Ryanair passenger 'kicked off flight' after failing to reserve seat during last-minute aircraft swap
Ryanair has defended its handling of a passenger complaint after a gym coach claimed he was bumped from a flight to Mallorca for not reserving a seat, saying the issue was caused by a last-minute aircraft swap, not overbooking.
Scott McCormick and his girlfriend were due to fly from Birmingham Airport to Palma de Mallorca on Ryanair flight FR1954 on May 1. The couple opted not to pay for seat reservations, which typically cost between £3.85 and £28.20, and expected to be assigned seats randomly at check-in.
But in a TikTok video that has since gone viral, McCormick claimed they were singled out at the gate and told to wait aside while other passengers boarded.
“Went to check into our gate, and then we were told to wait off to one side,” he said in the clip. “Everyone checked into their seats... we didn’t reserve seats, never used to and never used to be an issue.”
“They put us through at the end, and they said, ‘as you are last to check in and you haven’t reserved a seat, we have one seat remaining’. Now they're saying one of us could have gone [on the original flight], apparently, while one of us would have had to get onto the next one.”
He also said they were told only one person would be compensated, while the other would have to pay for a new ticket, which they eventually did at a cost of £100, waiting four hours for the next available flight.
“There’s no compassion, there’s no empathy,” McCormick added in the video. “There’s no real care from anyone about any of this.”
However, Ryanair issued a statement rejecting the idea that the flight was overbooked: “This flight from Birmingham to Palma de Mallorca (1 May) was not ‘overbooked’ – it was scheduled to operate on a 737-8200 (197 seats) but for operational reasons had to be swapped to a 737-800 aircraft (189 seats).
“As a result, one passenger was unable to travel on this flight and was reaccommodated onto the next available flight to Palma de Mallorca. Mr McCormick’s travel companion was not refused boarding but chose not to board… and was required to pay a Missed Departure fee (£100) to be booked onto the next available flight.”
Ryanair also stated that McCormick had been informed he was eligible to claim back “reasonable receipted expenses” but has yet to submit any.
The incident has triggered a heated debate online. Some commenters have pointed out that failing to reserve a seat, and checking in late, comes with risks.
“It’s not just that they didn’t book a seat – they left check-in to last minute to try and get better seats. Last checked in, first off,” one person wrote. Another added: “They weren’t booted off. They chose not to reserve their seats, that’s on them. Airlines have been doing this for years.”
Ryanair reiterated its policy that it does not overbook flights, but if a seat is unavailable for a confirmed passenger, it will first seek volunteers in exchange for compensation. If no one volunteers, the airline may select passengers to be offloaded and reimbursed accordingly.
It remains unclear whether any such volunteer call-out occurred before McCormick was informed that only one seat was left.