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✓ You only pay if you get compensation✓ Up to €600 per passenger✓ EC Regulation 261/2004
Swiss International AirlinesDelay · Cancellation · Overbooking

Swiss International Airlines compensation: up to €600 per passenger

Swiss International Airlines flight delayed, cancelled or overbooked? Check for free in 2 minutes: we handle the claim, all the way to court if needed.

  • Up to €600 per passenger
  • Check in just 2 minutes
  • Nothing upfront: you only pay if you get compensation
  • Legal assistance specialised in air travel
DelayFlight24 applies European Regulation EC 261/2004
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Choose departure and arrival: we will show you right away how much you are owed.
  • Data protected
  • Nothing upfront
  • You only pay if we win
  • Transparent feeOnly 25% + VAT and only if Swiss International Airlines pays: out of €400 you receive €278.
  • All the way to courtIf Swiss International Airlines does not pay, our lawyers take the airline to court, at no extra cost to you.
  • Claims handled87,774 passengers have already trusted usupdated in real time

In short

  • Delay: if you arrive 3 hours or more late, Swiss International Airlines owes €250 to €600 per person, depending on the distance.
  • Cancellation: you are owed compensation if you were told less than 14 days before departure, on top of a ticket refund or an alternative flight.
  • Not owed for extraordinary circumstances (severe weather, air traffic control strikes). Technical faults and strikes by the airline's own staff usually are not extraordinary.
  • With DelayFlight24 you pay nothing upfront: if Swiss International Airlines pays, you keep €173.75 out of €250 or €278 out of €400.

Swiss International Airlines claims in numbers

Figures from the Swiss International Airlines claims we have handled for our customers, updated daily.

65Swiss International Airlines passengers have trusted us
57%of claims concern delayed flights
24%concern cancelled flights
18%concern overbooking and denied boarding

Swiss International Airlines routes with the most claims

Swiss International Airlines routes with the most claims
RoutekmOwed
PortoZurich1,532400 €Check
BarcelonaZurich857250 €Check
Bordeaux/Mérignac7,478600 €Check
ZurichLos Angeles9,544600 €Check
DüsseldorfSevilla1,837400 €Check
AmsterdamZurich605250 €Check
DresdenDubai4,545600 €Check
LondonZurich791250 €Check

Amount per person for arrival delays of at least 3 hours, cancellations with less than 14 days' notice and overbooking, unless there were extraordinary circumstances.

SWISS flight compensation: Swiss airline, EU passenger rights

Switzerland is outside the European Union, yet SWISS passengers are protected just as well. Under the air transport agreement between Switzerland and the EU, Regulation (EC) 261/2004 applies to Swiss International Air Lines as if it were an EU carrier. That covers SWISS flights departing from Switzerland or the EU, and SWISS flights landing in Switzerland or the EU from elsewhere, such as Chicago–Zurich or Bangkok–Zurich. We have already handled more than 40 SWISS claims.

Late arrival

Your SWISS flight, or the last leg of a journey through Zurich, reached its final destination 3 hours or more behind schedule.

3 hours or more

Cancellation

SWISS cancelled and told you less than two weeks before departure, without a close alternative.

Under 14 days' notice

Bumped

The flight was full and you were refused boarding in Zurich, Geneva or London despite having a valid ticket.

Payable at once

No compensation

Genuinely external causes: heavy snow on the runway, closed airspace, an air traffic control strike.

Outside SWISS's control

Not sure where your journey fits? Check your SWISS flight in two minutes.

How much SWISS pays: €250, €400 or €600

Whether you flew Economy Light or Business makes no difference. The amount is fixed by the distance to your final destination. Some of these routes come straight from SWISS claims we have handled:

Distance Example SWISS routes Compensation
Up to 1,500 km Barcelona–Zurich, Amsterdam–Zurich, London–Geneva €250
1,500 to 3,500 km Düsseldorf–Seville with a connection, Zurich–Lisbon, Zurich–Athens €400
Over 3,500 km Zurich–Los Angeles, Zurich–New York €600

Each passenger claims separately. A couple travelling with two children on Zurich–Los Angeles who land four hours late are owed €2,400 between them, because children with their own seat receive the full adult amount. On our form you enter the flight once and add your fellow travellers.

