I buy plane tickets often enough but I have yet to reach VIP status when I fly—far from it, actually. I’ve never been upgraded “just because”, my meal choice usually runs out by the time it’s my turn to eat, and I’m typically seated at the very back of the plane with a broken entertainment system.

When our Zoom Airlines Montreal-Paris flight was delayed by 36 hours, all we got were two $15 food vouchers and a shitty designated hotel room. The airlines filed for bankruptcy a few weeks later, so I guess we were lucky to even make it to Paris.

When Air Canada failed to deliver our backpack in São Paulo, all we got were the two backpacks two days later—zero compensation and zero info on how to submit a claim.

And we never got anything from Air Canada for our many delayed or cancelled flights over years of travelling. One time, we even took the Greyhound from Toronto to Ottawa instead of trying to be booked on the next available flight (being a standby with a toddler was not an acceptable option…).

But last year, for once, I got something from an airline—€213 from Air France.

Thank you, Air Passengers Rights Regulation 2004 (Regulation [EC] No 261/2004).

Last November, my 1:30 p.m. Air France from Paris to Ottawa was delayed to 4 p.m. I got the email when I arrived at the airport in Nantes. Air France employees told me that since it was only a 2.5-hour delay, I wasn’t eligible for compensation. Okay, never mind.

But once in Paris, I realized that the flight was now scheduled at 4:30 p.m.

Air France gave me a €10 voucher. I bought candies for Mark.

Meanwhile, another passenger, a frequent flyer, shared a few tips with me. The airline never offers compensation. However, according to Regulation (EC) No 261/2004 of the European Parliament, we were eligible for compensation since the flight was delayed by three hours.

“Don’t bother arguing with the airline,” he recommended. “Just Google ‘flight delay compensation’ and submit a claim through one of the websites doing the work for you.”

I did just that while waiting for the flight. I picked vol-retardé.fr because their fees were clearly posted and they work on a “no win, no fee” basis. I figured I didn’t have anything to lose and wasting time on arguing with Air France was worth the fee, a percentage of the compensation.

I entered the flight information and some personal details and I submitted my claim.

On November 21, I got an email informing me my claim was eligible. It was submitted to Air France.

On December 11, Vol-Retardé told me Air France had yet to reply and that my claim would be transferred to one of their lawyers.

Vol-Retardé followed up on December 14.

Eventually, on January 9, Vol-Retardé announced that Air France had paid the claim—€300 since the flight had only landed in Ottawa with a four-hour delay. My share of it was €213.

I submitted my banking information and no, it wasn’t a scam, the money was deposited in my account two days later.

So if your flight is delayed, you may be eligible for compensation if:

• If your flight is within the EU and is operated either by an EU or a non-EU airline
• If your flight arrives in the EU from outside the EU and is operated by an EU airline
• If your flight departs from the EU to a non-EU country operated by an EU or a non-EU airline
• If you have not already received benefits (compensation, re-routing, assistance from the airline) for flight-related problems for this journey under the relevant law of a non-EU country.

I’m grateful for consumer (and passenger) protection in the European Union. It’s the wild west in North America… and yes, I’m flying EU airlines whenever I can.