Ryanair Have Heartbreakingly Followed Through With Their (Possibly Illegal) New Hand-Luggage Rules
After breaking hearts (and wallets) by announcing that the free 10kg hand luggage was being cancelled, Ryanair has finally gone ahead and legit changed their boarding policy.
As of today, all non-priority passengers will have to pay to check in 10kg hand baggage into the hold before boarding their flight. This is annoying, forcing many to opt for priority boarding for each flight if you want to access your bag mid-air.
One small bag/laptop bag (40cm x 20cm x 20cm) will still be allowed to be carried on board though.
Pictured: You after paying the priority boarding fee
Ryanair said they were rolling out the new rules to combat people abusing their free hand luggage policy
The company said this was part of their drive to “eliminate gate bags and cut boarding gate/flight delays”, saying free carry-on luggage was causing delays of up to 25 minutes per flight.
Former Primer Minister Alfred Sant and the Italian Competition Authority have called on the EU to investigate Ryanair’s new policy
Just a couple of weeks ago, on the 21st of September, the Italian Competition Authority launched an investigation into Ryanair’s new policy of charging for carry-on luggage. They said that a 10kg hand luggage was an “essential element of transport”, and accused the low-cost Irish airline of using unfair commercial practices, such as not including this “essential element” into the full ticket price.
They argued that the price Ryanair showed for tickets was not the actual real price now that these added costs were becoming part of the new system.
Alfred Sant has reportedly contacted the European Commission asking whether there are any European-wide plans to investigate these pricing structures, along with investigations into any other airlines with similar additional costs in their ticket structures.
Nationalist MEP Roberta Metsola also called for an EU investigation into the airline
Here are the main changes coming to Ryanair flights
1. Only priority boarding customers are allowed to bring two carry-on bags on the aircraft
You are going to have to cough up that extra €6 if you want to carry two bags with you onto the place – and skip the queue.
2. Redesigned boarding passes
They’ve been changed to show more clearly whether a customer has got a priority pass or not.
3. New signage and baggage sizers have been installed
You’ll be seeing the new sizers.
4. Reduced checked bag fees (and increased check-in bag sizes)
Ryanair is trying to encourage people to check in their bags and minimise carry-on luggage.
The check-in bag allowance has increased from 15kg to 20kg for all bags. The standard check-in bag fee has been cut from €35 to €25 for this 20kg bag.
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