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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

Paid for seats on ryan air and kids still sat separately

290 replies

Hookahchakkah · 23/07/2025 12:09

Has anyone had any success getting a refund and compensati on.? We paid the extra to ensure we were with the kids all together and they sat all four of us completely separately, not even across an aisle or one row away like five and twenty five rows away from each other

OP posts:
U53rn8m3ch8ng3 · 23/07/2025 15:21

Hookahchakkah · 23/07/2025 13:25

We paid for the seats next to each other and checked the boarding passes and went to the airport, checked in went through to security, had a sandwich and went to the gate.

At the gate they said these aren’t your seats anymore we have to move you. We said no we’ve paid to sit together and one of us is ten. They said sorry try on the plane, we said no help is now, can you at least switch the seats so the ten year old isn’t by himself they said no. We said who can we speak to they said just get on the plane. We said he can’t sit 23 rows away from us they said madam get on the plane. We were almost last on and tried to speak to the steward was but there was anbkuncmenet which said get to your seats now we are going to miss the air traffic window, i begged someone to swap (which they did reluctantly before I got told to sit and showed the original seats so the kids could at least sit together but they were a few rows from my husband. I went to the other end of the plane and I tried to get their attention and gave up.

as soon as I could I grabbed an air hostess and said my kids are by themselves she said you’ll have to wait for seatbelts

as soon as seatbelts went off I went down to check on them and the drinks trolley was coming up. The stewatdesss told me to go back and wait and I said “my kids have been say by themselves can I check on them”

the other stewardess said very loudly what’s going on and the first one said “she wants to check on her kids”

the other one said very loudly “well that’s convenient timing isn’t it” and I said loudly to her “you’ve sat our kids by themselves even though we paid, can i just check that they are ok please”
qns she rolled her eye and roll ed the trolley back.

I checked very quickly they were fine which was a relief and they were waiting impatiently.

I said “we’ve paid to sit together and you’ve sat us all separately” and she said “oh yeah we did know there was a family of four that had been separated.

I asked what had happened and she said she didn’t know.

there was one spare seat near so me and my husband and I sat five and seven rows back.

it was only a two hour flight and we were about 45 minutes in by this time. She came and asked us if we wanted to all be moved to sit together and most people around us were either asleep or with small kids but I don’t understand if they knew we were separated before we even got on the plane that they allowed this to happen.

What an absolute joke. Is be furious too, there must have been multiple other people who could have been shuffled about to at least get two pairs of seats together if nothing else.

pontipinemum · 23/07/2025 15:32

Wow that is terrible service!! We have flown with Ryan air a good bit and thankfully always been fine. We will be flying with a 1yr old and 3yr old in a few weeks, I've booked our seats together hope we don't have any issues.

I also don't think it is your fault for not being on the flight first to avoid the issue. You paid are allocated a seat it shouldn't matter. I am usually the last onto any plane.

So your boarding pass said the correct seats that you had paid for? I wonder what the other peoples said. Was it a f'ck up on the booking system and let those seats be double booked. Or was your row not there? That happens if they change the airplane sometimes

EastGrinstead · 23/07/2025 15:36

LemondrizzleShark · Today 14:17
They’ve likely changed aircraft last minute and just allocated everyone randomly.

If the aircraft was changed at the last minute, only the seats that did not exist on the new aircraft would be re-allocated. The only other reason that a seat would be re-allocated is that the row was an exit row in the new aircraft.

This was not the case for the OP. She claimed her seats existed on the aircraft and had been assigned to random adults.

BerryTwister · 23/07/2025 15:38

That's truly bizarre OP.
I can't think of a reason why they'd move a family of 4 who'd paid to sit together, and replace them with 3 people who were strangers to each other.
I would definitely complain.
Did you ask to see the boarding pass of the one man who did agree to move, to see where is seat was meant to be?
The only possible explanation I can think of is if you checked in particularly late, and they maybe thought you were a no-show.

Ryanair are totally shit but I would fight for a refund on this.

