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In the UK, the Department for Transport says airlines will have to seat children under 14 beside a parent or accompanying adult without charging an extra seat-selection fee. The DfT gives 2 October 2026 as the start date, but says the changes are to be delivered following Royal Assent of the Civil Aviation Bill. The announcement alone does not establish that the legal requirement is fully in force: check the bill’s progress and any implementing rules before relying on it as an enforceable right.
What does the UK announcement mean for families?
The Department for Transport (DfT) announced that airlines would be required to seat a child under 14 next to a parent or accompanying adult at no extra charge. The stated aim is to stop parents paying simply to sit beside their child. The announcement does not say that families may choose any particular seat for free; the central promise is adjacent seating with an accompanying adult.
The DfT says a parent and child could currently be charged up to £104 on a return journey. That is the figure in the department’s announcement, not an established typical charge or a guaranteed saving for every family. Read the DfT announcement.
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The DfT announcement, published 1 October 2026, says the requirement applies “From 2 October 2026.” It also says the reforms are set to be delivered following Royal Assent of the Civil Aviation Bill. Those statements leave an important legal-status question: the announcement does not establish whether Royal Assent has occurred or identify the implementing provision. It is therefore safer to describe this as an announced requirement with a stated start date, rather than assert that a fully enacted and enforceable ban definitely came into force on 2 October.
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Does the rule cover children under 14?
Yes, the UK announcement sets the age threshold at under 14 and refers to a parent or accompanying adult. It does not give further operational details in the announcement about how an airline must handle every seating configuration, booking type, or exceptional circumstance. Until the implementation details are clear, families should check their airline’s current seating policy and ask the airline how it will apply the announced requirement to their booking.
What did the CMA say about Ryanair’s family seating fee?
Separately from the government announcement, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) opened an investigation into Ryanair on 11 June 2026. The CMA said it was examining whether the airline’s mandatory family seating fee was an unfair contract term, whether the fee was revealed gradually during booking, and whether customers were shown the total price up front. It had not concluded that Ryanair broke the law. The CMA case page listed the investigation as ongoing and a hearing for 24–26 November 2026.
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The CMA said its evidence indicated a typical charge of about £8 per flight—the most common amount in its evidence. The same release said Ryanair’s website listed mandatory family seat reservations at €4.50–€13.50, which the CMA expressed as £4–£12. These are figures reported by the CMA in the context of its investigation, not a finding of illegality or a universal price paid by families. The DfT’s up-to-£104 return-journey figure has a different scope and should not be treated as interchangeable with the CMA’s per-flight evidence. See the CMA announcement.
What does Ryanair say families can do?
In a company statement dated 25 June 2026, Ryanair said an adult travelling with children could select a reserved seat and reserve seats beside them for up to four children on the same booking without a separate child-seat reservation fee. Ryanair also said families who did not pay to reserve an adult seat would receive free seat allocation after check-in and would likely be seated toward the rear; customers wanting to choose seats when booking could pay a reservation fee. These are Ryanair’s descriptions of its own policy, not an independent assessment. Read Ryanair’s statement.
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- CERTIFIED SAFE FOR YOUR MOST PRECIOUS CARGO | Your child deserves a comfortable and safe car seat for those quick journeys in rental cars, taxis, Uber rides, on school trips or in car pools. Meets or exceeds all federal standards for car seat safety (FMVSS213 Federal Motor Safety Standard for USA).
- STURDY, STABLE, SECURE | Non-skid base is designed to sit firm and steady on leather, vinyl or cloth seats. Provides soothing stability while riding and limits movement in case of an accident. Gentle on your upholstery.
- PRACTICAL DIMENSIONS | Narrow yet roomy design allows you to fit 3 UberBoost inflatable car seats across the back seat of smaller vehicles, or fit 1 in between 2 traditional car seats. Perfectly accommodates large families, car poolers and busy soccer moms!
- SECURITY AND COMFORT | Buoyant and extra comfy for small bottoms. (Your little one will love the ultra cushiony design!) Positioning clips ensure that child’s belt fits properly and comfortably across the lap rather than dangerously digging into the stomach, preventing internal damage in the event of an accident.
Is this the same as the US family seating proposal?
No. The UK DfT announcement is separate from a United States Department of Transportation (DOT) measure. The DOT page describes a notice of proposed rulemaking, not an enacted rule. Its dashboard of airline commitments, last updated 5 September 2025, lists conditions that can include the child and adult being on the same reservation, adjacent seats being available when booking, no switch to a smaller aircraft, and a seating layout that permits the arrangement. Those conditions and the US proposal do not define the UK announcement. Check the US DOT family seating dashboard.
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