Wizz Air Denied Boarding: When You Can Claim and When You Can't
Refused boarding by Wizz Air? Learn the difference between a compensable bump and a bag or check-in dispute that pays nothing, and what you're owed.
Wizz Air is Hungarian registered, which means it is an EU carrier and you are protected in both directions: leaving Luton or Gatwick under UK261, and flying back to the UK from Budapest, Bucharest or anywhere else in its network under EU261. The harder question with a low cost airline is not whether you are covered, it is whether what happened to you actually counts as denied boarding.
The distinction that decides your claim
A large share of people who say Wizz Air refused to board them were not bumped at all. They fell foul of the fare rules, and that pays nothing. Compensation is owed when the airline could not seat you on a flight you were entitled to fly. It is not owed when you broke a condition of carriage.
Pays nothing
- Arriving at the gate after it closed, even by a minute
- A cabin bag that did not fit the sizer, where you refused to pay the fee
- No boarding pass, or not checked in online before the airport cut off
- Passport, visa or documents not valid for the destination
- Refusal on genuine safety, security or health grounds
Pays compensation
- The flight was oversold and you were offloaded despite a valid booking and checking in on time
- Wizz swapped in a smaller aircraft and there was no longer a seat for you
- Your seat was taken for operating crew being repositioned
- You were denied boarding for any other operational reason within the airline's control
Volunteers first, and be careful
Wizz has to ask for volunteers before offloading anyone. Accepting a voucher or a credit to your Wizz account means you have volunteered, and you give up the fixed compensation in exchange. Find out what the cash entitlement is before you agree to anything at the gate.
How much can you claim?
- £220 or €250 for flights under 1,500km
- £350 or €400 for flights 1,500-3,500km
- £520 or €600 for flights over 3,500km
Most Wizz routes from the UK to central and eastern Europe sit in the lowest band, so £220 is typical. Longer routes to Georgia, Armenia or the Gulf reach the middle and upper bands. There is no minimum delay to serve: the payment is due because you were refused boarding, not because you arrived late.
Weather and strikes make no difference
Airlines cannot rely on extraordinary circumstances to escape denied boarding compensation, which is settled law following the European Court's ruling in Finnair v Lassooy. If Wizz oversold the flight, why it oversold it is not your problem.
Get the reason in writing
Everything turns on the stated reason for refusing you. Ask the gate agent to put it in writing or email it to you before you leave the airport, and photograph the boarding pass, the bag in the sizer, or the gate screen showing the time. Without that, it becomes your word against the airline's months later.
How far back can you claim?
You have 6 years in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and 5 years in Scotland.
How to claim
Klaimly works out whether your case is a genuine bump or a fare rules refusal before spending your time on it, and handles the Wizz Air claim for a flat 5% fee, only if we win. No VAT, no minimum fee, and nothing to pay unless your claim succeeds.