EasyJet & Ryanair among airlines hit with £130m fines over ‘abusive’ cabin bag charges…but warn ticket prices could RISE

AIRLINES including EasyJet and Ryanair have been hit with a £130million fine for forcing holidaymakers to pay for “abusive” cabin bag charges.

Spanish authorities have also punished budget airlines Vueling and Volotea for excessively charging flyers to bring luggage on board, consumer groups at the head of a six-year campaign said on Friday.

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The total fine against the four air carriers totals a whopping €150m (£127m) – the largest penalty in the history of low-cost airlines.

Ryanair, EasyJet, Vueling and Volotea can appeal the fine – first before the ministry and then before the National Court.

But all four operators have warned that flight ticket prices will climb if they lose the case, Spanish outlet Sur report.

The breakdown of the sanctions has not been revealed, although Ryanair is believed to have received the highest fine out of the four, according to El Pais.

The Irish airline were the first to start charging for carrying hand luggage in November 2018 and are seen as the main instigators of the trend.

The fines are a challenge to budget airlines’ business models, which hinge on charging rock-bottom fees for tickets and adding supplements for things that were previously free.

Spain’s Consumer Rights Ministry fined the carriers for violating customer rights when charging for larger carry-on luggage, picking seats or boarding pass printouts.

The final charge also takes into consideration the costs for seat selection when the traveller is accompanied by children or dependent people.

Not allowing cash payments at check-in desks or buying items on-board have also influenced the cost of the charge, consumer rights associations OCU and Facua said.

The duo have been challenging the practices since 2018, before the ministry opened an investigation in 2023.

OCU said in a statement it expected other European countries to follow suit and also to punish those same “abusive practices.”

Spanish airlines industry group ALA, which confirmed the fines, was quick to criticise the government decision as violating the European Union’s single market rules and the companies’ freedom to set their own prices.

“We defend the consumer’s right to pick the best travel option,” ALA President Javier Gandara said in a statement.

He added that Spain’s decision would force as many as 50 million passengers who only travel with a small bag under their seat to pay for services they do not require.

The Consumer Rights Ministry had no immediate comment.

Ryanair, Volotea and Vueling declined to comment on the fine since ALA spoke on their behalf.

In 2019, a Spanish court ruled Ryanair’s policy of charging a fee for hand luggage was “abusive”.

However, Ryanair continued with its policy, citing airlines’ commercial freedom to determine the size of their cabin baggage.

The success of the budget airlines and the appeal of their low-ticket price policy has forced many legacy airlines to stop offering services such as free food and drinks or entertainment in short and medium-haul flights.

It comes after one airline recently decided to increase its baggage prices, with its excess, overweight and pre-paid baggage fees all more costly than before.

The new fees introduced by Air New Zealand came into force earlier this month, on May 23, but were only revealed through an industry update to travel agents.

Several other airlines have also upped their baggage fees for passengers this year.

JetBlue, American and United and Frontier Airlines are just a few of the companies who have raised the cost of luggage recently.

The airlines claim the rises are caused by higher fuel costs and increased operating costs.

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