An elderly couple traveling from London’s Stansted Airport to Bergerac, France, on Friday, August 12, were unexpectedly billed a substantial £110 (about $140) by Ryanair for the seemingly routine action of printing their boarding passes for their outbound flight. This incident has sparked both attention and concern, shedding light on the challenges that older travelers face when navigating the intricacies of budget airlines.
According to The Telegraph, the couple, aged 80 and 79, found themselves in this situation due to a simple mistake. They mistakenly checked in for their return flight instead of the outbound one, only realizing the error once they had arrived at the airport. They noted that Ryanair’s website was perplexing, with various prompts for additional services, contributing to the misunderstanding. The couple stated, “The website was very confusing, they’re trying to get you to add on this and that. I didn’t realize I was checking in for the coming-home flight.”
Since they lacked their boarding passes, the couple was forced to complete check-in procedures at the airport, which incurred a steep fee. “At the airport, I tried to get the boarding card, and it said ‘check-in is closed’ and I needed to go to the desk,” the couple recounted. They expressed their frustration at having to pay £55 per person for this service and described the experience as stressful.
A representative from Ryanair defended the charges, referring to the airline’s terms and conditions. According to the airline’s perspective, the couple had “failed to check-in online before arriving at Stansted airport (on August 11) despite receiving an email reminder (on August 10) to check-in online.”
The couple’s daughter took to social media, using the platform X (formerly known as Twitter), to express her indignation and recount the incident. Her post gained substantial attention, amassing over 13 million views and initiating a discourse on the challenges of dealing with unexpected fees imposed by budget airlines.
Subsequently, Ryanair’s customer service contacted the couple’s daughter in response to her online post. However, concerns persisted regarding the perceived discrepancy between the charges levied and the straightforward nature of the task.
The incident resonated with other travelers who shared similar stories, expressing their frustration with additional charges for services that were once considered standard.
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