Ryanair Scraps £8 Child Seating Fee After UK Probe

Q: After regulators grounded Ryanair's family seating fee, which common airline charge will be the next to face scrutiny?

The next airline charge most likely to face scrutiny is carry-on baggage fees, along with other add-on charges that regulators see as “drip pricing.” Ryanair’s family seating change was driven by concerns that parents were effectively being charged to meet a safety-related obligation. The broader regulatory issue is the same one now hanging over other airline extras: whether fees are presented clearly upfront and whether some charges are unfair in practice. The UK Competition and Markets Authority has made clear that travel is a high-risk sector for hidden or staged pricing, and its new enforcement powers are aimed squarely at mandatory or hard-to-avoid add-ons. Carry-on bag fees stand out because they are already under pressure beyond the Ryanair case. EU policymakers and consumer groups have pushed to require a basic cabin bag allowance in standard fares or, at minimum, much clearer disclosure from the start of booking. That makes hand-luggage charges a natural next target, especially for low-cost carriers that rely heavily on ancillary revenue. Seat-selection fees will also remain under watch, particularly where they affect families or are revealed late in the booking process. But if there is one common charge most likely to be next in regulators’ sights, it is the fee for bringing a standard carry-on bag onboard, because it combines high consumer impact, major revenue significance, and the clearest overlap with the crackdown on drip pricing.

3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Jun 26

Ryanair ended the roughly £8 fee parents had been paying to sit next to their children after Britain's Competition and Markets Authority opened an investigation into whether the charge was unfair and unlawful.
Under the new policy, families who do not buy reserved seats will be assigned adjacent seats for free after check-in, likely toward the back of the plane where unreserved rows remain available.
A parent who pays for one reserved seat can now hold adjacent seats for up to four children at no extra cost, and Ryanair said the change would not hit revenue.
The CMA said it will test whether the revised policy complies with the law and is still investigating past "mandatory family seats" charges, which it said were unique among major airlines in Britain.