Delayed SWISS flight: what to do at the airport

More than half of the SWISS claims we receive are about delays, often where a late feeder flight meant a missed onward connection in Zurich. While you wait:

  1. Save every boarding pass in the SWISS app, including the one for the connection you missed.
  2. Screenshot push notifications and emails showing the new time and the reason SWISS gave.
  3. Note when the doors opened at your destination: that moment decides whether you reached 3 hours.
  4. Ask the transfer desk for meal vouchers and keep every receipt, whether in francs or euros.
  5. Don't swap your claim for Miles & More miles or a travel voucher before you know its cash value.

Meals, drinks and hotel while you wait

Separately from any compensation, SWISS must provide care once the departure delay passes these thresholds, plus a hotel and transfers if you can only leave the next day:

Distance Care from
Up to 1,500 km 2 hours
1,500 to 3,500 km 3 hours
Over 3,500 km 4 hours
5 hours or more You may abandon the trip and get the fare back

Missed connection at Zurich

If Barcelona–Zurich–Los Angeles was booked as one ticket and the first leg made you land in California at least 3 hours late, the claim is calculated on the whole journey: €600 rather than €250. Separate tickets are assessed one flight at a time. More on our page about delayed SWISS flight compensation.

Does your Swiss International Airlines flight qualify?Check in 2 minutes, with no obligation.
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Cancelled SWISS flight: refund and compensation

Around a quarter of the SWISS cases we manage involve a cancellation. Two separate rights apply:

Refund or rerouting

Always owed: your money back, or another SWISS or Lufthansa Group flight to the same destination.

€250 to €600 compensation

Added on top when SWISS gave you less than 14 days' notice and the replacement falls outside the limits below.

Notice from SWISS Compensation
14 days or more No, but refund or rerouting still apply
7 to 13 days Yes, unless the new flight leaves no more than 2 hours earlier and arrives less than 4 hours late
Under 7 days Yes, unless the new flight leaves no more than 1 hour earlier and arrives less than 2 hours late

Geneva schedule cuts. A shortage of engines and spare parts for its Airbus A220 fleet has led SWISS to drop some Geneva routes. If your cancellation or a big timing change reached you shortly before departure, compensation may well be due. Read more about a cancelled SWISS flight.

SWISS overbooking and denied boarding

Denied boarding makes up more than one in six of the SWISS claims we see. If you held a confirmed ticket, had valid documents and reached the gate on time, SWISS owes compensation immediately, along with a new flight or a refund. Our guide to SWISS overbooking explains the details.

Strikes and SWISS flights

When pilots or cabin crew employed by the airline walk out, compensation is normally payable: the EU Court of Justice treats a strike by an airline's own staff as part of its ordinary business (case C-28/20). French air traffic controllers or ground handlers at another airport going on strike is different: that counts as an extraordinary circumstance, so only care and a refund or rerouting remain.

SWISS turned down your claim? How to read the reply

A first no from SWISS is not the end. The burden is on the airline to prove an extraordinary circumstance. These are the reasons we come across most:

Usually payable
"Technical fault" or "maintenance delay"

Inspections, repairs and waiting for parts are routine airline business, A220 engine issues included.

EU Court of Justice, case C-549/07
Usually payable
"Crew shortage"

Sick leave and rostering gaps are an organisational risk for SWISS, not an outside event.

It depends
"Airspace closure" or "security situation in the Middle East"

Suspensions of flights to Tel Aviv, Dubai or Beirut on safety grounds are often extraordinary. We check whether that really affected your flight and whether you were rebooked properly.

Often not payable
"Snow and de-icing at Zurich"

Winter weather excuses SWISS only if it caused that particular delay: we compare the weather and airport operations for the day.

Has SWISS already said no? Send us the reply. If the reason does not stand up, we follow with a formal demand and, where necessary, court action with our own lawyers. Check your SWISS flight.

Flights run by Helvetic, Edelweiss and other group airlines

SWISS belongs to the Lufthansa Group and Star Alliance. Some flights sold under the LX code are operated for SWISS by Helvetic Airways, while Edelweiss is the group's leisure airline. The claim goes to the operating carrier named on your booking confirmation, and we take care of that. In Switzerland, passenger rights are supervised by the Federal Office of Civil Aviation (FOCA).

How to claim from SWISS: on your own or with us

swiss.com has a dedicated form for delay and cancellation compensation, where you can also upload receipts for expenses. Here is how the two routes compare:

On your own

Free, but the back-and-forth with SWISS is yours. If they refuse, you can go to the national enforcement body of the country you departed from (the CAA for UK departures) or to court, at your own time and cost.

