My Philadelphia flight has been altered – am I at liberty to claim compensation?

Simon Calder answers your questions on replacement flights, inconsistent baggage fees, and how to get the best exchange rate for a trip to Canada

For whom the bell tolls: Philly’s main tourist attraction, the Liberty Bell (Getty)

Q I have a question around cancellation compensation. I’m currently in Dublin and was due to fly from here to London Heathrow on British Airways and connect to Philadelphia. BA have now cancelled. They have rebooked me onto another carrier, which is direct from Dublin to Philadelphia. Ironically it leaves Ireland later but reaches the US earlier. Does this rule out compensation?

Mick S

A You, like me, are evidently keen to save cash by booking a connecting trip rather than a direct flight. On the Dublin-Philadelphia run, the penalty for doing so is considerable: you would leave the Irish capital at 10.45am and spend 90 minutes flying in the wrong direction, followed by 85 minutes changing planes at London Heathrow.