Some of you may know that Finnair has been hit with random strikes over the past month or so.
Yesterday was a strike day and I got hit. My original nonstop flight was canceled. I found out two days prior. I was put on a connecting flight instead that got me to my destination nearly 8 hours after my original arrival time.
Today, I put in a claim with Finnair under EU 261. It was easy and done through the Finnair website. They warned me that due to the number of claims, processing could take up to 10 weeks.
Less than two hours later, I received an email with a gift card for 600 Euros. They also gave me the option to convert the card to cash but it would only be for 400 Euros. (They add 50% to the value if I keep the gift card.)
I decided to take cash. I filled out the form and was told it will take anywhere from 3-14 days to show up in my bank.
So far, so good. I'm getting back the cost of the ticket plus a bit more to compensate for the aggravation.