Volotea compensation: when you are owed €250 or €400
Volotea specialises in direct flights between mid-sized cities and holiday spots: Olbia, Naples, Nantes, Lyon and the Greek islands. We have already helped more than 2,000 Volotea passengers, and over half of their claims concern a delay, around three in ten a cancellation and more than one in ten a denied boarding. If your flight landed three hours or more late, was cancelled at short notice or left without you, you can claim €250 or €400 per passenger.
Volotea is a Spanish airline headquartered in Barcelona, with its registered office at Asturias Airport. As an EU carrier, it is bound by Regulation (EC) 261/2004 on every flight leaving the EU and also on flights arriving in Europe from non-EU countries.
Flight delay
The Volotea aircraft opens its doors at your destination three hours or more after the time on your ticket.
3+ hours on arrivalFlight cancellation
Volotea told you less than 14 days before departure and the replacement flight does not meet the legal time limits.
Under 14 days' noticeDenied boarding
You had a valid ticket and documents and were at the gate on time, but were not allowed on.
Payable at onceWhen it is not paid
When the cause was genuinely beyond Volotea's control, such as a violent storm over the airport or an air traffic control strike. The burden of proof lies with the airline.
Extraordinary circumstancesAll you need are the airports and the date: run a free check on your Volotea flight.
How much Volotea pays, route by route
The ticket price makes no difference: a Volotea flight bought in a sale gives you the same amount as a full-fare one. Only distance counts. Volotea's network is made up mostly of short flights, so €250 is the most common amount; it rises to €400 on longer routes such as those from France to the Canary Islands.
| Distance | Volotea routes we see most | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Up to 1,500 km | Lille–Nice, Montpellier–Nantes, Bologna–Olbia, Mykonos–Athens, Santorini–Athens | €250 |
| 1,500 to 3,500 km | Flights between France and the Canary Islands | €400 |
| Over 3,500 km | No routes of this length on Volotea's European network | €600 |
The amount applies to each passenger. A family of four on an Athens–Santorini hop that arrived four hours late can claim €1,000 in total, because children with their own seat have the same rights as adults. With our form you enter the flight once and add your travel companions.
Volotea flight delayed: what to do at the airport
Delays are the most common reason for Volotea claims in our files, more than half of all cases. For compensation, what counts is when the aircraft door opens at your destination, not when it lands. While you wait to board:
- Keep your boarding pass, even just as a screenshot from the Volotea app or the PDF you received by email.
- Save Volotea's notifications about the delay and new time, so you can compare them with the reply to your claim.
- Ask the ground staff for food and drink vouchers as soon as the delay starts to stretch.
- Write down the time you leave the aircraft and take a photo of the arrivals screen.
- Do not sign away your rights or take a travel credit in place of cash compensation.
Care on the ground: what Volotea must provide
While you wait, Volotea has to provide meals and drinks in proportion to the wait and, if the flight slips to the next day, a hotel room and transfer. This duty applies even when the delay stems from extraordinary circumstances.
| Flight length | Care due after |
|---|---|
| Up to 1,500 km | 2 hours |
| 1,500–3,500 km | 3 hours |
| Over 3,500 km | 4 hours |
| Wait of over 5 hours | You can give up the flight and ask for your fare back |
Connections and Volotea flights with a stop
Volotea mostly sells direct flights, but if you had several flights on the same booking and reached your final destination three hours or more late, compensation is based on the total distance. If you bought flights separately, for instance a Volotea flight to Athens and another one on to the islands, each leg stands alone. See our page on Volotea delayed flight compensation.
Volotea flight cancelled: what you get on top of a refund
Around three in ten of the Volotea claims we handle relate to a cancellation. When Volotea cancels, it usually offers another flight or a refund: that is your right, but it does not rule out compensation, which is added if the notice came too late.
Always owed: you choose between getting back what you paid and flying to the same destination on another flight, as soon as possible or on a date that suits you.
Added to the refund if Volotea told you less than 14 days in advance and there was no extraordinary circumstance.
| Notice given | Compensation |
|---|---|
| 14 days or more | Not owed; refund or alternative flight still apply |
| 7–13 days | Owed, unless the alternative leaves no more than 2 hours early and arrives less than 4 hours late |
| Under 7 days | Owed, unless the alternative leaves no more than 1 hour early and arrives less than 2 hours late |
Seasonal routes and timetable changes. Volotea sometimes reshapes its seasonal schedule. If the change comes months ahead, no compensation is due, but a significant time change announced a few days before can count as a cancellation. Already had your refund? See whether compensation is due as well. More on Volotea cancelled flight compensation.
