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A British couple were left stunned at Birmingham Airport when Ryanair told them there was only one seat left on their flight to Palma de Mallorca and gave them a choice: fly separately or pay nearly €120 to travel together later.

 

Scott McCormick and his partner, Helena Boshwick, both 33, had booked separate seats for their May 1 flight to the Balearic Islands. But as they waited to board, staff pulled them aside and informed them there was only room for one passenger. The airline explained that a scheduled Boeing 737 8200 with 197 seats had been swapped out for a smaller 737 800 with 189 seats, meaning one person had to wait for the next flight.

 

Rather than fly apart, Helena chose to give up her place. But when the pair returned to the check-in desk to rebook, they were told Helena would have to pay an extra £100 (€116) to take the next available flight, despite not having used her original ticket and receiving no refund for Scott’s.

 

A Ryanair spokesperson said: “This flight from Birmingham to Palma de Mallorca was not overbooked… but for operational reasons had to change aircraft. As a result, one passenger was unable to travel on this flight and was re-accommodated on the next available flight to Palma de Mallorca.”

 

They added: “Ms Boshwick was not denied boarding but chose not to travel and was required to pay a missed departure fee to reserve a seat on the next available flight. She was notified by email that she was entitled to claim reasonable expenses; however, she has not yet submitted any expense documentation to Ryanair.”

 

Scott said: “After a lot of back and forth, we agreed we weren’t going to take separate flights or be in different countries for hours. They said, ‘You can do that, we’ll refund you the full amount of both tickets and put you on the next flight for free.’”

 

After sharing their story online, some users suggested the situation may have unfolded differently had the couple paid for seat reservations in advance; an increasingly common scenario under Ryanair’s fee structure.

 

Ryanair’s business model has come under fire in recent months, with the airline confirming fare increases after a slump in profits. Earlier this year, it also faced criticism for axing a dozen Spanish routes without offering replacement flights.

 

Though overbooking is a widespread practice in the airline industry, it can leave travellers, especially those without added extras, in difficult situations when aircraft are changed at short notice and no clear policy is offered for resolving who gets bumped.

 

In the end, the Helena and Scott had to wait four hours and pay again, leaving them out of patience and out of pocket.

 

 

Image: Bálint/Pixabay