Ministers Plan Ban on Airline Fees for Family Seating and Ticket Fixes, If Parliament Agrees New Powers
Ministers will consult on banning two airline charges: fees for parents to sit with their children, and fees to correct small booking mistakes, if Parliament approves new aviation powers.
The Department for Transport said it will consult on scrapping both charges if the Civil Aviation Bill is approved. The seating proposal would require airlines to place children aged under 14 next to a parent or an accompanying adult free of charge, as reported by The Independent. The booking proposal covers correcting minor errors on flight bookings.
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander was named as the minister behind the announcement. The Department's press release, titled "Take off for passengers as government scraps extra charges when flying", is dated 1 October 2026, with the announcement scheduled for 2 October 2026.
The Department said arranging for a parent and child to sit together can currently cost up to £104 on a return journey, according to the BBC. It said correcting minor mistakes such as a name on a booking form can cost passengers up to £40.
Ministers aim to bring in the seating and booking changes before the start of next summer holidays, after Royal Assent of the Civil Aviation Bill. Royal Assent is the final step when a Bill agreed by Parliament becomes law. The Bill is the Civil Aviation (Consumer Protection and Regulatory Reform) Bill [HL], which means it started in the House of Lords. Hansard records proceedings on the Bill on 16 June 2026.
The ban is not in force. It remains conditional on approval by Parliament and then consultation. The Government said it will ensure parents cannot be charged for sitting next to their children on planes if new powers are approved by Parliament.
Airlines UK, which speaks for UK airlines, said UK airlines already allow minor name corrections free of charge. It said UK airlines follow the regulator's current guidance on seating children under 12 with their accompanying adult. Industry points to under-12s and guidance. The Government consultation proposal points to under-14s and a free-of-charge requirement set in law.
The Government said most UK airlines already offer protections against hidden costs and that the reforms would give greater consistency across all airlines operating in the UK, in its announcement.
The broader context here will be familiar to those who follow aviation policy. The Government seeks to present the measure as setting a common standard, rather than as criticism of the sector as a whole.
A separate strand covers disruptive behaviour. The Government said more than 1,000 serious disruptive passenger incidents were logged by airlines in 2025. The incidents cited included a mid-air brawl that resulted in a flight being diverted.
The Government plans to create a new system for sharing information on persistently disruptive passengers, with help from airlines and trade unions. The proposed system would enable airlines to take decisions on whether to extend a ban on their airline. Details on thresholds, safeguards for sharing data and routes for appeal are still to be set out, like agreeing the principle of a shared list before writing the rulebook.
The flight fee reforms were presented as the latest in the Prime Minister's 'everyday fixes' series. That followed action on rogue traders overcharging for home improvements, subscription traps and school uniform costs. A VAT cut on electricity bills took effect on 1 October 2026, saving households £45.
The broader context here is that Ministers have chosen broad powers plus consultation rather than an immediate ban written into the Bill itself. That offers flexibility on definitions such as minor error and accompanying adult. It also moves the political risk to implementation. Royal Assent, responses to the consultation, drafting of the requirements and readiness of the regulator will decide whether the pledge before the summer holidays holds.
Looking at what this means for the politics, the test will be enforcement. A consistency rule for all UK operators is straightforward to announce. It is harder to apply evenly to UK carriers and inbound foreign carriers, to third-party booking intermediaries, and to the boundary between a chargeable seat-selection product and a protected adjacent seat for a child. Industry will press that current guidance and existing free corrections already cover much of the ground. Ministers will press that only a legal requirement ends variation. The consultation will show where that line is drawn.