Volotea overbooking: compensation straight away
More than one Volotea claim in ten in our files involves denied boarding. If Volotea sold more seats than it had and you were left behind without choosing to be, holding a valid ticket and turning up on time, compensation is due immediately, along with another flight or a refund and care while you wait.
It is not due if boarding was refused for reasons on your side, such as an expired document or reaching the gate after it closed. If you are unsure, the assessment is free: enter your flight. Read our guide on Volotea overbooking and denied boarding.
Volotea strikes: when compensation is due
A strike by Volotea's pilots or cabin crew does not let the airline off: according to the EU Court of Justice, industrial action by its own staff is one of the normal risks of running an airline (case C-28/20). Outside strikes, such as those by air traffic controllers in France or Italy or by airport staff, are normally extraordinary circumstances: no compensation, but care and a refund or rerouting still apply.
Volotea refused compensation? The reasons and what the Court says
A negative reply from Volotea is not a judgment. The letter often cites a general cause; here is how to read the most common explanations.
Faults arising from operation and maintenance are a normal risk for anyone running aircraft. Only hidden manufacturing defects reported by the manufacturer or authorities are exempt. Check your flight.
EU Court of Justice, case C-549/07Volotea staff on strike: usually payable. Air traffic controllers or airport workers on strike: usually not.
EU Court of Justice, case C-28/20The same Volotea aircraft flies several legs a day: a delay carried forward is not extraordinary unless the airline proves an extraordinary event at its origin.
Bad weather is extraordinary only if it really prevented or delayed that flight. We check weather data and airport restrictions for that time slot.
A network of regional bases across Italy, France, Spain and Greece
Volotea flies a fleet of Airbus A319 and A320 aircraft from around twenty European bases, including Venice, Verona, Naples, Bari, Palermo, Olbia, Florence, Nantes, Bordeaux, Lyon, Marseille, Montpellier, Lille, Toulouse, Strasbourg, Bilbao and Asturias, with an Ancona base planned from December 2026. The Regulation applies in the same way across all of these routes:
- domestic flights in France and Italy, such as Lille–Nice, Montpellier–Nantes or Bologna–Olbia
- domestic flights in Greece, such as Athens–Mykonos and Athens–Santorini
- flights between EU countries, for example between Italy, France and Spain
- flights to and from non-EU countries, covered in both directions because Volotea is an EU airline
Volotea claim: on your own or with DelayFlight24
Volotea accepts claims through the online form on its website, which it describes as the only valid channel, and its conditions require each passenger to submit their own claim. For a family, that means filling in several forms. Here are the differences.
No cost, but one form per passenger, all the correspondence with Volotea and, if refused, escalation to the national enforcement body of the country your flight left from or to the courts, with time and costs on you.
One form for the whole group and an online signature. We handle the claim, formal demand and court case with our own lawyers. You pay only if you are compensated: 25% + VAT. Legal costs are ours, even if we lose.
If Volotea has already said no
A refusal after using the online form does not stop you passing the case to us. We analyse Volotea's reply and, if the reason does not hold, restart with a formal demand.
Useful documents
- Booking or boarding passVolotea's confirmation email or a photo of the boarding pass.
- ID documentFor every passenger, children included.
- Notices and expensesVolotea's messages about the delay or cancellation and receipts for meals, taxis or hotels.
How long you have to claim
Regulation 261/2004 sets no deadline: the EU Court of Justice has ruled that the limitation period of the country where the claim is brought applies (case C-139/11), and it varies from one state to another. A Volotea flight from a few summers ago may still qualify: enter the date and we will tell you.
How quickly Volotea compensation arrives
When Volotea accepts the claim, payment usually takes a few weeks. If the answer is no, or never comes, we move to a formal demand and, where needed, court action, which takes a few months. We keep you updated by email and, once Volotea pays, transfer your share by bank transfer.
Lost or damaged luggage with Volotea
Luggage is governed by the Montreal Convention, not by the delay Regulation. If your case does not arrive or is damaged, file a PIR at the airport baggage office straight away and write to Volotea within 7 days for damage, or within 21 days of getting it back if it was delayed.
Volotea contact details and flight status
- Registered office
- Volotea, S.L., Asturias Airport, Castrillón, Spain
- Claims
- Online claims form on volotea.com, one per passenger
- Flight status
- Volotea app or the official volotea.com website
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