LOT Polish Airlines

LOT: Central Europe’s gateway to America and Asia — covered both ways

LOT Polish Airlines is one of the world’s oldest carriers, flying since 1929, and today the Star Alliance flag carrier of Poland. From its Warsaw Chopin hub it runs a busy European network and a long-haul Boeing 787 Dreamliner operation to Chicago, New York, Los Angeles, Miami, Tokyo, Seoul and Delhi — making Warsaw the main Central European bridge to North America and Asia. As an EU (Polish) airline, it’s covered by EU 261/2004 both leaving the EU and arriving into it.

That both-ways coverage is where LOT claims get valuable. Poland has one of the world’s largest diasporas — Chicago alone has the biggest Polish community outside Poland — so a huge amount of LOT’s flying is transatlantic, in both directions. A disrupted Warsaw–Chicago flight is a €600 claim home as well as out. And because compensation is paid per passenger, a family’s claim runs into four figures.

Your claim, times everyone on the booking

A delayed Dreamliner flight from Chicago back to Warsaw for a family of four is owed €2,400 — the same disruption that pays a solo traveller €600. For a transatlantic family heading home, that’s a claim worth knowing about.

What your LOT claim is worth

EU 261 sets the amount by the great-circle distance of the route:

LOT’s European network sits in the €250–€400 bands, while its Dreamliner routes to the Americas and Asia are all €600. A flight that stays inside the EU is capped at €400. Try a few:

Watch the short end: Warsaw → London (~1,448 km) and Warsaw → Paris (~1,367 km) are both under 1,500 km, so €250 — not €400. You need Warsaw → Madrid (~2,290 km) to reach the €400 band. Only the intercontinental routes hit €600.

Delays, connections and cancellations

• Delays. Reach your destination 3+ hours late for a reason within LOT’s control, and you’re owed €250–600. Measured at arrival.
• Connections. On a single booking through Warsaw, compensation is based on the final-destination delay and the distance to it.
• Cancellations. A refund or rerouting, care, and — unless 14+ days’ notice or extraordinary circumstances — the per-passenger compensation on top.

Real example. A Warsaw → Chicago flight is delayed 5 hours by a technical fault on the Dreamliner. Not extraordinary, over 3,500 km to a non-EU country → €600 per passenger; a family of four is owed €2,400. Check a delayed flight →

Real example. A Chicago → Warsaw flight on LOT is cancelled and rebooked next day. Covered, because LOT is an EU carrier flying into the EU → €600 per passenger — the claim many travellers wrongly assume they don’t have on the way home. Check a cancelled flight →

How to claim from LOT yourself

1. Gather your evidence — booking reference, boarding passes, flight number and date, LOT’s stated reason, and any receipts.
2. Confirm it qualifies — arrived 3+ hours late (or cancelled with under 14 days’ notice, or denied boarding); the cause wasn’t extraordinary; you’re within the time limit.
3. Work out the amount from the distance to your final destination — €250, €400 or €600 — then multiply by the number of passengers.
4. Submit LOT’s claim form. Use LOT’s passenger-rights complaint page, citing EU 261/2004, the flight and the arrival delay.
5. Escalate if refused. Poland’s enforcement body is the Civil Aviation Authority (ULC), and the Passenger Rights Commissioner (Rzecznik Praw Pasażerów) there runs a free dispute-resolution procedure — covering LOT’s inbound US-to-Warsaw flights too — or hand the claim to a specialist.

Real LOT scenarios

• Transatlantic technical delay. Warsaw → Chicago 5 hours late after a Dreamliner technical fault → €600 each (family of four = €2,400).
• Inbound from the US. Chicago → Warsaw cancelled and rebooked → €600 each, because LOT is an EU carrier flying into the EU.
• Intra-EU cap. Warsaw → Madrid cancelled under 14 days out → €400 each (intra-EU, not €600).
• Weather/ATC — the honest no. A snowstorm delays Warsaw → London 6 hours → no compensation, but care and a refund or rerouting.

See real won cases and verdicts →.

LOT Polish Airlines at a glance

Flying since 1929, LOT is Poland’s flag carrier and a Star Alliance member, led by CEO Michał Fijoł and owned through the state Polish Aviation Group. From Warsaw Chopin — and, in future, the planned CPK mega-hub — it flies a Boeing 787 Dreamliner long-haul fleet alongside 737 MAX and Embraer jets, carrying more than 10 million passengers a year. Its role as Central Europe’s gateway west and east is exactly what makes a disrupted LOT flight one of the higher-value claims around — in both directions.

Why hand your LOT claim to Refundio

A €600-a-head transatlantic claim — especially the inbound US-to-Warsaw one many people don’t realise they have — is worth pursuing properly. Refundio buys your claim and pays you upfront, usually within days, then takes LOT on itself and uses Poland’s dedicated passenger-rights route where needed. No win, no fee.

Check your LOT claim in 2 minutes →

Frequently asked questions

Is my LOT flight from the US or Asia back to Warsaw covered?

Yes. LOT is an EU (Polish) airline, and EU 261 covers EU carriers both ways. A Chicago–Warsaw, New York–Warsaw or Tokyo–Warsaw flight on LOT is covered, where the same route on a US or Asian airline would not be — and these are the €600 band.

How much compensation does LOT pay?

€250 up to 1,500 km, €400 for 1,500–3,500 km, €600 long-haul over 3,500 km to a non-EU country. The Dreamliner routes to Chicago, New York, Tokyo and Seoul are all €600. Intra-EU flights are capped at €400 — and Warsaw to London or Paris is under 1,500 km, so €250.

I missed my connection in Warsaw. Which flight counts?

Your final destination. On a single booking, compensation is based on the arrival delay at your final destination and the distance to it. A short delay into Warsaw that leaves you 4 hours late into Chicago can be worth €600 per person.

How do I claim compensation from LOT?

Use LOT’s passenger-rights complaint form, citing EU 261/2004, your flight and the arrival delay. If refused, Poland’s Passenger Rights Commissioner (Rzecznik Praw Pasażerów) at the ULC runs a free dispute-resolution procedure — or hand it to Refundio.

How long do I have to claim from LOT?

For flights under Polish jurisdiction generally a few years; it varies elsewhere in the EU. Older flights are often still claimable.