The best and worst airlines for flight delays and compensation
The saints and sinners of the airline industry have been revealed.
Two of Britain’s biggest airlines have come bottom of a survey of the best and worst carriers in the world.
easyJet came second bottom of the list of airlines based on things like flight delays and handling of compensation, followed by Virgin Atlantic which came third last.
The airlines – which have rejected the findings – only managed to outperform Sata, a Portuguese carrier dubbed the worst in the world by the report.
AirHelp, a company that handles compensation for delayed flights, compiled the lists of saints and sinners. 34 airlines were scored based on punctuality, quality of performance, the time taken to make valid pay-outs and the number of times legitimate claims were refused.
The best airline according to the report was Qatar Airways, with KLM Royal Dutch Airlines taking second place. Air France, Lufthansa and Latvian airline Air Baltic tied for third place.
The highest-ranking UK airline was British Airways, rated ninth overall.
Best and worst airlines
Here are the top 10 airlines according to AirHelp.
|
Airline |
Country |
Quality performance |
On-time performance |
Claim processing |
Overall score |
|
Qatar Airways |
Qatar |
10 |
8.7 |
8.1 |
8.9 |
|
KLM Royal Dutch Airlines |
Netherlands |
8 |
8.8 |
8.7 |
8.5 |
|
Air Baltic Cooperation |
Latvia |
6 |
9.4 |
9.3 |
8.2 |
|
Air France |
France |
8 |
8.3 |
8.3 |
8.2 |
|
Lufthansa German Airlines |
Germany |
8 |
8.6 |
8 |
8.2 |
|
Air Canada |
Canada |
8 |
7.9 |
8.2 |
8 |
|
Emirates |
United Arab Emirates |
8 |
8.2 |
7.6 |
7.9 |
|
Croatia Airlines |
Croatia |
6 |
8.2 |
9.5 |
7.9 |
|
British Airways |
United Kingdom |
8 |
7.7 |
7.8 |
7.8 |
|
Finnair |
Finland |
8 |
9 |
6.4 |
7.8 |
And here are the 10 worst.
|
Airline |
Country |
Quality performance |
On-time performance |
Claim processing |
Overall score |
|
Sata International |
Portugal |
6 |
6.7 |
2.9 |
5.2 |
|
easyJet |
United Kingdom |
6 |
8 |
3.4 |
5.8 |
|
Virgin Atlantic Airways |
United Kingdom |
8 |
7.6 |
3.1 |
6.2 |
|
Swiss International Air Lines |
Switzerland |
8 |
7.9 |
3.3 |
6.4 |
|
TAP Portugal |
Portugal |
6 |
8.1 |
6.2 |
6.8 |
|
Aer Lingus |
Ireland |
6 |
8 |
6.6 |
7 |
|
Iberia |
Spain |
6 |
8.9 |
6 |
7 |
|
Alitalia – Compagnia Aerea Italiana Spa |
Italy |
6 |
8 |
6.9 |
7 |
|
Icelandair |
Iceland |
6 |
6 |
9.1 |
7.1 |
|
Norwegian Air Shuttle |
Norway |
6 |
8.7 |
6.5 |
7.1 |
|
Ryanair |
Ireland |
4 |
8.9 |
8.5 |
7.2 |
What the airlines say
easyJet defended its record on compensation payments. A spokesman for the low-cost carrier said: "We do not recognise these findings. EasyJet has been commended by its regulator the CAA (Civil Aviation Authority) for its handling of EU261 claims and we will always pay compensation when it is due."
A Virgin Atlantic spokesman said: "We strongly question the validity of this report. We do everything we can to respond as quickly as possible and on average pay all eligible EU261 claims 14 days after receipt."
How to claim compensation from airlines
If you have been delayed or had your flight cancelled, you may be able to claim compensation.
But you don’t need to go through a claims handling company. You can do it yourself for free.
Take a look at our guide How to claim compensation for delayed and cancelled flights for help.
Take a look at the air mile credit cards you can use to bag a free flight
Like to travel? Don’t miss these:
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