The cold weather has also brought with it travel chaos with flights cancelled, trains delayed, and hazardous driving conditions.

Many schools have also been shut leaving parents with little option but to take time off for childcare.

For many people it won’t be possible to travel into an office or other workplace. But if you can’t work from home, and you’re not able to get to work, are you allowed the day off and will it be paid?

If you’ve got a trip booked today, or any other day when the weather causes travel disruptions you’ll also want to know what your rights are when it comes to rebooking or refunds.

Here we look at workers’ rights and how to get a refund if trains or flights are cancelled because of the snow.

Your rights as an employee when it snows

If you usually travel to your workplace and can’t because of the snow, your employer doesn’t legally have to pay you for the day/s when you’re not working. You may have to take unpaid leave in this scenario.

However, it depends on your employer. Your manager should be able to tell you what will happen and explain your options.

If your company has decided to close because of the weather, and it’s not a job you can do from home, you shouldn’t lose money for this as it’s the employer’s decision to close not yours.

The Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (ACAS), explained: “If an employee cannot get to work or is going to arrive late because of bad weather or transport problems, they should tell their employer as soon as possible.

“There is no legal right for an employee to be paid for working time they’ve missed because of bad weather or travel disruption.

“Some workplace policies might have different rules, so it’s a good idea to check.”

Parents may need to take unpaid leave to look after children

If you’re a parent or someone who cares for a child and their school or childcare setting is closed, you will need to find alternative care for them.

Legally employers don’t have to pay you if you can’t work because of childcare reasons, but they should allow you to take unpaid time off, without risking your position.

It may be the case that you can change your hours or come to another arrangement with your employer. It’s worth having these discussions early so you are fully aware of what will happen if you’re not working because of childcare reasons. Make sure you get any agreement in writing too.

Workers do have the right to unpaid “time off with a dependant” which can be a child. This is time off to deal with unexpected problems or emergency, although Citizens Advice said the time off needs to be “reasonable” and you can only have enough time to deal with the urgent problem.

Refunds for travel if snow has affected your plans

The bad weather has impacted many different travel operators. Flights from Heathrow, Gatwick, Stansted and Luton have been cancelled or delayed and many railway lines, especially in south east and east of England have been affected.

If your train has been cancelled and you already have a ticket, you can usually get on an alternative train. If you’re not able to find an alternative, or there aren’t any running, you should be able to apply for a refund from the train line. This is the case if it’s a single ticket or you have a season ticket.

For train delays, it works slightly differently. You should be able to get a different train, if there is one, but this is usually only the case if you have an open ticket and not a ticket for a specific train. You can use the “delay repay” service to claim compensation for the delay. The exact amount will depend on the delay and the train operator.

How to get a refund for a delayed or cancelled flight

Usually bad weather, such as snow, is seen as an “extraordinary circumstance” and this means the airline isn’t at fault and doesn’t have to pay compensation (which can be up to £520 per person).

However, under EU law, if your flight has been cancelled because of bad weather you should be entitled to a full refund or an alternative flight. You should also be able to claim money back for delays, depending on the length of the delay when you arrive at your destination.

You’ll need to contact the airline you’ve booked with to check what you’re entitled to and how to claim a refund if needed.

If you’ve asked the airline and it won’t give you the right compensation, you can complain to an independent organisation. If the airline is a member of an alternative dispute resolution (ADR) scheme, you can complain to the scheme.