How to complain about a Virgin Atlantic flight?

No, and Virgin Atlantic will not deal with one until you have claimed yourself. Its Conditions of Carriage require you to submit a compensation claim directly and give Virgin Atlantic 28 days to respond before a third party claims on your behalf. Claims sent by a claims company without that step are not processed. Virgin Atlantic itself notes that most claims companies take a percentage of the compensation plus an admin fee. Claiming directly, and escalating to AviationADR if needed, costs nothing, so any compensation is paid to you in full.

Almost every route Virgin Atlantic operates is longer than 3,500 km, so under UK261 the usual amount is £520 per passenger if you arrive four hours or more late, or £260 if you arrive between three and four hours late. A cancellation made with less than 14 days’ notice is compensated in the same bands, depending on how late the replacement flight gets you there. Every Virgin Atlantic flight to or from the UK is covered, because Virgin Atlantic is a UK airline. Nothing is due if the cause was a genuine extraordinary circumstance such as severe weather, but routine technical faults do not normally count. Our Virgin Atlantic delay compensation guide explains the rules in more detail.

Check the “operated by” line on your booking confirmation or boarding pass. Compensation for a delay, cancellation or denied boarding is claimed from the airline that operated the flight, even if you booked with Virgin Atlantic, so a flight operated by Delta is a claim against Delta. Delta, Air France and KLM are also AviationADR members, so the same free escalation route applies once the operating airline has sent a final response or eight weeks have passed. For those airlines the flight must involve a UK airport. For baggage on a journey with more than one airline, you can claim against the first or the last carrier.

AviationADR can take complaints about any Virgin Atlantic flight to or from a UK airport, and Virgin Atlantic flights that do not involve the UK may also be eligible. The Participating Members page sets out the current rules. The scheme covers delays, cancellations, denied boarding, lost, delayed or damaged baggage, problems faced by disabled passengers or passengers with reduced mobility, and pricing or misrepresentation disputes. Awards are capped at £25,000. Disabled passengers and passengers with reduced mobility may be able to come to AviationADR before they travel, without first complaining to Virgin Atlantic and waiting eight weeks.

It depends on the problem. Report damaged checked baggage to Virgin Atlantic in writing within 7 days of receiving it, and delayed baggage within 21 days of getting it back, under the Montreal Convention. Compensation claims for a delay or cancellation can be made up to six years after the scheduled arrival date, according to Virgin Atlantic’s Conditions of Carriage. Once Virgin Atlantic has sent its final response, you have 12 months to bring the complaint to AviationADR, which issues a final decision within 60 days of establishing the Complete Complaint File. The decision is binding on Virgin Atlantic if you accept it.