Arriving at the airport only to find yourself seated miles away from your loved ones is a dreaded scenario for budget airline passengers, yet far from uncommon. Recent reports have highlighted the growing trend of ‘seat squatting’ – where travellers deliberately occupy unassigned seats that don’t belong to them.
Passengers engage in seat squatting to secure superior seating, such as window spots or first-class positions, or to dodge additional fees for sitting alongside family or friends. One traveller recently revealed how cabin crew caught an economy passenger masquerading as a first-class flier on a Delta Air Lines service from Providence, Rhode Island to Atlanta, Georgia. Staff observed two women “come [aboard] haphazardly” and settle into the aircraft’s front row, gambling on securing complimentary refreshments.
With the looming threat of seat theft becoming increasingly prevalent, we considered it worthwhile to review various airlines’ seating policies.
Ryanair
Ryanair provides two seating alternatives for travellers. Customers can either buy reserved seating or opt for complimentary seats, allocated randomly during check-in.
Those selecting ‘random seat allocation’ may check in anywhere from 24 hours to two hours prior to departure. Travellers who purchase a seat during booking, whilst checking in, or at any stage before departure, may select their preferred location and that spot will be held for them.
The cost of a reserved seat varies depending on your chosen position within the aircraft.
Should a traveller opt against reserving a seat, then a random location will be assigned to you without charge during check-in, though it is improbable that the seat will be adjacent to your travelling companions, according to Ryanair’s website.
Travellers may also reserve an additional seat for themselves by purchasing two complete-fare flight tickets.
Ryanair’s website explains: “Book the first ticket in your name. Then for your second ticket, enter ‘EXTRA’ as the first name and ‘COMFORT SEAT’ as the last name. ‘EXTRA COMFORT SEAT’ will then be added to your reservation. When checking in online, the same travel document details will be added for you and your extra seat.”
Furthermore, reserved seats cannot be cancelled from your booking, and refunds are not available once they have been bought.
British Airways
The ticket type you select and the cabin you opt to travel in determines whether a traveller’s seat selection will be complimentary or incur an additional charge.
Travellers may select their seat without cost from 24 hours prior to their departure time, when check-in becomes available, unless they have purchased a Basic ticket, which is typically economy with hand-luggage only, as seats will be assigned for these fares. Should a passenger possess a basic ticket, they remain able to pay for seat selection from the moment of booking through until check-in commences.
For those travelling with youngsters, the carrier suggests securing seats beforehand.
British Airways additionally permits travellers to purchase an additional ticket to guarantee the adjacent seat remains vacant.
easyJet
On easyJet services, travellers may select their preferred seating position for a charge.
Seats may be chosen during the booking process, or at any point prior to check-in, through manage bookings on easyJet’s website or mobile application.
“On bookings with more than one passenger, allocated seats must be selected for all passengers on the booking otherwise we cannot allow any allocated seats to be purchased,” easyJet’s website states.
EasyJet provides three categories of seating: standard seats which are complimentary for easyJet Plus cardholders and customers who have purchased a FLEXI fare, up front seats which are complimentary for easyJet Plus cardholders and customers who have purchased a FLEXI fare and are positioned in rows two to six and extra legroom seats, which are also complimentary for easyJet Plus cardholders and reduced for customers who have purchased a FLEXI fare.
Jet2
For Jet2 services, passengers may reserve their desired seats and they can accomplish this through pre-booking the seats online during their booking process.
Passengers may also pre-book them subsequently by visiting Manage My Booking, though seat costs fluctuate depending on the destination and route. If a traveller doesn’t pre-book a seat, they will be assigned one when they check in online or at the airport on a first come, first served basis.
Jet2 aircraft also offer a selection of extra legroom seats. These seats are marked on the seat maps during the booking process and are generally located towards the front and middle of the aircraft.
The airline also aims to seat children and infants under the age of 12 next to their accompanying adults.
TUI
If you’re flying with TUI or any of its chartered airlines, passengers can pay extra to choose where they sit on the aircraft. And like other airlines, if they do not select a seat they will be automatically allocated a seat when they check in online.
The airline makes sure that children under the age of 12 are sat with at least one adult in their party.
If an individual has paid for a seating product, such as ‘Select Your Seat’, ‘Seats with Extra Legroom’, ‘Seats with Extra Space’ or ‘Premium’ – but have not chosen their seats at least 14 days before their holiday, TUI will automatically allocate seats to them. On long-haul flights passengers are also given the option to upgrade to a ‘Premium’ seat.