IndiGo Airlines Flight Delay Compensation

IndiGo flight delay compensations are governed by the Passenger Charter of the Ministry of Civil Aviation, India. You can only claim flight delay compensation in select situations, such as certain types of flight cancellations and involuntary boarding denials. In most other cases, the maximum you can expect is free meals and refreshments or hotel accommodation (if necessary). Although IndiGo flies to several countries in the European Union, the flight delay compensation under E.U. 261 Regulation does not apply to the airline since it is not headquartered in the E.U.

Below is a snapshot of IndiGo Airlines flight delay compensation policy and the situations under which you can claim it.

• IndiGo cannot be held responsible for any losses incurred by passengers if a flight is cancelled or delayed due to reasons beyond the airline’s control—such as bad weather, air traffic control, acts of nature, terrorism, strikes, riots, wars, government regulations, demands, or orders, labor unrests, etc. 
• If your flight is delayed by more than 2 hours or advanced by more than 1 hour, you can:
  • Claim a 100% refund, or 
  • Rebook on an alternative flight at no additional cost (subject to seat availability)
• If a segment of your IndiGo flight is cancelled while you are already in transit, you can:
  • Remain at the transit point and receive a partial refund for the portion of the uncompleted flight, or 
  • Return to your point of origin and receive a refund, or 
  • Receive a flight credit toward future travel on IndiGo, or 
  • Rebook yourself on an alternative flight at no additional cost (subject to availability) 
• Any compensation resulting from the cancellation or delay of a flight will be subject to the guidelines of the Ministry of Civil Aviation.

IndiGo Flight Delay Compensation Due to Flight Changes

IndiGo Airlines flight delay compensation will include free meals and refreshments in relation to the waiting time if you’ve checked in on time for your flight and your flight is delayed by:

• 2 hours or more for flights with a block time of up to 2.5 hours, or
• 3 hours or more for flights with a block time of more than 2.5 and up to 5 hours, or
• 4 hours or more for flights that do fall in any of the above two categories
• If a domestic flight within India is expected to be delayed by more than6 hours:
  • You must be informed of the rescheduled time at least 24 hours before departure, and
  • You will be offered an alternative flight within 6 hours or a 100% refund of your ticket
• You are entitled to free hotel accommodation if your flight is delayed by more than 24 hours or more than 6 hours for a flight scheduled to depart between 8 pm and 3 am and you are informed of the flight delay at least 24 hours before departure.

IndiGo Flight Delay Compensation Due to Cancellation

IndiGo must inform you of any flight cancellation at least 14 days before the scheduled departure time of your flight and arrange an alternative flight or refund the full fare paid by you, whichever suits you.

• If your flight is cancelled and you’re informed about it less than 2 weeks but up to 24 hours before departure, you will be either offered an alternative flight or a 100% refund of your ticket.
• If you’re informed of the cancellation (as described above) or you miss a connecting flight on the same ticket number: 
  • You will be offered an alternative flight acceptable to you, or 
  • A complete refund plus 
    • Flight delay compensation of INR 5,000 or basic one-way fare plus fuel charge, whichever is less, for flights with a block time (total time taken from the departure gate to arrival) of up to 1 hour, or 
    • Flight delay compensation of INR 7,500 or basic one-way fare plus fuel charge, whichever is less, for flights with a block time (total time taken from the departure gate to arrival) of up to 1 – 2 hours, or 
    • Flight delay compensation of INR 10,000 or basic one-way fare plus fuel charge, whichever is less, for flights with a block time (total time taken from the departure gate to arrival) of more than 2 hours 

Note

• If you’ve already reported for your original flight and are waiting for the alternative flight, you will be entitled to free meals and refreshments in relation to the waiting time. 

• You will not be entitled to any compensation if:
  • You do not provide your full contact details at the time of booking, and/or
  • Your flight is delayed or cancelled because of reasons beyond IndiGo Airlines’ control—such as extreme weather, air traffic control decisions, acts of nature, strikes, riots, acts of terrorism, governmental regulations/demands/orders, labor unrest, wars, etc.
• If you’re offered a flight departing from/to an airport or terminal different from the one you had booked, the cost of transporting you from/to the alternate airport or terminal will be borne by IndiGo, unless you were informed of the change at least 6 months before departure (in which case you must make your own arrangements).
• IndiGo Flight Delay Compensation Due to Boarding Denial due to Overbookin: If you’re involuntarily denied boarding due to overbooking, i.e., more passengers check-in for their flight than the number of seats available, you may be entitled to boarding denial compensation as explained below.
  • If you’re involuntarily denied boarding and IndiGo fails to arrange an alternative flight scheduled to take off within 1 hour of the originally scheduled departure time, you will be entitled to:
    • A boarding denial compensation of 200% of the basic one-way fare plus fuel charge, but not exceeding INR 10,000, if IndiGo arranges an alternative flight scheduled to take off within 24 hours of the original flight’s scheduled departure time.
    • A boarding denial compensation of 400% of the basic one-way fare plus fuel charge, but not exceeding INR 20,000, if IndiGo arranges an alternative flight scheduled to depart more than 24 hours after the original flight’s scheduled departure time.
    • A refund equal to the full value of your ticket and compensation equal to 400% of the basic one-way fare plus fuel charge, but not exceeding INR 20,000 if you do not take the alternate flight offered to you.

Note. 

• If you opt for a refund, you will receive it immediately if you purchased your ticket in cash and within 7 working days if you purchased your ticket by credit card.
• If you purchase your ticket from a travel agent, you must contact the agent directly to process the refund.

IndiGo Airlines Refund Policy

The major highlights of IndiGo Airlines’ refund policy are as follows:

• You must cancel:
  • A domestic flight at least 2 hours before departure. 
  • An international flight at least 4 hours before departure. 
• Ticket refunds are subject to a cancellation fee, depending on the fare rules of your ticket. 
• If you fail to change or cancel your ticket within the stipulated deadlines above, it will be treated as a No-Show, meaning that the value of your ticket will be forfeited (except applicable taxes, which will be refunded).
• The ticket refund time for cancelled tickets is typically 7 working days after the deduction of the cancellation fee (if any).
• Cash refunds of tickets purchased within India can be processed at domestic airport counters. However, tickets purchased at international airport counters can only be refunded through a written application to IndiGo Airlines via customer.relations@goindigo.in.
• Refunds of tickets purchased through travel agents will be credited to the travel agency’s account after cancellation, which means you will have to contact the travel agency directly to claim your refund. For assistance, contact customer.relations@goindigo.in.
• Tickets purchased at least 7 days before departure can be cancelled within 24 hours of purchase for a complete refund. For details, refer to IndiGo Airlines’ cancellation policy.
• If you No-Show for a flight (or miss it), only the following taxes and fees will be refunded:
  • Statutory taxes 
  • User Development Fee (UDF)
  • Passenger Service Fee (PSF) 
  • Airport Development Fee (ADF)
• To claim the No-Show taxes (above), go to GoIndiGo.in, click on Edit Booking under the Manage tab, enter your PNR/Booking Reference number and Email/Last Name, hit the Get Itinerary button, and follow the prompts. 

Frequently Asked Questions

The section below answers some of the most commonly asked questions on IndiGo Airlines flight delay compensation, so do check them out.