Overview
- Ryanair changed its family seating policy for bookings made from June 25 so an adult travelling with a child under 12 can be offered a free seat next to the child after check‑in, with children then allocated adjacent seats.
- The free seats are most likely to be toward the rear of the aircraft and families may not know their seat allocation until after they have checked in.
- The policy shift follows a Competition and Markets Authority investigation into Ryanair's previous compulsory 'mandatory family seat' charge, which sources said typically cost about £8 each way.
- Ryanair CEO Michael O'Leary criticised the CMA probe and described the change as a reluctant adjustment to industry practice, while consumer voices including Martin Lewis welcomed the option but urged monitoring of its real‑world delivery.
- The CMA will assess whether the revised process meets consumer‑protection rules, a review that could set a wider precedent for how airlines disclose and apply paid seat reservations and other ancillary fees.