Ryanair has stealthily raised the cost of taking bags into the cabin, according to consumer watchdog Which?
Passengers wanting to take a wheelie suitcase or other large bag into the cabin have had to pay £5 for priority boarding since January.
But Which? Travel discovered that the price has gone up to £7 at the time of checking in for most routes, or £6 if payment is made when making the booking, although no official announcement has been made.
Ryanair passengers are only allowed to take bags that will fit under the seat on board free of charge.
The disclosure follows complaints from Ryanair chief executive Michael O’Leary that too many people were choosing to check in their bags free of charge, rather than paying the £5 fee.
“It is creating a handling issue, particularly at peak periods, bank holiday weekends and summer peak periods,” he said. “There are many flights where we’re now having to put 100 or 120 gate bags free of charge into the hold.”
Yet it seems likely that more people will prefer to avoid paying the new, higher fee, leading to even more bags being put in the hold.
Ryanair said: “Like all businesses, our optional fees can change unlike our fares which keep coming down.
“Priority boarding, which allows customers to bring two pieces of hand luggage on board with them and board the plane first, costs €5/€6 (depending on the route) at the time of booking and €6/€7 (depending on the route) when added to a booking.”
The Edinburgh to Stansted route is an example where priority boarding still costs £5, as well as Manchester to Belfast.
The budget carrier would not confirm whether any international flights from the UK still offer priority boarding for £5.
“We haven’t been able to find any,” Which? Travel said. “It’s only a week since Ryanair reduced the period when passengers can check in from four days before departure to 48 hours.
“Its policies have ensured that it’s remained highly profitable, but in recent Which? surveys it has been rated as one of the worst airlines.”
Meanwhile, the airline’s safety and security director has been promoted to the role of ‘chief risk officer’.
Carol Sharkey, who will report directly to O’Leary and has worked for the casrrier since 1995, will assume responsibility for all of Ryanair’s operational risk assessment.
She previously held roles in in-flight, flight operations and has overseen the flight safety department in recent years.
O’Leary said: “Carol has an encyclopedic knowledge of our business and how we deliver controlled growth safely, and her expertise particularly in the area of operations and safety will ensure she plays a key role in our future growth to some 600 aircraft and over 200 million customers p.a.”
Sharkey added: “It’s an exciting time for Ryanair as we continue to grow and expand our operations across Europe and I look forward to working with all of the team and the board to maintain and develop Ryanair’s industry leading safety record.”