UK scraps charges to seat children with parents on flights

The UK has just announced that airlines will no longer be able to charge parents to secure seats next to their children.

The new rules, which come into force today (2 October), apply to children under the age of 14 with a parent or accompanying adult.

Before the rule change, a parent and child could be charged up to £104 (€122) on a return ticket to book seats next to each other.

Passengers will also be able to correct simple name errors on bookings for free. Previously, some airlines were charging up to £40 (€47) to do so.

“Parents should not have to feel the pinch just to sit next to their child on a flight, or for amending a simple booking error,” UK Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander said.

“That’s why we’re scrapping these unnecessary charges for all airlines – another everyday fix to help put money back in people’s pockets and give households more breathing room.

“These common-sense reforms will make flying safer for staff and passengers and protect people from unnecessary charges, whoever they fly with.”

Under the EU’s new air passenger rules, which are yet to come into effect, parents must be afforded a seat next to their child provided they are under the age of 14 free of charge. The same is also true for those accompanying a pregnant passenger, or a passenger with a disability or reduced mobility.

The proposed rules, which could come into effect next year, will also allow for free spelling correction or administrative name updates.

Further to this, the regulations would ban airlines from charging checked-in passengers for a printed boarding pass.

Ryanair CEO responds

Ryanair’s outspoken CEO Michael O’Leary has slammed the UK’s move, claiming that no such fees exist. According to Ryanair, passengers have a 24-hour grace period to correct minor spelling mistakes.

“There are no fees for children to sit with their parents on UK airlines, and no fees for making minor spelling changes to bookings,” he said.

“[Alexander’s] press release is designed to cover over the damage that this Labour Govt has inflicted on UK air travel by raising UK APD to £15 (€17.63) per ticket (£60 (€70.53) for a family of 4) in 2026, and her inexplicable failure to sack failing overpaid NATS CEO, Martin Rolfe, from his £1.4m (€1.65m) job despite ‘taking responsibility’ for 4 ATC system collapses in the UK over the last four years, when no other European ATC system has suffered any collapses.”

Unruly passengers to be added to list

At the same time, the UK government has announced it is working with airlines and trade unions to create a new system for sharing information on persistently disruptive passengers.

Last year, more than 1,000 serious disruptive passenger incidents were logged by airlines.

The move will allow airlines to see if other carriers have banned passengers in order to extend the ban to their own flights if it is deemed necessary.

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