With DelayFlight24

A two-minute form and an online signature. We handle the claim, the formal demand and any court case. No win, no fee: 25% + VAT if you are paid, and legal costs are ours even if we lose.

Already rejected by SWISS?

Forward us the airline's answer. If the reason given is not a real extraordinary circumstance, we restart the case with a formal letter before action.

What we need from you

  • SWISS booking confirmationWith the six-character reference, or your boarding passes.
  • IDFor every passenger, children included.
  • Messages and receiptsSWISS app notifications and proof of what you spent.

Time limits for a SWISS claim

The Regulation sets no deadline of its own. National law decides, as the EU Court of Justice confirmed in case C-139/11, so limits vary from country to country. A SWISS flight from a few years ago may still be claimable: enter the date and we'll tell you.

How long SWISS takes to pay

If SWISS accepts the claim, payment usually arrives within a few weeks. If it has to go to a formal demand or court, allow several months. Once the money reaches us we transfer your share: €173.75 out of €250, €278 out of €400, €417 out of €600.

Lost or damaged luggage on SWISS

Baggage falls under the Montreal Convention instead. Before leaving the reclaim hall in Zurich or Geneva, file a Property Irregularity Report (PIR), then write to SWISS within 7 days for damage, or within 21 days of delivery for a delayed bag.

SWISS contact details and flight status

Head office
Swiss International Air Lines AG, Kloten (Zurich Airport), Switzerland
Claims
Compensation application form in the customer support section of swiss.com
Flight status
SWISS app or the official website
You only pay if you get paid. No upfront fee and no legal costs for you, even if a case against SWISS is lost. Check your SWISS flight.

What if Swiss International Airlines does not pay? We go all the way

Many airlines only pay when they realise we will not give up. If they refuse or do not reply, our lawyers take legal action, and you do not have to do anything.

Claim to the airline

We send the formal claim with all the documents.

Formal notice

If they do not pay, we send a formal notice with legal value.

Our lawyers in court

Our lawyers take the airline to court, all the way to a judgement.

  • If we lose, you pay nothingNo fee and no costs. If we win, the fee is 40% + VAT.
  • Legal costs are on usYou pay nothing for the court case, even if we lose.
  • All the way to a judgementWe do not stop at the formal notice: if needed we go to court.

Swiss International Airlines compensation: frequently asked questions

Does EU 261 apply to SWISS even though Switzerland is not in the EU?
Yes. Through the EU–Switzerland air transport agreement, SWISS is treated like an EU airline. You are covered on flights leaving Switzerland or the EU and on SWISS flights arriving there from outside, for example New York–Zurich.
What compensation does SWISS owe for a 3-hour delay?
€250 per passenger on flights up to 1,500 km such as Barcelona–Zurich, €400 between 1,500 and 3,500 km such as Zurich–Lisbon, and €600 beyond 3,500 km such as Zurich–Los Angeles. Your fare and cabin class make no difference.
I missed my connection in Zurich. Can I claim?
Yes, provided the whole trip was on one booking and you reached your final destination at least 3 hours late. Compensation is based on the distance from your first departure airport to your final destination.
My LX flight was operated by Helvetic Airways. Who do I claim from?
From the operating carrier shown on your booking confirmation. Your rights stay the same, and on our form you just enter the flight details: we send the claim to the right airline.
Is a SWISS flight from London covered?
Yes. A SWISS flight from London to Zurich or Geneva lands in Switzerland with a carrier treated as European, so EU 261 applies. Departures from the UK are also protected by the UK version of the rules, and we work out which one applies.
SWISS offered me Miles & More miles instead of cash. Should I accept?
Compensation is owed in money. You only receive miles or vouchers if you agree to it in writing. Find out the cash amount first, as it is usually the better deal.
My Geneva flight was cancelled because of A220 engine problems. Am I entitled to anything?
You can always choose a refund or rerouting. Compensation comes on top if you were told less than 14 days before departure, since engine and spare-part shortages are a matter of fleet management, not an extraordinary circumstance.
How long do I have to claim against SWISS?
EU 261 does not set a deadline. The limitation period depends on the country where the claim is brought, as the EU Court of Justice held in case C-139/11, so older flights can often still be claimed.
What does DelayFlight24 charge for a SWISS claim?
Nothing upfront. If you are paid we keep 25% + VAT, so you receive €173.75 out of €250, €278 out of €400 and €417 out of €600. We cover all legal costs, even if a court case is lost.

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Swiss International Airlines flight delayed or cancelled?

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