What to Do if You Miss Your Connecting Flight?

What to do if you miss your connecting flight?

Missing your connecting flight can be a stressful and frustrating experience. You may find yourself stranded at the airport, unsure of what to do next. Fortunately, there are steps you can take to make this difficult situation easier. In this article, we will provide tips on how to handle missing your connecting flight and minimize the disruption it causes in your travel plans.

1. What to Do if You Miss Your Connecting Flight?

Have you missed you connection? Don’t worry.

With airline protected connecting flights, everything is very easy. If you miss your connecting flight through no fault of your own, you are entitled to a new flight to your destination and care from the airline if the wait at the airport is longer than 1 hour.

What to do if you miss a connecting flight?

Here’s what happens if you miss your connecting flight:

1. If your first flight is delayed and you’re worried about missing your connecting flight, make sure to let the cabin crew know. Request a seat near the exit, so you can be among the first off of the plane. There remains hope for making it on time!
2. The delay was long enough to miss your next flight. What to do if you miss your connecting flight? Contact the airline as soon as possible to arrange for a new flight. You don’t have to call the airline, though. Find the nearest information counter and ask where you can find the representatives of your airline.
3. As directed by the information counter, locate the office of your airline, or the ground handling services.
4. Speak to the airline representatives in person and inquire about available flights. After you have evaluated your options, select a flight that better suits your needs and they will issue you a new ticket. This, of course, is for free. Because you missed your connecting flight through no fault of your own. This is what happens if you miss connecting flight due to delay.
5. If your have to wait for at least 4 hours during the night, you must be given a free hotel stay. A free transfer to the hotel must be provided, too.
6. Don’t forget that you may have the right to demand assistance from your airline at the airport – this is what’s called a “right to care.” For more details, please see below.
7. Ask what happens to your checked baggage (if you have any). The airline might take care of your bag and put it on the next flight for you, but in some situations you might need to collect and recheck it yourself.
8. Keep in mind that you might have a right to compensation. In some cases, the airline has to pay you flight compensation for the inconvenience caused.

2. Assistance at the Airport in Case of Missed Connection

Dreadful news – your flight has been delayed, cancelled, overbooked, or you have a missed connection? Don’t panic! The airline is there to help.

Airlines are required to provide certain assistance and support to passengers affected by these flight disruptions.

Here’s what the airline must offer you:

• 1-hour flight delay – assistance for communication. If you have to wait 1 hour extra, the airline must give you access to internet or phone calls. So, you can get in touch with your relatives or friends, or anyone else whom you might want to inform about this flight cancellation / travel changes.
• 2-hour flight delay – free food. After 2 hours, you have a right to some kind of food and refreshments from airline. This as well must be arranged for free. Mostly you’ll be receiving a voucher for a meal or some snack, and drink.
• 4-hour flight delay – free accommodation + free transfer. But only if it’s happening during the night. And only if it is abroad / away from your home. If it’s your place of residence, you’ll be offered only free transfer.
• 4-hour flight delay – a new flight. If the delay is going to be 4 hours or more, you have a right to an alternative flight to your destination. The same applies both to domestic and international flights to or from Brazil.

In case of missed connection, you are entitled to these services at both airports.

Say your first flight is delayed for 2 hours. As it is a 2-hour delay, you are entitled to a free meal and refreshments. Unfortunately, you miss your connecting flight because of this 2-hour delay. And the next flight is only on the next day. On top of securing an alternative ticket for the next flight (at no extra cost), a free hotel stay with transfers plus food must be provided to you.

Read more: Right to care

3. Missed Connection Compensation

In some cases, you might be entitled to compensation.

If the airline fails to provide assistance, such as assistance for communication, food and accommodation + transfer (read more about it above), you could be entitled to compensation of up to €1500.

Unlike the EU, EEA and UK which have standardized compensation amounts based on the length and distance of flights, there is no set compensation amount for passengers in Brazil. Instead, each individual’s situation will be assessed considering various elements such as their flight’s duration, why it was delayed as well as what services were not provided.

You can get compensation if your flight was:

• Within the last 5 years – for domestic flights;
• 2 years – for international flights.

If you’ve gotten all the assistance you were eligible to, you won’t get flight compensation.

Have you ever missed a connecting flight? What was your experience?

Do you have more questions on what to do if you miss your connecting flight? Ask in the comments.