Mirror reader Alycia Royle-Evatt believes that Ryanair duped her into paying for a bag that was, in fact, the correct dimensions ahead of a flight from Leeds Bradford to Palma Majorca
A debate is raging over the real dimensions of Ryanair bag sizers, with some passengers claiming things are not quite as they seem.
There are few ways worse to begin a holiday than by getting stung by an extra baggage charge. Budget airline Ryanair has seemingly mastered the art of catching out passengers with oversized hand luggage, slapping customers with fees of up to £75—sometimes for being just a little bit over the maximum allowed size.
This can be particularly infuriating as, on other occasions, boarding agents wave through clearly oversized bags without a second glance. This comes after Ryanair admitted just how much it makes from fining customers for breaking its rules.
Mirror reader Alycia Royle-Evatt believes that Ryanair duped her into paying for a bag that was, in fact, the correct dimensions. During a trip from Leeds Bradford Airport to Palma Majorca, Alycia and her daughter were charged £75 for each of two bags that “bowed out slightly in the middle by millimetres.”
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“I measured my luggage before travelling to make sure it fit the dimensions advertised on their website and they were an exact match,” Alycia said.
This led the mum to start questioning whether the “cages are slightly smaller dimensions, especially the depth”. During her break, the spurned holidaymakers bought a measuring tape for her return trip. At the airport, Alycia measured the depth of the bag sizer. “It was 18cm, not the 20 as advertised,” she claimed.
“It was extremely distressing and I have since found out that the staff work on a commission for every bag they manage to fine.”
Rumours that Ryanair bag sizers are not the dimensions advertised have long swirled online, with forums packed full of people claiming to have been stung for bags that they believe to be compliant.
However, there is no good evidence that this is the case. In fact, multiple videos posted on TikTok and YouTube show sceptical passengers scrutinising the Ryanair baggage cages and discovering that they are exactly quite a bit bigger than the maximum bag dimensions.
Sarah Giblin tried just that and found that the sizer was between 1cm and 2cm bigger than the different dimensions of the maximum bag allowance. “That means that Ryanair is a little bit nicer than they have been letting on,” Sarah said in a TikTok video. “But it does also mean if your bag doesn’t fit, then it really doesn’t fit.”
In July, Ryanair announced that it is planning to increase its “personal bag” size by 20% as the EU brings in a new standard. That means that passengers will be allowed to take an item such as a handbag or laptop bag measuring up to 40cm x 30cm x 20cm in the cabin without paying an extra fee.
The bag should weigh less than 10kg and fit “under the seat in front of you.” The new size represents a 20% increase in volume from the current maximum dimensions and means that Ryanair accepts free bags one-third bigger than the new EU minimum size limit.
The new bag size limits were due to come into effect “in the coming weeks” following the announcement, which came at the beginning of July. If you’re travelling with Ryanair this month, make sure to check with the airline to find out if the new measurements are in force on your flight.
Ryanair has been contacted for comment.