in a lower class, for example from business class to economy class, you are entitled to a refund of part of your ticket in accordance with Regulation 261/2004. You must hold the airline responsible within seven days. You are entitled to a refund of the ticket if you are flying within the EU, flying from a country in the EU or flying to the EU with a Community airline. A Community airline is an airline, which holds a license issued by a Member State of the European Union.

Amount of reimbursement for placement in lower class

The amount of the reimbursement depends on the distance of your flight:

  • 30% of the ticket price for all flights of 1500 km or less
  • 50% of the ticket price for flights within the EU of more than 1500 km or flights to or from the EU between 1500 and 3500 km
  • 75% of the ticket price for all flights to or from the EU of more than 3500 km.

What is the ticket price for multiple flights?

If your booking is made up of several connecting flights, and your were place in a lower class on only one segment, the airline is only obliged to refund a percentage of that part of the journey. If the price of the individual flight is not known, the fee will be calculated on the basis of the total price of all booked flights and the distance of the individual flight.

Example: You have booked a business class ticket that consists of two flights. You fly from Amsterdam via London to New York with BA. You have booked the entire journey in one reservation and the price of the individual flights are not known. On the first flight you will be placed in economy class and in the next flight you can be in business class. In this situation, you are entitled to 30% of the ticket price from Amsterdam to London, because your flight from Amsterdam to London is below 1500 km.