Picture this: you've booked a Ryanair flight for a family holiday, only to discover at checkout that you must pay an extra £8 each way to sit next to your own child. That scenario is now at the centre of a formal investigation by the UK's competition watchdog, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), which is examining whether the budget airline's policy is unfair under consumer law.
The CMA launched the investigation after finding that Ryanair's terms and conditions require at least one parent or guardian to sit with any child aged between 2 and 11 on their flights. To guarantee that seat, the airline charges a fee, which the regulator says is typically £8 each way (though it can range from £4 to £12 depending on the route). The CMA says it understands that Ryanair is the only major airline flying from the UK to impose such a charge. Other carriers, it notes, either offer to seat children next to a parent for free or automatically allocate seats together during booking at no extra cost.
“The UK's competition watchdog is investigating Ryanair over its charge for parents to sit with their children.”
The watchdog's central question is whether this “mandatory family seat” fee amounts to an unfair contract term. Under UK consumer law, a term is considered unfair if it tilts the balance of rights and responsibilities too far in favour of the business. Unfair terms are not legally binding on customers, and the CMA can take enforcement action to stop businesses using them. Specifically, the CMA will investigate whether Ryanair is effectively charging parents to meet the airline's own legal obligations regarding child safety and disability, as set out in aviation rules. It will also look at whether the fee is “dripped” into the booking process – meaning customers are not shown the total price upfront.
Ryanair has strongly rejected the allegations, calling the investigation “bogus” and a “failed effort by the Starmer Govt to pretend it cares about consumers”. The airline insists its policy is fully compliant with the law. It says that adults travelling with children pay for only one reserved seat (their own) and can then select reserved seats for up to four children on the same booking free of charge. In its view, the mandatory family seat fee is simply a booking fee for that one adult seat, not a charge for the child. The CMA's investigation has only just begun, and it has reached no conclusions about whether Ryanair has broken the law.
Q: How much does Ryanair charge parents to sit with their child? The fee is typically around £8 each way, but can vary between £4 and £12 depending on the route. It is charged on both outbound and return flights. For all other passengers, reserving a seat is optional and also incurs a fee, but the issue here is that Ryanair's terms require a parent to sit with a child aged 2-11, making the fee effectively mandatory for families.
Q: Is Ryanair the only airline that does this? According to the CMA, Ryanair is the only large airline flying from the UK that imposes such a charge. Other airlines either seat children next to a parent without charging an additional fee or automatically allocate seats together during the booking process at no extra cost.
Q: What could happen if the CMA finds the practice unfair? If the CMA concludes that Ryanair's terms are unfair under consumer law, it can take enforcement action to stop the airline using them. This could include forcing Ryanair to change its policy, refund affected customers, or face legal proceedings. However, the investigation is at an early stage and no decision has been made yet.
The CMA's investigation is ongoing. It will examine the wording of Ryanair's contract terms, how the fee is presented during booking, and whether parents are being charged for the airline to meet its own legal duties. A decision is not expected imminently, but the outcome could have significant implications for families who fly Ryanair – and for how all airlines handle seat allocation for children.