03 March 2024 , 10:00
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A dad says his holiday was "ruined" after he lost his battle with Ryanair over a £165 check-in charge. Damian Lloyd, a father of two from Neath in south Wales, was charged by the budget airline after they claimed he had unchecked his family and then checked them in again.
Mr Lloyd told the BBC: "I was so mad at the time, I had to try something. It ruined a couple of days of my holiday." Despite Ryanair being "really rude" and not wanting to help, he doesn't regret using a dispute resolution service. AviationADR, an independent airline dispute resolution scheme, said Ryanair had followed its own rules.
It said in its ruling: "The airline has provided evidence that despite the passenger checking in online on June 21, they also checked out on July 22. This is the reason why the printed boarding passes were invalid and a new check in was required."
They explained that Mr Lloyd had checked in online on June 21 but also checked out on July 22, making his printed boarding passes invalid and requiring a new check-in. Although their decision isn't final, and Mr Lloyd could take the complaint to court, he said: "That's me forking out money for a case then, I'll just leave it."
The health and safety manager had booked a 10-day family holiday to Gran Canaria in July and was shocked when his family's boarding passes didn't scan at the airport, reports The Express. A Ryanair staff member at the check-in desk was also puzzled, but couldn't call the airline's customer service centre to find out what was going on because it was closed.
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The family were told they could either wait for customer service to open and miss their flight or pay for new boarding passes. They chose to pay. Mr Lloyd said he was told he could get his money back but when he asked for a refund, Ryanair turned him down. He was told he had unchecked the day before his flight.
His story comes at a time when extra charges by airlines are under scrutiny after Ryanair charged an elderly couple £110 to print their tickets at the airport. Ryanair has been asked for a response.