To expect Easyjet to help me?

[amprev]

We fly on a 4hour 15 min flight on Sat with our two dc's aged 11 and 8. The holiday was a last minute decision, and I booked it last Sat with Tui. I was aware at the time that the flights were actually with Easy jet and not Tui. I wasn't particularly bothered by this either way. Reading through all the booking details in full this evening I learned that it is online only check in for EJ flights so I checked us all in.

Turns out we have been allocated seats randomly all over the plane - there are ten rows separating two of the seats from another two, but no two seats are in the same row. I realise this is because many people have obviously checked in before me. I would pay the extra for seats together if I could but this isn't an option, the plane is just full.

I'm gutted and I know the Dc's will be when I tell them. We are downloading films to an iPad for them and they watch it together using a headphone splitter. This obviously can't happen if we are all separated. I'm not expecting they can magic us all together but do you think they could at least have the dc's together with either me or DH less than 10 rows away from them? My eldest suffers with bad ear pain on flights and I normally have to do some soothing at take off and landing because she gets upset.

Any tips from anyone who has been in this situation? We only booked it so late because we didn't think we would get away this year but decided we would last minute.

I'll ring customer services when they open but I'm expecting them to tell me that I'll just have to persuade someone to move when we board. According to the civil aviation authority, airlines have to take reasonable actions to ensure a child is near to their adult so that it is less disruptive in the event of an evacuation. Not sure what EJ can do if there are no seats though? I realise some people will have paid extra for their preferred seats.

I think the problems have all arisen since fees for seat reservations came in. When you pay to choose seats there’s no guarantee you’ll actually receive that service. It was highlighted recently by a tabloid report about Coleen Rooney and her party flying in seats other passengers had paid for. The people who’d paid we’re very unhappy to be sat at the back near the ‘smelly’ toilets and suggested it was because of Coleen’s public status. Coleen responded on social media that her party just sat where they were allocated. The airline, not sure if it was EJ, said people had to be moved as there are restrictions on where children are allowed to sit for air safety reasons and they had no option but to reclaim previously paid reservations.

I can’t vouch for the veracity of that report, but it begs the question why airlines are allowed to put all seats up for reservation knowing that when the passenger list is complete, certain seats might not be readily available anyway.

I'm afraid the lady on the phone palmed you off. Crew willl not go and ask people to move. They will make an announcement and ask if anyone will. It's really down to if people offer to move for you.

You also need to be cautious. If you say your child can't fly sitting alone, you will be asked to leave the plane.

Don't worry OP, they won't sit the 8yo away from an adult.
Similar thing happened on a TUI flight a fee years ago (I wasn't the culprit). Woman didn't or couldn't select her seats so her 2 young kids were sat away from her. One man volunteered to move and was rewarded with a free drink, snack and seat reservation refund. No volunteers were forthcoming for the second child. The captain refused to move the plane until the second child was sat with the Mum. Eventually somebody moved and we were only delayed 15mins. Lots of PA comments from the family of the second man that moved, Mum fired back at them. It was very awkward and entertaining. Mum didn't thank either man for moving

I don't know why you are getting a hard time for booking a last minute holiday. It is not your fault that the seats are all reserved and at least you know it's an issue and are trying to sort it.
Please don't do the sick bag trick.

I work for an airline. (Not EJ) everything Bluntness just said is nonsense.

P3ony you are under no obligation to move (unless crew tell you to) but that doesn’t mean you aren’t being selfish. A child’s need to sit by a parent is usually greater than an adult to sit by another adult. Whether parents are selfish or not is irrelevant. It’s the child who you are being selfish towards by refusing to move. Children have no control over flight bookings. You don’t have to care about that, but the fact you don’t is selfish.

My heart would sink if I realised that I had a random solo child sitting next to me - you would just know that the child would be up and down all through the flight with parents hovering etc - it would drive me nuts! I would def be up for moving! I would rather sit apart from my husband just for a 4 hour trip. I am sure you will find that people will move to accommodate you!

And 8-year-old is hardly a toddler. Most are capable of going to an airplane toilet on their own, eating on their own, drinking on their own. Mine have been sat behind me or in front of me on long haul flights.

Many a time I’ve been on a plane waiting for take off and an announcement with a request from the pilot for people to give up seats to allow a child to be seated with a parent. It’s then stated without the exchange of seats the plane will not take off.

Why don't the crew offer to upgrade people who move?

Upgrade??? You've clearly never flown EJ. Nothing to upgrade people to. They could offer a free drink though.

I've flown on EJ. They do have premium seats. And other airlines definitely do. I always book my seats on EJ but again, in the emergency exit row so don't have to move.

@amprev i never pay for seats and always end up sat next to my partner. We do check in online as soon as it opens.

As pp said, seats of 2 go quickly leaving 1 left on eacg row so people checking in later get put in those single seats

P3ony

I think you'll find that last minute flights are rarely 'half price' these days. Prices go up and down many times between the day of release and the day of flight, and booking last minute could quite easily be the most expensive option as choice will be limited and the airlines know that someone will 'have' to fly on that day and will pay pretty much any price.

I know someone whose job title is something like 'revenue maximisation executive' so basically it's setting the algorithm that looks at the number of bookings and the length of time before the flight and varying the price to make the average price per seat and total price paid between all passengers as high as possible.

We once got some quite cheap EJ flights 6 days before travelling, but they were by no means dirt cheap and were probably comparable to booking early and there will have been people on the flight who had paid more and less than we did.

