Mum forced to call off £8k holiday after 'passport destroyed by airport machine'
A frustrated mum claims she was forced to call off her £8,000 family holiday after her passport was destroyed at a UK airport on her way to Greece.
Emily Allen alleged that her document was "ruined" after she placed it in a self-service check-in machine at Heathrow Airport on September 8. She said the machine left an "inch-long tear" on her passport photo.
The holidaymaker was set to jet off to an all-inclusive trip to Corfu with her husband and children before the disaster took place with British Airways. Emily said she alerted a member of airline staff who reportedly "suggested I buy some sellotape from an airport shop and patch it up myself".
There is no universal rule on how damaged a passport can be to still be able to board a plane. However, airlines could be penalised if they allow someone on the plane who is later turned away at their destination.
Writing to Telegraph Travel for advice on her ordeal, Emily explained what happened: "On the morning of September 8, me, my husband and our two young children were due to travel on a British Airways flight to Corfu for an all-inclusive, one-week holiday. When we arrived at Terminal 5 departures, I used BA's self-service check-in machines to print our boarding passes.
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"Initially, I placed my passport into the machine the wrong way around, so slid it back out carefully and turned it around. During this process the photo/observations page, which on my 2016 document is not laminated – just paper covered by a thin film patch – ripped, leaving an inch-long tear across the edge of the passport photo."
The situation soon escalated, however, she claimed British Airways refused to let her board, reports Wales Online. The airline allegedly told her: "Even if I did fly, Greek immigration would refuse me entry with a damaged passport and send me back to the UK, something it said would result in a fine for the airline. We tried to salvage our family holiday by getting emergency travel documents or an appointment for a fast-track passport. But emergency documents are only available if you're outside the UK, and even with a fast-track application it would have taken around 10 days for a new passport to arrive. So we took the painful decision to simply cancel and go home."
Making things worse, Emily says the family had two travel insurance policies, but she claims both insurers refused to pay out for passport damage. Emily added: "Our hotel in Corfu refused our request to move our booking to another date, and demanded we pay 90 per cent of our full balance due to our last-minute cancellation. They've now reduced this to 50 per cent, which I’ve agreed to pay. We paid for the flights using Avios points, but all-in-all we've lost £4,000." Emily claims that in response to her raising concerns that the check-in machine could do damage to other passports, BA said: "It's the customer's responsibility to make sure they have all the documents they need."
A spokesperson for British Airways told The Mirror: "Tens of thousands of people use the self-service check-in machines without issue, so this is an extremely rare situation. Airlines are legally required to ensure any travel documents presented are valid, therefore ripped or damaged passports can’t be accepted. We understand our customer’s frustration and will be in contact with them directly to discuss this further. "
The Mirror has contacted Heathrow Airport for comment.
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