Good news for parents flying with children in the UK

Airlines will have to seat children under 14 next to a parent for free, the government has announced.

The government said some airlines currently charge a parent and child up to £104 on a return journey simply to sit together.

The rule covers children travelling with a parent or another accompanying adult, and the government plans to have it in place in time for next year’s summer holidays.

Passengers will also be able to correct simple name mistakes on their bookings for free, ending admin charges that can reach £40.

The changes will apply to every airline operating in the UK once the Civil Aviation Bill receives Royal Assent.

Most UK airlines already protect passengers against these hidden costs, but the reforms will make the rules consistent across all carriers.

“Charging parents just to sit with their children is a rip-off, plain and simple,” said Andy Burnham, Prime Minister.

“People are fed up with these little charges that add up, so I’m putting a stop to them,” Burnham added.

“Parents should not have to feel the pinch just to sit next to their child on a flight, or for amending a simple booking error,” said Heidi Alexander, Transport Secretary.

Consumer group Which? welcomed the move, saying it has pushed airlines to drop family seating fees for a decade.

“It’s clearly unfair to force parents and children as young as three to pay an extra fee just to sit together,” said Rory Boland, Editor of Which? Travel.

“Which? has successfully pressured many airlines into dropping these fees over the past 10 years,” Boland added.

Crackdown on disruptive passengers

The government is also working with airlines and trade unions on a new system for sharing information about persistently disruptive passengers.

Airlines logged more than 1,000 serious disruptive passenger incidents in 2025, including a mid-air brawl that forced a flight to divert.

The system will help airlines spot disruptive passengers earlier and decide whether to extend a ban to their own flights.

“Everyone deserves to travel knowing their flight isn’t going to be disrupted by bad behaviour from a small minority,” said Alexander.

The airline reforms form part of the Prime Minister’s series of everyday fixes, which have already targeted rogue traders, subscription traps and school uniform costs.

The announcement came a day after the government’s VAT cut on electricity bills took effect on 1 October, which it said will save households a further £45.

The government said the changes will also bring UK passenger rules closer to those in the EU, where regulators have taken a tougher stance on air passenger rights.

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