We rarely pay for seats and usually end up sitting together. As it happens we're travelling on EJ in a couple of weeks and for once, have booked the extra legroom seats, because it comes with extra hand luggage, so probably means we can get away with one fewer hold case, so might not have cost us as much extra as the extra legroom premium in the end.

If you say your child can't fly sitting alone, you will be asked to leave the plane.

Unlikely given the hassle of offloading the luggage.

Completely different circumstances but the biggest CFs that I've seen were a couple on a night flight back from New York. They had been allocated seats apart from each other (we'd booked seats for free online two days ago so it could have easily been done) and the woman was trying to bully one of two teenage boys into swapping seats so she and her husband could sit together - no mention of special circumstances that meant they needed to sit together etc. Boys seemed lovely and like they were about to be guilted into it because she was older than them, although they clearly didn't want to. A wonderful cabin crew member told her to sit down in her original seat because they needed to take off and that the boys wanted to sit together in their allocated seats so they shouldn't have to move (all phrased politely but firmly). I was doing internal cheers from a couple of rows back!

I'm sorry but this is ridiculous. At 8 and 11 they will be fine without a parent for a few hours! We have had this recently, Dc2 and 3 were with me as 1.5 and 3 but 11yo DD and DH were sat elsewhere seperately. DD1 just read and watched movies. Absolutely no drama.

If you ask people to move you would be completely out of order.

I did draw the line at the CF adult last year who expected me to move away from my friends so she could sit with her friend.

Now that is a cheek

On a more general note, given that turnaround time is all-important for budget airlines, why on earth are they still doing this? Surely the few quid they make on seat reservations doesn’t make up for delaying the plane and potentially losing the departure slot while people argue over seats? The flight attendants must be totally pissed off about it as well.

That's in my train of thought too.

All the uncertainty, even for people who have paid to reserve seats, adds to what can be a stressful experience. What with that and the ever diminishing baggage allowances and cabin bag dimensions
Ryan Air changed baggage allowance for the second time this year
the car parking off site scandals of vehicles being dumped in muddy fields, you name it, it's a real pain keeping up with it all.

I've got short haul flights booked, haven't paid to reserve seats, only travelling with two other adults and none of us really care where we sit, so we're all flexible. That takes a lot of strain out of the equation.

My heart would sink if I realised that I had a random solo child sitting next to me -

I was in the same situation like the OP 10 years ago when my father died and I booked flights for dp and I and dd who had just turned 4 and ds (10 months)with KLM that left less than 24 hours after I booked them. Online check in had already opened at the time but you couldn't check in online with an under 2 year old anyway. When we got to the airport in time for the check in to open, there were no two seats left next to each other and our seats were all several rows apart leaving dd several rows away from her parents. Every single person we asked refused to move, every one, and the cabin staff didn't help either. I still can't understand why people prefered to sit next to a distraught 4 year old rather than move. You couldn't pay for seats then either so it's not like they would have wasted any money. People are weird.

I don't care if it's supposedly selfish not to move, and I disagree that it is. The parent has an obligation to their child that I do not.

I have autism, severe anxiety, other mental health issues and a phobia of flying, I need my travel companion to be with me so I pay to reserve seats, and I am more at ease in certain parts of the plane so I take that into account too. I'd never expect anyone to move to accomodate me because it's my responsibility to take my needs into account when booking.

I am always surprised by those who say there is no way a child this age could sit without a parent. I was sat next to a 6 and 7 year old on a long haul flight, while their parents were in first class. I posted about it on here, and most seemed to think that was fine.

Last year we flew with Easy Jet - we had paid for reserved seats for DH, me and DC who were 13 and 11 - then together in one row and DH and me behind.

A family with 2 adults and 3 children of about 8 and under hadn’t reserved seats and weren’t together. There was various moving round and in the end DH sat with DS and DD and I sat on my own. Think other people must have moved too. EasyJet gave us some free drinks. We were a bit annoyed they hadn’t booked seats but moved round so I’m sure other people will

In the early days of low cost flights there was no seat selection it was literally a bunfight for seats. Families and people with additional needs were allowed first. It broadly worked, though was uncivilised. Then someone figured out that by charging for seat selection a good chunk would pay, which makes things difficult for the rest of us.

Back in the ancient days before low cost flight it was down to who got to the airport to check in first, which is arguably the fairest way to do it.

In the case of Easyjet it works most - but not all- of the time and lots of people get seats they're happy with without paying extra. Ryanair and other airlines who deliberately split you up unless you pay however have a lot to answer for.

I fly with EJ from time-to-time and don't think they are that bad!

I secured our 3 adult seats for Berlin a few days ago and automatically got 3 seats together, even when it initially said seat allocation wasn't possible.

I wouldn't want a random child who is going to be sick sitting next to me, preferably!!

Sorry, but it's true!!

Have you spoken to EJ and TUI this morning OP?

Are you going to Canary Islands? Or Greece?
4 1/4 hour flight is not THAT long.

I am someone who would move immediately. No question. I have two teenagers who already fly solo so don't care where they sit. DH and I both prefer an aisle (more legroom) but wouldn't get too worked up about it. I never pay for seats and never will and would happily move because, like all parents, I have been the parent with younger children and know that boarding a plane is a bit stressful, as is travel and I would do what I could to help someone who is having a shit start to a holiday.

That said, when I have moved in the past I have not always been thanked. A bit of please and thank you always helps.