QUALIFY IT
Measured at arrival, not departure
The three-hour threshold is arrival delay at the final destination (Sturgeon, C-402/07; Germanwings, C-452/13 for doors-open). A late departure that recovers in the air owes nothing; a modest departure delay that cascades into a missed connection can owe €600.
Document your client’s actual arrival time. It is the number the whole claim turns on.
THE MONEY
What is it worth?
€250
Under 1,500 km
€400
1,500–3,500 km
€600
Over 3,500 km
Per passenger, measured on the journey’s great-circle distance.
€250 under 1,500 km, €400 to 3,500 km, €600 beyond, with a 50% reduction available to the airline in narrow re-routing cases on the longest band.
THE PUSHBACK
What Lufthansa will say
Technical faults are the common refusal. Unexpected technical problems arising in normal operation are not extraordinary (Wallentin-Hermann, C-549/07) — a fact worth quoting directly at them.
Rotation delays out of Frankfurt and Munich are airline-controlled no matter how they are labelled.
THE EDGE
What’s specific to Lufthansa
Frankfurt and Munich rotation delays are the standard Lufthansa shape — the inbound aircraft lands late and the whole day slips behind it.
Lufthansa’s thorough documentation is an opening: request the written operational reason, because a specific answer is easier to rebut than a vague one.
söp conciliation is free and available once Lufthansa refuses; Germany’s three-year year-end clock sets the outside deadline.
Reading this as the passenger, not the agent? The plain-English version for your own trip: flight delayed 3+ hours — what you’re owed. If Lufthansa has cancelled your own flight: Lufthansa cancelled your flight? What you're owed.
THE PLAY
How do you file it?
Fix the arrival time with independent evidence before writing.
Cite Sturgeon for the three-hour rule and Wallentin-Hermann if a technical defence appears.
Escalate to söp on refusal or silence.
FLYING IT YOURSELF?
Check what Lufthansa owes you — free, two minutes. $39 only if the airline pays.
Check my flight →TRAVEL AGENTS · Forward the booking and this claim is prepared for you. Start watching client flights →
AGENTS ASK
Questions agents ask
Departure delay or arrival delay?
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Arrival, at the final destination, measured when the doors open.
A technical fault caused it — does that excuse Lufthansa?
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Usually not. Wallentin-Hermann holds that technical problems in normal operation are not extraordinary circumstances.
What is the deadline?
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Three years from the end of the year of the flight under German law.
Does the claim change if they were re-routed?
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The airline may halve the top band in narrow cases. Check the arrival delay before accepting a reduced offer.
Where do I escalate?
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söp, Germany’s conciliation body — free for your client and effective on stalled claims.
The law this guide is written against: EC261 full text (EUR-Lex) · UK261 full text (legislation.gov.uk)
General information for travel professionals, not legal advice. Compensation depends on the facts of each disruption and the airline’s evidence. MyAirAdvocate prepares claims; it does not represent passengers and takes no percentage of any compensation.