It comes after the European Union transport committee voted last month to reinforce European passenger rights by defining the size of backpacks and personal items that passengers are allowed to bring across all flights.
By regulating the dimensions of free hand baggage throughout EU flights, aviation bosses hoped to scale back the danger of confusion amongst airways and their tens of millions of passengers.
A spokesperson for Airways for Europe (A4E), an organisation that represents airways resembling Ryanair, British Airways, Lufthansa, and Air France, stated the transfer will carry “extra readability” to passengers.
“It will align A4E members with the choice of member states made final month and convey extra readability to passengers throughout Europe,” stated Ourania Georgoutsakou. “From city-hoppers to household travellers, everybody will profit from the identical clear rule throughout our members’ networks.”
So, what do we all know concerning the new baggage replace?
What adjustments is Ryanair making?
At present, Ryanair passengers are allowed to take a free small bag with dimensions of 40x20x25 cm.
Nevertheless, in line with the brand new replace, this may enhance to 40x30x20cm within the coming weeks, which is equal to roughly 24L and a 20 per cent enhance.
A spokesperson for the airline stated: “Following the brand new EU minimal bag dimension of 40x30x15cm, Ryanair will enhance its max ‘private bag’ dimensions to 40x30x20cm, in order that Ryanair’s ‘private bag’ allowance is greater than the EU customary.
“This transformation can be carried out over the approaching weeks, as our airport bag sizers are adjusted.”
No adjustments have been introduced to Ryanair’s different baggage allowances, that means paid-for bigger hand baggage in addition to checked-in baggage nonetheless have the identical measurements as earlier than.
Why are the adjustments being launched?
Budget airlines have lengthy confronted controversy over the rise in hidden charges added to unsuspecting passengers, usually simply earlier than they board a flight.
Lately, a number of airways have decreased the free baggage allowance for handheld baggage allowed on planes, as an alternative introducing a paid mannequin that’s designed to bump up earnings alongside extremely low price flights. It’s not unusual for airline workers to cost passengers additional if their baggage don’t match within the measurement body on the departure gates.
Nevertheless, folks have not too long ago began to problem these guidelines.
In Might, a Spanish decide ordered Ryanair to reimburse a passenger €147 in hand baggage prices after they had been charged for carrying a small suitcase that was too massive for Ryanair’s allowance, however nonetheless sufficiently small to suit on the flight. The decide concluded that “carry-on baggage is an important component of passenger transportation” so “can’t be topic to a value complement”.
Ryanair, amongst different airways, have additionally confronted different authorized challenges up to now and was fined over 100 million euros in 2024 over baggage and ticketing practices that basically noticed passengers fined for last-minute points. One other decide not too long ago halted the high-quality whereas airways enchantment the choice.
“Haven’t all of us skilled the concern of our hand baggage not becoming within the airline’s sizers and being charged additional charges?”, Agustín Reyna, director basic of The European Shopper Organisation, stated, in line with the Guardian, this summer time.
Given the most recent baggage replace, it’s probably that Ryanair are making the changes to adjust to EU requirements and to keep away from any passengers difficult them over baggage dimension limits sooner or later.
