A man has hit out at Ryanair after claiming he was charged £90 for checking in just three minutes late – before being refused boarding on his return journey and left stranded overnight.
Edward Stokes had travelled from Dublin to London Stansted with his son to attend the funeral of his cousin’s wife.
But what began as a heartbreaking family trip allegedly turned into a travel nightmare when the 49-year-old encountered problems with his booking on the way home last week (15 October).
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Edward said he and his son had been charged £46 (€55) each after checking in online three minutes late for their outbound flight.
“I’m absolutely disgusted by how we were treated,” Edward, a blinds and carpets business owner from Newbridge, County Kildare, Ireland, told Need To Know.
“I’ve been a loyal Ryanair customer for years.
“In fact, Ryanair is practically the only airline my family and I ever use.
“But after what happened to me this week, I am absolutely shocked and disgusted.
“We were three minutes late checking in online on Tuesday morning and were charged €55 each, €110 in total.
“Fair enough, we were late.
“We accepted responsibility, paid the money and moved on.
“But what happened on the way home was a completely different story.”
Edward claims he was subsequently refused boarding on his return flight because of confusion over the name on his booking.
His booking included both Edward and Teddy, a name he often goes by, and he said he had been allowed to travel to England without any problems.
Unable to board his scheduled flight, he said he had to book another service departing at 10pm for £300 (€357.57), after an earlier alternative would have cost around £450.
But his journey home was far from straightforward.
Mr Stokes claims the replacement flight was delayed by around an hour and 45 minutes, meaning he missed the last bus service home.
With no money for a taxi and nobody available to collect him, he said he was left waiting at Dublin Airport for five hours until the next bus, eventually arriving home the following morning.
Edward said: “I’ve been known as Teddy all my life.
“On the way over, my booking included Edward Teddy Stokes, and Ryanair allowed me to travel without any problem.
“On my return journey, there was confusion over my booking name, and I was refused boarding.
“I explained the situation to the Ryanair staff member.
“I explained that I had just attended one of the saddest funerals of my life and was simply trying to get home to my family.
“Her response? ‘That’s not my problem. What do you want me to do about it?’
“I couldn’t believe the attitude.
“There was absolutely no compassion, understanding or willingness to help.
“We have no problem accepting responsibility when I’m wrong.
“We were three minutes late checking in, and we paid the money.
“But where is the same accountability when an airline causes passengers serious inconvenience?
“What hurt me most wasn’t even the money.
“It was the way I was spoken to, the complete lack of compassion and the feeling that we were treated like we didn’t matter.
“Nobody should be spoken to or treated like that.
“All I wanted was to attend a family funeral, support my cousin and get home safely.
“I was absolutely exhausted.
“Between the sadness of the funeral and everything that happened with my flights, it’s been a very difficult and emotional week for me.
“Ryanair, is this really how you treat loyal customers?”
A Ryanair spokesperson said: “The first and surname on a passenger’s booking must match the first and surname on their travel documents.
“The passport that Mr Stokes presented at the boarding gate in Stansted did not match the first name on his booking for this Stansted to Dublin flight (14 October).
“Ryanair offers passengers a 24-hour grace period to correct minor spelling errors on bookings free of charge or full name changes up to two hours before scheduled departure (subject to a fee).
“Unfortunately, Mr. Stokes did not avail of either option and presented at the boarding gate in Stansted with a passport that did not match the name on his booking.”
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