Couple fined £120 and told ‘pay or don’t fly’ despite using Ryanair bags

A couple were left furious after being hit with a €140 (£119.31) luggage fine on their flight home, despite having ‘Ryanair approved’ bags.

David C and his partner had a smooth holiday in Majorca but faced a rude awakening at Palma Airport when Ryanair staff fined them for their luggage.

The couple from Chesire say they encountered unhelpful staff who insisted their compliant Coolife bags were oversized, David claimed.

“We were asked to step out of the line and place one of our new Coolife, compliant, 9kg, 20cm bags into the metal measuring frame,” David recounted. They were then informed by the gate agent that their bags were too large.

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They were confronted with a €70.00 (£59.65) charge per bag, with the staff member insisting, “probably want to be on the flight”.

“19 years in the business and I know when a bag is oversized. I can see it from a mile away… Pay or don’t fly,” the staff member reportedly said, according to David.

Having passed through Manchester Airport without issue at the start of their trip, David described the ordeal as “stressful and totally unnecessary.”

He lamented: “We had no choice as the flight was closing at this stage but to hand them a debit card and pay €140.00. I have never felt so intimidated. It spoilt our day.”

Ryanair customers were left fuming after they were charged €69.99 per person to check in their hand luggage at Palma Airport.

The passengers, who were flying to Manchester, had booked priority fares which allowed them to carry a small personal bag and a 10kg cabin bag onboard.

However, when they arrived at the airport, they were told that their cabin bags were too large and would have to be checked in.

They were charged €69.99 per bag to check in their luggage, despite having already paid for priority fares.

A spokesperson for Ryanair said: “These passengers booked a priority fare for this flight from Palma to Manchester (24 May), which allowed each of them to carry a small personal bag and a 10kg cabin bag onboard. As their cabin bags exceeded the permitted size, they were correctly charged a standard gate baggage fee of €69.99 by the third-party gate agent at Palma Airport to place their oversized bags in the hold.”

The passengers said that they were not happy with the charges, and that they felt like they were being ripped off.

“I’ll do everything I can to avoid Ryanair in the future,” one of the passengers said.

Ryanair’s cabin luggage policy is as follows:

* Passengers may bring one small personal bag on board, which must fit under the seat in front of them.

* Passengers may also bring one 10kg cabin bag on board, which must fit in the overhead locker.

* The maximum dimensions for the 10kg cabin bag are 55cm x 40cm x 20cm.

* If a passenger’s cabin bag exceeds the permitted size, they will be charged a fee to check it in. The fee varies depending on the destination and the time of year.

“All our fares include one small personal bag which can be brought on board, such as a handbag or laptop bag (40x20x25cm), which must fit under the seat in front of you. If you need additional baggage allowance, there are various options available to you.1: Cabin Baggage:Priority and 2 Cabin Bags:This allows you to carry a small personal bag (40x20x25cm), which must fit under the seat in front of you and a 10kg bag (55x40x20cm) onboard, to be stored in the overhead locker. It also allows you to board the plane first using the Priority Boarding queue at the gate.”

David purchased a COOLIFE Cabin Suitcase 55X40X20cm from Amazon, which was advertised as ‘Ryanair approved’ and had numerous positive reviews from customers who used the bag on Ryanair flights.

COOLIFE have been contacted for comment.

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