What can I do if the airline changes my flight time after I book?

Airlines adjust schedules constantly, and most changes are a few minutes and irrelevant. The ones that matter are the changes that break the trip: a departure moved to a different day, a flight moved by several hours, a connection that no longer connects, or a route now operating via somewhere else. The email announcing it usually reads as if you have no choice, and that is not correct.

Step by step

1. Read what has actually changed.Compare the new itinerary with the original booking line by line: date, time, route, aircraft, connection times, and whether the flight number has changed. A change of flight number with a similar time is often a cancellation dressed as a schedule change.
2. Work out whether the change is significant to you.The test is not a fixed number of minutes for every case. A two-hour move that breaks an onward connection, causes a missed event or makes an accommodation booking unusable is significant. Say why it is significant when you make the request.
3. Ask for the alternative you want, specifically.Rather than accepting the change, ask to be moved to a named alternative flight at no cost, or ask for a full refund. Airlines have discretion to reroute onto partner airlines and often will if asked directly and politely, particularly close to departure.
4. Refuse the refund if you want to travel.Airlines default to offering a refund because it is cheapest for them. If you still want to make the journey, say so and ask for rerouting instead. A refund plus a new ticket bought at short notice usually leaves you worse off.
5. Check the compensation position.Where a change amounts to a cancellation, compensation may be due depending on how much notice you were given and what alternative was offered. The Civil Aviation Authority sets out the notice periods and the conditions.
6. Fix the rest of the trip.A schedule change ripples into airport parking, transfers, the first night of accommodation and any separately booked onward travel. Deal with those immediately, and where a cost is unavoidable, ask the airline to cover it before assuming it will not.
7. Escalate if the airline will not move.In writing, to the airline complaints route, then to its alternative dispute resolution body or the Civil Aviation Authority. Keep the original booking confirmation as evidence of what was sold.

Tips

• Screenshot the original booking as soon as you make it. Airline systems display the current itinerary, not the one you bought, and proving what changed becomes surprisingly difficult.
• Schedule changes cluster when airlines publish new seasons. A booking made a long way ahead is more likely to move than one made close in.
• If the change is small but you would prefer a different flight anyway, ask. Airlines are often willing to move you free of charge once they have opened the booking for a change.

Questions people ask