Ryanair's 'warning to holidaymakers' after family told to fork out €90 'for seats they'd already bought'

manchestereveningnews.co.uk:

Ryanair has issued a 'warning to holidaymakers' claiming people should book their flights through the airline rather than via online travel agents.

It comes as a family had to fork out an extra €90 to board a return Ryanair flight from Spain - which they'd already paid for. Sue Graham criticised the budget airline when her seats were allocated to someone else without warning. But Ryanair have shifted the blame, claiming the blunder was "a prime example of the issues faced when customers book flights through OTAs (online travel agents) and not directly with the airline." It is a claim the travel agent vehemently denied.

Sue had enjoyed a break in Benidorm with her husband Eric, from whom she is separated, and step-daughter Sophie, 22. But as the family were about to embark on their return flight to Liverpool John Lennon Airport, the issues began.

Read more: Callous fraudster ordered to pay back just £1 after conning friends, colleagues and ex-partner out of £113k

Sue, 68, said: "On getting to Alicante airport for our flight home we were told by the Ryanair attendant our seats had been cancelled and it would cost us another 30 euros each to get on the flight we had already paid for.

"When I told the attendant we had no money I was told, 'It's not my problem,' either pay a further 30 euros each or sort yourself out. I suffer with depression and anxiety so can you imagine my state of mind thinking we were going to be abandoned at the airport."

Sue said they only managed to secure their seats after Eric used money earmarked to pay his Sky bill to cough up the cash demanded by Ryanair, reports the Liverpool Echo. But the airline claimed the problem was because Sue had booked with On the Beach travel company rather than