Welcome to Flightright
Find out more about us!
Our mission
We have been helping air passengers enforce their rights for over 10 years. As the market leader in our segment, we are committed to making sure that being right always translates into being proven right. This page provides you with more information about us, what we do and what drives our team in their day-to-day work.
Flightright in figures
Success stories since our establishment
Around 140
employees
14 years of expertise
on the market
99% success rate
in court
More than €500 million
paid out
The minds behind Flightright
Dr. Jan-Frederik Arnold
CEO+MD
After completing his Masters at the London School of Economics, Jan-Frederik worked for McKinsey Consulting for 6 years. As a project manager, he advised clients from the automotive, technology and energy industries on strategy and corporate finance issues. He went on to complete his doctorate at the Hamburg University of Technology, and then worked as an entrepreneur on the digitalisation of the livestock industry. At Flightright, Jan-Frederik, as CEO, is responsible for driving the group’s growth further with the aim of building Germany’s largest consumer rights platform to enforce consumer rights for even more people. In his spare time, triathlon and his two kids keep him busy.
Helga Szabó
COO
Helga studied Law in Hungary, Austria and Germany. She has been on board with Flightright since 2014 and today manages the largest Flightright team, which is made up of 10 different nationalities. As Chief Operating Officer, Helga oversees the assessment of cases and ensures that our customers are able to uphold their rights as easily as possible, regardless of the complexity of the case. In both 2018 and 2020, Helga was awarded the ‘European Women of Legal Tech’ prize for her outstanding work.
Dr. Philipp Kadelbach, LL.M.
Founder
Philipp studied law at the Free University of Berlin and the University of Cape Town in South Africa. As a lawyer, he advises clients in the fields of IT law and media. He is a guest lecturer at the University of Potsdam on the topic of legal tech, a board member of the Legal Tech Verband Deutschland e.V. and spokesperson for the Legal Tech platform in the start-up association BVDS. He also speaks regularly at conferences and is a sought-after interview subject for the media at home and abroad. Philipp is a successful regatta sailor, has won several championships, and participated in classic competitions such as the Sydney Hobart Yacht Race.
How we work
Our principles
Give our customers access to justice!
Ask ‘‘What’s in it for the customer?’ and make the voice of the customer heard. Be the experienced and professional older brother to our customers. Give professional guidance and be confident in our abilities. Our service is worth the price as we walk the extra mile. Creatively combat unfair treatment of consumers.
Work and grow together!
Treat others with respect. Be open and honest with others and with yourself. Create a climate where your colleagues love coming to work. Care about the development of your colleagues, share knowledge and help out. Give direct feedback to each other, not only on things we need to improve, but especially on things we are strong at.Be ready to step out of your comfort zone.
Get it done and deliver!
Colleagues can rely on you because you commit and keep promises. Deliver step by step and take over responsibility for the end result. Prioritise what is best for the company. You decide based on facts without over-analysing.
Make mistakes and learn!
Take calculated risks. Educate yourself further to improve your work continuously. Test fast & often to learn with lowest possible effort. Accept that mistakes can happen while being fast. Communicate mistakes quickly and proactively. Be accountable & clean up your mistakes. Make sure that a mistake is not repeated in the future. Share lessons learned and celebrate success cross-functionally.
Be brave and show courage!
Take smart risks and have courage. Say what you think even if it is controversial. Push the boundaries and don’t give up. Use opportunities and don’t wait to be told what to do.
How it all began
How flight frustration turned into a start-up
The idea for Flightright was born one day between an airport, a court and an important appointment with a priest. Philipp Kadelbach’s flight was scheduled to take off at 2 p.m., but the news at the check-in desk was: “The flight won’t be leaving until 7 p.m. at the earliest.” Philipp Kadelbach has to arrive on time, because he and his wife need the priest to give them the go-ahead for their inter-denominational marriage. He manages to book another flight for, €300 at his own expense, allowing him to arrive on time. And the priest gave the couple the green light as well.
The idea behind Flightright was born
This experience lays the foundation stone for Flightright’s success story. Kadelbach wants compensation for the flight and contacts the airline. The airline initially takes a cooperative stance before all goes quiet. Individual consumers are left completely on their own – they rarely manage to get what they are duly entitled to. And so Kadelbach and a friend came up with the brilliant idea: They want to help air passengers get the compensation they deserve -, with the help of a state-of-the-art, online-based legal service. The service puts customers on an equal footing with the airlines.
By February 2010, the project is ready to be launched, including its core feature: the website with the online calculator that automatically calculates the compensation under EU law. It only takes a few clicks for customers to enter their flight delay – the Flightright team takes care of the rest. The company has been growing steadily ever since: the team of lawyers has been joined by a customer service team, financial accountants, IT and marketing specialists.
David versus Goliath
Nothing is easy to start off with – the airlines are stubborn and want to take every case to court. The tactic of trying to wear consumers down doesn’t work and Flightright wins the vast majority of cases. From then on, the airlines take a more cooperative stance because “when we go to court, it costs the airline around twice as much”, says the founder. “It’s a great feeling knowing that you stuck to your guns as the “little David” up against a multi-billion, euro industry.”
The company now enforces compensation claims for passengers from across the globe. They are glad to have someone to stand up for them. The recommendation rate of satisfied customers is extremely high. “A lot of customers are committed to advertising our services – even in the departures lounge of the airport. That’s the best sort of praise we can get”, says a delighted Kadelbach.
What do our customers say? *
*Rating of Flightright GmbH. We have not reviewed the authenticity of the ratings.
Press reviews
What the media say about us
At Flightright you get your compensation with only one click.
“However a delay on paying compensation as set out in EU regulations prompted the woman to take her case to claims company FlightRight.”
„Flightright, the air passenger consumer portal for compensation for delayed, cancelled or overbooked flights.“