Ryanair accused of age bias over carry-on luggage fee flap
63-year-old Maxine Haughian did not hide her outrage after the airline Ryanair demanded CAD 135 for an oversized carry-on bag. She claims that other passengers with similar suitcases were let through without charge. According to her, the decision was based on the appearance and age of the passengers.
Maxine, a retired prison director, was travelling with her husband to Alicante from Leeds Bradford Airport. The woman was stopped by Ryanair staff before boarding.
It turned out that her suitcase exceeded the size limit by only 2.5 cm. Nevertheless, instead of allowing her to bring the luggage into the cabin free of charge, they demanded an additional fee of CAD 135 to place the suitcase in the hold.
The traveller accuses the airline of age discrimination
Maxine, however, noticed that other passengers whose suitcases also seemed slightly larger were not stopped. She believes that a younger and more attractive woman passed through the check with a similarly sized bag without any problems.
Haughian was so irritated by the situation that she secretly took a photo of this passenger. She later expressed her frustration on Facebook, where she wrote that she is "disgusted" with the airline's behaviour.
"I’ve just been held up for 20 minutes because they said my cabin bag was too big and I must pay an EXTRA £75 (CAD 135) for it to go in the hold. Alternatively, I can leave it and forfeit the bag and its contents!" Maxine wrote. "It’s funny (not funny) how other bags that are exactly the same were allowed through without comment. It’s a good job I took the photo of this (gorgeous) girl pushing her case into the box and being allowed through. Mine is the pink case, and I see no difference whatsoever. I’m obviously not young or good-looking enough," she added.
The woman also sees a lack of consistency in applying the rules
Finally, Maxine was able to convince the staff that her luggage should not be charged extra by showing them photos of other suitcases that passed boarding without an additional fee. Although she was pleased to be allowed to bring her luggage without paying, she believes the incident highlights the airline's unfair approach.
In a conversation with Oxford Mail, she stated "It was almost like letting me go justified what I was saying. I think it's definitely a money-making exercise. I'm a bit older, perhaps he thought I would be compliant. A lot of people just paid the money. If you've got rules, they should be applied evenly and equally. I couldn't determine how they were applying the rules. It made me feel helpless," Maxine concluded.
