QUALIFY IT
Measurement, then direction
Arrival delay at the final destination, doors open (Germanwings, C-452/13). Heathrow Terminal 3 stand allocation adds real minutes; a delay Virgin logs at 2h 50m is often 3h 05m at the doors.
Inbound qualifies. A late Virgin arrival into Heathrow from Atlanta is a UK261 claim. The same flight on Delta metal is not. Check “operated by.”
Connections on one ticket through Heathrow follow Folkerts: a late Virgin feeder that lands the client at the final destination 3+ hours late is a claim for the whole journey.
THE MONEY
What is it worth?
£220
Under 1,500 km
£350
1,500–3,500 km
£520
Over 3,500 km
Per passenger, measured on the journey’s great-circle distance.
£520 per passenger on essentially every Virgin route. Rolling delays count in full; a four-person booking on a late Las Vegas flight is £2,080.
THE PUSHBACK
What Virgin will say
Technical fault is Virgin’s most common reason and its weakest defence: Wallentin-Hermann puts aircraft faults inside the airline’s ordinary operation. Push for the fault, the date, and the maintenance record.
Late inbound aircraft is the other letter — the aircraft from Delhi arrived late, so this departure did. That is rotation, and it pays.
THE EDGE
What’s specific to Virgin Atlantic
Virgin’s compensation form asks for departure delay; enter the arrival delay at the doors and say so in the description.
CEDR membership makes the 8-week clock a real lever — Virgin settles a meaningful share before the case opens.
Six years in England and Wales. Old Virgin delays are worth retro-checking: the £520 band makes every hit substantial.
Reading this as the passenger, not the agent? The plain-English version for your own trip: flight delayed 3+ hours — what you’re owed.
THE PLAY
How do you file it?
File through Virgin’s compensation form with the doors-open arrival your client can evidence.
Attach boarding passes and the confirmation; name the operating carrier.
Request the recorded cause; “technical” in one word is the CEDR opening.
FLYING IT YOURSELF?
Check what Virgin Atlantic 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
Virgin says 2h 55m. The client’s phone says 3h 10m at the door. Who wins?
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File on the doors time with the evidence. It is a routinely winnable argument.
Delayed into Heathrow from Miami on Virgin — covered?
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Yes. Virgin is a UK carrier; inbound qualifies under UK261.
Delayed into Heathrow on a Delta-operated codeshare with a VS number?
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Not covered — Delta operated it, and a US carrier inbound is outside the regime.
They were fed and hoteled overnight — does that reduce the £520?
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No. Care is owed alongside compensation.
How long does Virgin take?
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Three to six weeks to a first reply. The CEDR clock runs from filing regardless.
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.