PlumpAndDeliciousFatcat · 23/07/2025 15:39

moose62 · 23/07/2025 14:51

Unlikely they will give you a refund, even if you deserve one, but will tie you up in knots till you give up.
Make a stand on social media...FB, Instagram, X .....post on all platforms on their pages and just keep reposting when they try and delete you! If nothing else they will get as annoyed as you are! This us the only way I have got answers from companies who try to ignore me. Doesn't always work....

Sadly the usual public social media strategy which works on other companies does not on Ryanair. They absolutely know their reputation for shit customer service, and they lean into and positively revel in it.

Do complain and pursue a refund however, OP.

EastGrinstead · 23/07/2025 15:42

Throwmoneyatit · 23/07/2025 14:49

It's Ryanair. Why would you find this hard to believe?

Or have you not flown with Ryanair?

The op has clearly stated that she asked for answers, as to why they'd been moved. She obviously found this hard to believe to.

Just because it hasn't happened to you, doesn't mean it hasn't happened to anybody else.

Show quote history

Some posters are simply not very bright and quite gullible.

Wishihadanalgorithm · 23/07/2025 15:43

I’d be putting this on Ryan Air’s social media and seeing what their response is.

Kuretake · 23/07/2025 15:46

EastGrinstead · 23/07/2025 15:42

Some posters are simply not very bright and quite gullible.

Show quote history

There's a way Mumsnet threads on plane seats normally go and posters usually get to enjoy berating someone for not paying for seat allocation but expecting to sit with their toddler.

Airlines are not usually the baddies of these threads so this has thrown everyone.

Plus what you said.

LlynTegid · 23/07/2025 15:56

PlumpAndDeliciousFatcat · 23/07/2025 15:39

Sadly the usual public social media strategy which works on other companies does not on Ryanair. They absolutely know their reputation for shit customer service, and they lean into and positively revel in it.

Do complain and pursue a refund however, OP.

Show quote history

Someone pursued a debt/refund and ended up at the airport with a demand that could have meant they could take chairs and other equipment. Cannot recall the details and which airline, but it had the desired result.

LlynTegid · 23/07/2025 15:57

Kuretake · 23/07/2025 15:46

There's a way Mumsnet threads on plane seats normally go and posters usually get to enjoy berating someone for not paying for seat allocation but expecting to sit with their toddler.

Airlines are not usually the baddies of these threads so this has thrown everyone.

Plus what you said.

Show quote history

Airlines are not usually the bad people, but every rule has an exception. Ryanair are that exception. Do not excuse their behaviour.

Epidote · 23/07/2025 16:03

They book the same seat to different people and you paid the consequences looks like.
You can't do nothing now other than put a claim back and make them give you the money back plus compensation if applicable if you have the time to do it.
It is tedious to deal with them.

Springersrock · 23/07/2025 16:04

PlumpAndDeliciousFatcat · 23/07/2025 15:39

Sadly the usual public social media strategy which works on other companies does not on Ryanair. They absolutely know their reputation for shit customer service, and they lean into and positively revel in it.

Do complain and pursue a refund however, OP.

Show quote history

I agree. Their customer service is shit and they know it.

DH and I flew with Ryan Air a couple of months ago. I’m shit scared of flying so we had paid for seats together. Checked in online in plenty of time, arrived at the gate fairly early. When we went to board found we’d been separated. They didn’t give us a reason

Asked what to do about a refund and was told by the cabin staff to contact Ryan Air when we got home. Contacted Ryan Air to be told we should have spoken to cabin staff at the time and it was too late. I gave up. I don’t think they have any intention of refunding people when stuff like that happens.

It was only a short flight thankfully.

We sat in the seats we’d paid for on the way back.

My friend got stung with an excess baggage charge from Ryan Air the other day as her carry on bag was too big. The same carry on bag she’s been using for years, when measured with a tape measure is well within their published sizes and it fit in the bag gauge at the check in desk perfectly fine but had magically grown by the time she had got to the gate.

