Updated

Updated · The Straits Times · Jun 13

EU Bans Child Seating Fees for Under-14s as €250-€600 Flight Compensation Survives

Updated

Updated · The Straits Times · Jun 13

EU Bans Child Seating Fees for Under-14s as €250-€600 Flight Compensation Survives

Q: As new EU rules begin in 2027, will airlines finally be forced to end hidden fees for baggage and family seating?

Partly, but not entirely. Under the EU compromise approved by member states, airlines would no longer be able to charge families extra just to sit together: a child must be seated next to a parent or accompanying adult without a surcharge. That is one of the clearest new rights in the package due to take effect in the second half of 2027, if the final parliamentary vote passes. On baggage, the reform is more limited than some consumer groups wanted. Airlines would have to allow one small personal item that fits under the seat for free. For larger cabin bags, however, the deal does not create a blanket right to carry them at no extra charge. Instead, it targets price opacity: if a larger cabin suitcase is included, that cost must be shown in the advertised price by default, with any discount for traveling without it shown separately. That would curb “drip pricing,” but it would not ban airlines from charging for bigger carry-on bags. That is why critics, including Spain, say the text falls short. Madrid argues passengers should retain a stronger right to bring a cabin suitcase free of charge, citing court rulings and existing legal interpretations. Consumer advocates have also pushed for a broader free carry-on entitlement. So the likely effect is this: hidden or misleading fees should become harder to impose, and family seating surcharges should largely end. But airlines are not being forced to abolish all baggage fees—only to be clearer about them.

3 articles · Updated · The Straits Times · Jun 13

June 12 talks produced an EU passenger-rights deal that bars airlines from charging parents to sit with children under 14 and from charging to fix spelling mistakes in bookings.
Months of lawmaker resistance forced governments to drop plans to cut payouts for delays and cancellations, preserving the current €250-€600 compensation regime for flights delayed three hours or more.
A proposed ban on carry-on luggage fees was also abandoned; ticket-selling websites will instead have to show prices that include hand-luggage costs.
The compromise won broad backing from member states and lawmakers, is set for provisional approval on June 15, and would take effect only after formal adoption.