Why Flight Compensation Companies Charge So Much (And Why We Don't)

AirHelp charges 35%. Flightright charges up to 30%. ClaimCompass takes 25%. Why do flight compensation companies charge so much? And if the claim process can be automated, why hasn't anyone offered a cheaper alternative? (Spoiler: we did.)

The Dirty Secret of Flight Compensation

Here's something the industry doesn't want you to know: most flight compensation claims are straightforward. Under EU261, your rights are clear. If your flight was delayed 3+ hours and it wasn't caused by extraordinary circumstances, the airline must pay you. The law is black and white.

Yet companies charge 25–35% of your payout to file what is essentially a standardized letter with your flight details. That's like paying a tax accountant 35% of your refund to file a simple return.

Why 35% Became the Standard

When companies like AirHelp launched in the early 2010s, the flight delay compensation industry was brand new. These companies genuinely needed:

• Legal teams to understand EU261 and build claim processes from scratch
• Case managers to handle each claim individually
• Lawyers for cases that airlines contested
• Customer support for the back-and-forth with passengers
• Marketing budgets to educate people about their rights

A 25–35% fee made sense in that context. The costs were real. The risk was real (many claims failed in the early days). And passengers were happy to trade a percentage for convenience.

What Changed

A lot has changed since 2013:

• EU261 case law has matured. Courts have ruled on almost every edge case. The legal landscape is clear.
• Airline processes are standardized. Most airlines have online claim portals and known response patterns.
• AI and automation exist. What required a human case manager in 2013 can now be automated end-to-end.
• Success rates are high. For eligible claims, the win rate is extremely high — the "risk" that justified percentage fees has diminished.

Despite all this, AirHelp's fees haven't budged. They still charge 35%. The cost of delivering the service has dropped dramatically, but the price to consumers hasn't. That difference? Pure margin.

The Perverse Incentives of Percentage Fees

Percentage-based fees create misaligned incentives:

• They penalize bigger claims. On a €600 claim, AirHelp takes €210. On a €250 claim, they take €87.50. The work is the same — but they earn 2.4x more on the bigger claim.
• They reduce your urgency to negotiate. If a company earns more when the claim is bigger, there's no incentive to settle quickly. Time doesn't cost them; it costs you.
• They exploit information asymmetry. Most passengers don't know how much the service actually costs to deliver. The "no win, no fee" model obscures the true price.

A Better Model: Flat Fees + AI

At WairHelp, we built the opposite of the legacy model:

Our flat fee model means you keep more money on every single claim. The savings are especially dramatic on larger claims — on a €600 EU261 claim, you save €190 compared to AirHelp. See the exact numbers with our fee comparison calculator.

Why Haven't Others Done This?

A few reasons:

• Incumbents have no incentive to change. AirHelp is profitable at 35%. Why would they voluntarily cut their revenue?
• Building AI is hard. Most claims companies were built on legal teams and manual processes. Retrofitting AI onto a legacy system is expensive and disruptive.
• The "no win, no fee" narrative is powerful. It's great marketing, even if it's terrible value. Many passengers don't do the math until after they've already lost their 35%.

WairHelp was built from scratch — no legacy systems, no bloated teams, no percentage-fee business model to protect. Just AI, a flat fee, and a mission to give passengers a fair deal.

The Bottom Line

Flight compensation companies charge 25–35% because the industry was built that way a decade ago. But technology has moved on, costs have dropped, and there's no longer a good reason to give away a third of your compensation.

If you've been searching for "airhelp fees too high" or "flight compensation without percentage fee", you've found the answer. Check your eligibility with WairHelp — it's free, and if you have a valid claim, you'll save €67–190 compared to AirHelp.