Mastercom · 23/07/2025 16:06

L0bstersLass · 23/07/2025 13:34

This.
When I booked a flight with them in Feb, I chose my seats as part of the buying process.
Did you overlook the fact that you have to select you seats @Hookahchakkah?

Show quote history

I think you overlooked her post explaining it.

DrinkFeckArseBrick · 23/07/2025 16:08

This can happen if there is a last minute change of aircraft that has a different configuration. I think it's awful not to a. Prioritise families with children and b. Automatically give a refund, as its legally dubious and morally wrong to keep money for a service they haven't provided

Mastercom · 23/07/2025 16:08

GertrudePerkinsPaperyThing · 23/07/2025 13:48

Only other thing I wonder is, what was your husband doing whilst you were up and down, running about the plan and begging flight crew?

Why would you think this post is helpful?

TheNightingalesStarling · 23/07/2025 16:09

If you were last I wonder if they had moved to the standby list but wierd if there were other seats available!

Finteq · 23/07/2025 16:17

What a bunch of assholes.

I wouldn't have been happy with this. And probably would have refused to board. But obviously they lied to you to get you to board.

You definitely need compensation at least for the costs of reserving the seats.

GertrudePerkinsPaperyThing · 23/07/2025 16:18

Mastercom · 23/07/2025 16:08

Why would you think this post is helpful?

Show quote history

He seems conspicuous by his absence of input into any of what happened.

Everyone seems to think differently though 🤷‍♀️ Just seems bizarre that the parent who was closer was so passive.

IDontLikeMondays88 · 23/07/2025 16:18

Depending on the age of the children I don’t think this is legal. Minors must be sat beside an adult even if whole group isn’t together

Nanny0gg · 23/07/2025 16:19

JuniperBug · 23/07/2025 14:33

If you paid for seats to be sat together then you should definitely get a refund. All the other fuss you’re making is a load of drama. A 10 year old is absolutely fine to be sat on a plane for a 2 hour flight, especially if they are with a sibling. It sounds like you were late to board if you were one of the last ones on. I
travelled alone as a child all the time from the age of 8. No big deal really. I also never pay for seats when I travel with dc, 6,10,14. Most of the time we’re sat together but we were recently separated on a flight to Kenya. It’s not the end of the world.

I hope there's never an emergency then

cremedelacraps · 23/07/2025 16:36

Flying is shit & airlines treat you like shit, particularly Ryanair.

WellMaybeYouShouldntBeLivingHeeeeeeee · 23/07/2025 16:38

Why are some people so intensely committed to giving OPs a kicking no matter what? ‘It didn’t happen, and if it did happen it was probably your fault. Oh, it wasn’t your fault? Well, no need to be so dramatic’

cremedelacraps · 23/07/2025 16:48

Why are some people so intensely committed to giving OPs a kicking no matter what?

This is pretty standard on MNs, I guess it's how some feel better about their sad existence

Hoardasauruskaren · 23/07/2025 16:50

My son (18 at the time ) & 3 friends were 20 hours late home from a trip to Latvia using Ryanair. Never received the legal compensation, Ryanair gave them the run around for months till they gave up in the end. Bet they do that a lot! Hope OP gets her refund!

prelovedusername · 23/07/2025 16:52

I believe you OP because this happened on a recent flight we were on. The elderly wheelchair bound lady and her young carer/companion in front of me were told at the gate that a different plane had been sent from the one they were booked on and their seats didn’t exist.

The staff did their best but couldn’t find two seats together, and this poor lady was quite concerned about how she’d manage. Fortunately two passengers travelling together were a no show and they moved her and her companion to those.

Another couple who had paid to sit together weren’t so lucky, they were told their seats also weren’t available and they would be in randomly allocated seats seated apart. The gate staff said there was nothing they could do and to take it up with Ryanair.

Of course you should complain, although I haven’t found Ryanair’s customer service very helpful in the past. You might get a useless voucher out of it.