How much is LEVEL compensation worth?

Enter the actual flight details in the compensation calculator for a figure specific to a real journey; the bands below explain how that figure is derived.

The three EU261 distance bands

LEVEL's shortest current route, Barcelona to Boston at roughly 5,930 km, already sits well inside the top band. Every other LEVEL route — New York, Miami, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Buenos Aires, Santiago de Chile and Lima — is longer still. There is currently no LEVEL route short enough to fall into the EUR 250 or EUR 400 bands.

When the top amount can be halved

For a long-haul cancellation, EU261 allows the compensation to be reduced by 50%, to EUR 300, where the airline offers rerouting that gets the passenger to the final destination within four hours of the originally scheduled arrival time. This reduction applies specifically to cancellations handled through a fast reroute; it does not apply to a pure delay claim, where the full amount is either owed or not owed depending on how late the aircraft actually arrived.

What actually triggers the entitlement

Worked examples

Delay. A LEVEL flight from Barcelona to Miami is scheduled to land at 18:40 local time but the doors do not open until 22:15 — a delay of roughly three hours and thirty-five minutes. Because the delay clears the three-hour threshold and the distance exceeds 3,500 km, the passenger is owed EUR 600, unless LEVEL can show an extraordinary circumstance caused the delay and that all reasonable measures were taken.

Cancellation with a fast reroute. A LEVEL flight to Buenos Aires is cancelled the day before departure, and LEVEL rebooks the passenger on a replacement flight that lands just three hours after the original scheduled arrival time. Because the reroute keeps arrival within the four-hour reduction window, the compensation is halved from EUR 600 to EUR 300, assuming the cancellation does not otherwise qualify for the 14-day notice exemption and no extraordinary circumstance applies.

Denied boarding. A LEVEL flight to Santiago de Chile is oversold; a passenger with a confirmed reservation who checked in on time is involuntarily denied boarding when not enough volunteers come forward. Because this is an over-3,500 km route, the passenger is entitled to EUR 600, payable regardless of any extraordinary-circumstances defence, since denied boarding for overbooking is treated differently from a delay or cancellation caused by external events.

Amounts beyond the fixed compensation figure

Fixed compensation is often the largest single figure in a LEVEL claim, but it is rarely the only one available. A cancellation can also produce a full refund of the unused fare, including any return sector no longer of use. A long delay can produce a separate reimbursement of meals, hotel accommodation and transport paid out of pocket if LEVEL did not arrange these directly. An involuntary downgrade, though rare on LEVEL's current all-economy-and-premium configuration, would be assessed as a percentage of the fare paid for the downgraded sector rather than as a fixed EUR amount. None of these additional amounts reduce the fixed compensation figure, and none of them are automatically included in it — each has to be claimed on its own terms with its own supporting evidence.

Per passenger, not per booking

Each qualifying passenger on the reservation is entitled to their own compensation amount; a family of four on the same cancelled LEVEL flight to Lima is generally owed four separate payments of the applicable amount, not one shared payment split between them. Infants travelling without their own seat are typically assessed differently — check the specific ticket type if this applies.

What can reduce the amount to zero

• LEVEL proves the disruption was caused by extraordinary circumstances beyond its control, and that it took all reasonable measures available.
• The cancellation was notified 14 days or more before the scheduled departure.
• The delay, measured at the final destination, did not reach the three-hour threshold.

None of these remove the separate right to a refund of an unused fare, rerouting, or reimbursement of receipted care costs such as meals or a hotel stay — those remedies are assessed independently of the fixed compensation figure.

See the step-by-step claim guide once the applicable amount is worked out, and the pillar guide for how LEVEL's bidirectional EU261 coverage affects which flights this applies to.

FAQ

Is LEVEL compensation always EUR 600?

For LEVEL's current network, almost always, since every route exceeds 3,500 km. It can be reduced to EUR 300 for a cancellation with a sufficiently fast reroute, or to zero if LEVEL proves extraordinary circumstances or if the cancellation was notified 14 days or more in advance.

Does the amount change based on how much I paid for the ticket?

No. Fixed compensation under EU261 is a set amount based on distance and the nature of the disruption, unrelated to the fare paid or the cabin booked.

Is compensation paid per passenger or per booking?

Per qualifying passenger. Each traveller on the same disrupted flight is generally entitled to their own separate payment.

Can LEVEL offer me a voucher instead of cash?

LEVEL can offer a voucher as an alternative, but only with the passenger's agreement — there is no obligation to accept anything other than the cash amount.

Does a three-hour delay always mean EUR 600 automatically?

Not automatically. The distance and delay length set the potential amount, but LEVEL can still avoid payment by proving extraordinary circumstances applied and that all reasonable measures were taken.

Sources

• Regulation (EC) No 261/2004
• European Commission: air passenger rights
• LEVEL: customer service and claim channel