Did you know a long flight delay could mean 600 Euros?
(This story was shared by an Instalocate’s user)
Running 10 minutes or more late is considered being on time as per IST. But a 10 hour plus flight delay, certainly not happening. Rather a reason good enough to make someone have an acute anger rush. Such was my dilemma.
Had my official solo trip planned to USA. Since there was only one direct flight from New Delhi ( DEL) to San Francisco (SFO) I decided to take connecting flights and booked myself on British Airways BA142 on April 30, 2017 from New Delhi (India) to London Heathrow (UK) and from Heathrow Airport to San Francisco Airport for a dream come true assignment.
My life was set to change for good. This was my life changing maiden trip. Keeping my fingers crossed for flight to take off safely; little did I know that accomplishing the first step towards this dream would be a roadblock in itself. My flight was delayed for more than 5 hours at New Delhi Airport. I knew the consequences of same would leave me with a very tight time window to get on my next flight but what I did not know was how I will manage after reaching London Airport. I was worried what role would these circumstances play on meetings that I was already delayed for.
My airlines told me not to bother myself about my second flight as they would give me another flight to Newark. Though this did bring me some respite but all was not over. Finally I reached Newark after taking an alternate flight which was almost 10 hours later than the original one. I was only calculating the time elapsed and calibrating my watch to EDT to find out the local time of my landing. Just to realize that I was more than 10 hours late from my original scheduled time. I was worried thinking how late I will be and how bad my first impression be.
I was tired and heartbroken after landing at San Francisco. But my stars had not completely given up on me. There was a message on my Facebook Messenger from Instalocate that I might be eligible for compensation due to more than 3 hours of flight delay. The message read “Your flight BA142 was delayed for more than 3 hours and you may get up to US$650 in compensation from the airlines. Do you want us to check if you are eligible for the compensation?” ( know more)
I could not believe that one could get a compensation amounting to $650 for a delayed flight even after getting an alternate flight. It felt unreal! But on second thoughts I had nothing to lose and $650 which will be Rs. 42,000 in my local currency would be a steal deal and I applied for it. Surprisingly the process was simple as a blink. All Instalocate asked from me were my flight details.
After finishing my official maiden trip I came home a month later with lot many stories. On coming back there was an envelope from British Airways waiting for me. The envelope reminded me of claim I had filed through Instalocate and Voila! It was a cheque worth INR 42,000. My first ever solo trip which kicked off with tremendous anxiety came to an end with a smile thanks to Instalocate.
If you need their help for any delay in the past three years reach out to them at www.instalocate.com/compensation.
