Air passenger compensation claim for a delayed, cancelled or overbooked flight (Germany)
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This document is in German
The PDF you download is in German — that is the language it has to be filed in, so it is not translated. Everything on this page is here to tell you what it says.
A claim letter to the airline under EU Regulation (EC) No 261/2004, written for Germany: €250, €400 or €600 compensation per passenger when you reached your destination three hours or more late, your flight was cancelled at short notice, or you were denied boarding. It sets out the flight, the amount by distance, a refusal of vouchers, your out-of-pocket costs and a payment deadline, and names the German conciliation bodies that come next. For passengers on the same booking too. In German.
What you fill in
The details the document asks for.
- Passenger
- Passenger's address
- Airline
- Airline's postal address (customer service)
- City
- Date
- Booking reference
- Flight number
- Date of the flight
- Departure airport
- Destination airport
- Scheduled arrival (date and time)
- Actual arrival (date and time)
- What went wrong with the flight
- Compensation per person (250, 400 or 600)
- Other passengers on the same booking
- Expenses
- Amount claimed
- Payment deadline
- IBAN
Preview
This document is produced for you. Your answers are typed into it and the finished PDF is yours to keep.
Common questions
- How much compensation can I claim for a delayed or cancelled flight with this German letter?
- You can claim if you reached your final destination at least three hours late, your flight was cancelled without notice at least two weeks before, or you were denied boarding. The amount depends on distance: €250 up to 1,500 km; €400 for flights within the EU over 1,500 km and other flights of 1,500 to 3,500 km; €600 for all others (Art. 7 of Regulation (EC) No 261/2004). The airline need not pay if it proves extraordinary circumstances that could not have been avoided.
- What can I do in Germany if the airline refuses or does not answer?
- Once the airline has refused or not answered for two months, you can apply free of charge for conciliation on claims up to €5,000: to the Schlichtungsstelle Reise & Verkehr e. V. if the airline is a member, otherwise to the Schlichtungsstelle Luftverkehr at the Federal Office of Justice (§§ 57–57b of the German Aviation Act, LuftVG). The Federal Aviation Office (Luftfahrt-Bundesamt) supervises airlines but does not enforce individual claims. A claim at the local court (Amtsgericht) remains open.
- How long do I have to claim flight compensation in Germany, and how should I send the letter?
- The claim becomes time-barred three years from the end of the year in which the flight took place (§§ 195, 199 of the German Civil Code, BGB; Federal Court of Justice, X ZR 62/23). No form is required: send the letter by email, through the airline's form or by post. Keep proof of sending and receipt — it matters later for the two months before conciliation and for limitation.
How you can sign this document
- Print it and sign by hand. The signature lines in the document are left blank on purpose — sign on them in ink.
- Sign it yourself with a qualified electronic signature. If you already hold a QES — Evrotrust, B-Trust, StampIT, ZealiD or any qualified provider on the EU Trusted List, on a card, a USB token, in a mobile app or in the cloud — our signing guide explains step by step how to sign this exact file without invalidating it. Step-by-step help, and a way to check it worked
DocMuse sells documents, not legal advice. Acceptance always depends on the recipient's rules and your local law.
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