Orlando, Florida and the Spanish island of Mallorca are among British passengers’ most beloved holiday destinations, but flights to these sunny spots with UK airlines suffer some of the worst delays, according to statistics released by worldwide passenger rights specialist refund.me.

refund.me, which helps airline passengers claim compensation under EU legislation for delays, cancellations, missed connections and overbooking, analysed on-time records for UK airlines between August and October 2014 to find out which routes were most affected by delays.

More than one in two flights operating Virgin Atlantic’s London Gatwick-Orlando route departed late. One was even delayed by an astonishing five hours and 13 minutes. The return flight performed slightly better, with 59 per cent of flights departing Orlando on time, although passengers on one flight endured an even longer delay of five hours and 34 minutes.

Palma de Mallorca, a top holiday destination for British tourists, also caused travel nightmares for a number of passengers. Two flights operated by Thomson from the island, to London Luton and London Gatwick airports, had on-time ratings of just 46 per cent and 49 per cent respectively, with passengers on one flight to Luton left waiting for four hours and 50 minutes in Palma.

Two flights to Manchester Airport from Mallorca also had a sub-standard on-time record. Thomson’s flights on this route arrived without delay a mere 56 per cent of the time, with a maximum delay of four hours and 45 minutes, whilst Jet2’s flights on this route fared slightly better, with 59 per cent arriving on time, with a maximum delay of three hours and 35 minutes.

All flights that leave from an EU airport, regardless of airline or destination, are covered by EU Regulations EC 261/2004 which guarantees eligible passengers compensation of up to £475 for disruptions. Likewise, passengers entering the EU on flights operated by EU carriers are also covered.