Compensation for a delayed or cancelled BH Air flight

The tour operator requested the schedule change - does BH Air owe compensation?

On charter flights, schedules are often changed at the tour operator's request. That is why one of the most common replies passengers receive is that BH Air does not owe compensation because the change was requested by the tour operator. This in itself is not a ground for refusal.

The obligations under Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 rest with the airline that operates the flight, even if the passenger has no contract directly with it. The tour operator's commercial decision to change the schedule does not in itself release BH Air from paying compensation - that is a matter for the contract between the tour operator and the airline. Your right to compensation depends on the type of change, on when you were told, on the new flight offered and on whether the airline can prove extraordinary circumstances. If BH Air pays compensation because of a change requested by the tour operator, it can seek to recover the amount from the tour operator.

Was your flight brought forward?

When a flight is brought forward by more than 1 hour from the time in your booking, it is treated as cancelled. You can then claim compensation if you were told about the change less than 14 days before the flight and the other legal conditions are met. The voucher or document from the tour operator proves a confirmed booking if it shows the flight, the airports and the departure and arrival times, even if BH Air did not confirm those times to the tour operator.

If you were told 14 days or more in advance, no compensation is owed for the cancellation - whoever requested the change. When BH Air communicated the change only to the tour operator, it must prove when and how you were informed.

Who owes compensation on a package holiday?

Compensation is owed by BH Air even if you booked a holiday with the flight included and have no contract directly with the airline. It also makes no difference that the ticket was paid for as part of the package price. The tour operator is responsible for the package itself - for example, the hotel, the transfer and refunding the package price if the package is cancelled.

BH Air also provides aircraft with crew to other airlines. When you fly on a BH Air aircraft but the flight is operated on behalf of another airline, compensation is usually owed by the airline responsible for operating the flight.

Did the tour operator pay you for a missed night?

If there is a long delay, the tour operator may refund part of the holiday price - for example, for a missed night at the hotel. This does not automatically entitle BH Air to reduce the compensation under the Regulation. You may be entitled both to compensation from the airline and to a price reduction for the holiday from the tour operator. Deducting one from the other is only allowed to avoid double compensation for the same damage - not as an arbitrary reduction of the €250, €400 or €600 compensation. If BH Air considers that the breach was caused by the tour operator, it can seek to recover the amount from the tour operator.

Compensation for a delayed BH Air flight

Passengers can claim compensation of €250 to €600 for a delayed BH Air flight if they reach their final destination 3 hours or more late. The arrival delay is counted until at least one of the aircraft doors is opened and passengers can leave the aircraft, not until the moment of landing.

What are your rights when your BH Air flight is delayed?

In extraordinary circumstances - for example, severe weather or air traffic restrictions - BH Air may be released from paying compensation if it proves that this particular circumstance caused the delay of that particular flight and that the delay could not have been avoided even if all reasonable measures had been taken. Ordinary technical faults and problems within the airline's own organisation - for example, a crew member suddenly falling ill - are, as a rule, not extraordinary circumstances.

A strike by the airline's own staff - pilots or cabin crew - is, as a rule, not an extraordinary circumstance when it concerns the employees' demands on the airline. Strikes by staff outside the airline - for example, airport security or air traffic control - may be an extraordinary circumstance, but even then BH Air owes you care at the airport.

Compensation for BH Air charter flights from and to Bulgaria

BH Air operates charter flights for tour operators from airports in Bulgaria to resorts in Türkiye, Egypt and other countries, as well as flights from Germany and other European countries to Varna and Burgas. Because BH Air is an EU airline, Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 also covers return flights - for example, Antalya - Sofia or Hurghada - Varna.

Example compensation for BH Air charter flights

The compensation is the same for the return flight on the route. Charter programmes and routes change every season. Distances are calculated using the great circle method, as required by Regulation (EC) No 261/2004. The amount shown is the possible compensation - your entitlement depends on the other conditions of the Regulation, and in certain cases the compensation may be reduced.

Compensation for a cancelled BH Air flight

If BH Air cancels a flight and passengers are told less than 14 days before the scheduled departure, they can claim compensation of €250 to €600, unless the airline proves that an extraordinary circumstance caused the cancellation of that particular flight and that the cancellation could not have been avoided even if all reasonable measures had been taken, or it offered re-routing that meets the conditions of Regulation (EC) No 261/2004. Care - meals, refreshments and, if needed, accommodation - is owed even when the cancellation is due to extraordinary circumstances.

Cancelled charter: who provides a new flight and who refunds you?

When the cancelled flight is part of a package holiday, refunds are governed by the rules on package travel and are claimed from the tour operator. In practice, the tour operator usually also arranges the new flight to your final destination, while care at the airport - meals, refreshments and, if needed, accommodation - is BH Air's obligation.

The compensation of €250 to €600 is owed separately from the refund and the new flight when the conditions of the Regulation are met.

How much compensation does BH Air have to pay?

Under Regulation (EC) No 261/2004, the amount of compensation depends on the flight distance:

If you are re-routed, the airline may, under certain conditions, reduce the compensation by 50%.

Check how much compensation you can get for your BH Air flight

Refund of the ticket price and other expenses

If your flight is cancelled or you are denied boarding, the airline must offer you a choice between re-routing to your final destination and a refund of the ticket price. The choice is yours - BH Air cannot force an alternative flight on you instead of a refund. If your flight is delayed by 5 hours or more, you have the right to give up the trip and ask for a refund of the ticket price.

If the flight is part of a package holiday, the refund is claimed from the tour operator, not from BH Air.

When can you ask BH Air for a refund of your ticket?

• your flight was cancelled and you chose a refund instead of re-routing;
• your flight was delayed by 5 hours or more and you decided not to travel;
• you were denied boarding and chose a refund instead of re-routing.

The refund covers the price of the unused parts of the ticket and is due within 7 days. It is paid in cash or by bank transfer, and a voucher or credit for a future flight can only be given with your written agreement.

A ticket refund is not compensation. These are two separate rights, and getting one does not cancel the other. If your flight is cancelled or you are denied boarding, you do not lose your right to compensation under Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 just because you accepted a refund of your ticket or re-routing.

What other expenses can you claim from BH Air?

• the cost of meals, refreshments, hotel accommodation and transport if you waited for the delayed or replacement flight and BH Air did not provide them;
• the costs you incurred to reach your final destination if you were not offered re-routing and had to arrange the journey yourself.

How does the process of collecting your compensation work?

You can follow the progress of your claim in your personal account, and we email you whenever there is a change in your case. If you have any questions, you can always contact us by phone too.

Did the airline refuse to pay you?

The airline’s refusal does not necessarily mean that you are not entitled to compensation. The reason given in the refusal is not always sufficient to release the airline from liability.

See why airlines refuse to pay compensation and how you can proceed.