We were banned from boarding our Ryanair flight due to confusing passport rules – airlines need to make it clearer
A COUPLE has slammed Ryanair after they were banned from boarding their flight due to confusing new passport rules.
Adam Robertson and his partner Selina Bacon were flying from Bournemouth to Majorca with the low-cost airline.
The pair, who spent around £420 on flights, were turned away by Ryanair after being told that their passports were no longer valid.
This was because Ms Bacon's passport was 10 years and five days old.
New passport rules no longer allow Brits to use any additional months on their passports over the 10 years.
Mr Robertson said they were left "upset, devastated and at a bit of a loss".
He also slammed the airline for not flagging the rules when booking the flights or checking in.
He told Bournemouth Echo: "Had we been made aware there was an issue as soon as we’d booked, my partner and I would have made time, even if it meant travelling to the passport office ourselves.
“The first we heard there was an issue was when we were told on boarding.”
The pair were unable to travel abroad and instead had to holiday in the UK instead, with a last-minute trip to the Cotswolds.
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A Ryanair spokesperson told local media: "This passenger’s passport was issued on 18 July 2013 and is therefore no longer valid for travel to/from the EU after 18 July 2023 and was outside the 10-year validity period when this passenger attempted to travel on 23 July 2023.
“Ryanair requires each passenger to ensure that their passport is valid for travel on both the date of their outbound and return flight date.”
The confusing new rules have caught out a number of holidaymakers.
Earlier this year, teacher Rosie Simpson was banned from boarding her flight to Paris for a similar reason.
She told the Guardian: “I had no idea of the 10-year rule. I’d checked the expiry date, and my passport had eight months remaining. What happened at the boarding gate was absolutely awful."
And even travel journalist Jenny Southan made the same mistake, and was left £700 out of pocket after being stopped from travelling.
