Under six year olds denied boarding.

Nashy1000

My one year old grandson and two year old granddaughter were denied boarding onto an EasyJet flight to Gran Canaria because they didn’t have a Covid test certificate. I had researched the entry requirements for Gran Canaria and I had read that under six year old children didn’t require one but the boarding staff at the airport were adamant that every passenger had to have one. At the time this was true for the Spanish mainland but not the Canary Islands. They wouldn’t listen to us. Consequently my wife and I went on holiday without our son and his family. It was very upsetting. What I’m after, with this post, is advice on my rights to claim the money for our spoilt family holiday. Thanks in advance.

Browntoa

None , sounds like you didn't check easyJet boarding requirements

lincroft1710

What did EasyJet's T & Cs say at time of booking or any subsequent notification?

Aylesbury_Duck

Nashy1000 said:

My one year old grandson and two year old granddaughter were denied boarding onto an EasyJet flight to Gran Canaria because they didn’t have a Covid test certificate. I had researched the entry requirements for Gran Canaria and I had read that under six year old children didn’t require one but the boarding staff at the airport were adamant that every passenger had to have one. At the time this was true for the Spanish mainland but not the Canary Islands. They wouldn’t listen to us. Consequently my wife and I went on holiday without our son and his family. It was very upsetting. What I’m after, with this post, is advice on my rights to claim the money for our spoilt family holiday. Thanks in advance.

What would you claim for?  You went on the holiday.  As for the rest of your family, they'd need to prove they were wrongfully denied permission to board.  It sounds like you checked the entry requirements for the destination rather than the boarding requirements of the airline.

tacpot12

It sounds like it would have been a horrible experience. I wonder if Easyjet insists on this in case they have to divert to a Spanish Mainland airport? 

Sandtree

Looking at the tourism board it seems the age requirement depends on where you are staying, if it’s a regulated tourist establishment then under 6 don’t need a test; if not then there’s no stated exemptions for children. 

Where were you staying? 

Airlines have a legal obligation to ensure they don’t allow those that’ll be denied entry ever on board. If one does slip through the airline has to pay for removal and can be fined etc. Even worse, in the USA the agent that made the mistake often gets pay docked for the error.

with COVID rules are complex, changing frequently and vary  massively between countries or even regions of countries. Mistakes will happen and airlines air on the side of caution 

davidmcn

tacpot12 said:

It sounds like it would have been a horrible experience. I wonder if Easyjet insists on this in case they have to divert to a Spanish Mainland airport? 

The current advice on their website appears to acknowledge that tests aren't necessary for under 6s, so I wonder if that changed at some point.

Diversionary airports aren't likely to be a concern, in the same way that you don't need to satisfy other immigration requirements for places the plane might end up - passengers would be expected to stay "in transit" until they can be moved on to their destination.

Money_Grabber13579

They current guidance states that they don’t need a covid test but they do still need to have completed a health form and have been issued a QR code, which has to be shown when boarding. Did they have that?

The guidance has also changed recently too as there was no mention of any exemption for 6 year olds on 26 November.

https://web.archive.org/web/20201126140216/https://www.easyjet.com/en/policy/country-specific-travel-information

Nashy1000

Thanks for all your responses. In answer to some of your questions, yes they had QR codes, the hotel didn’t require test certificates for under six year old, we were directed to the government travel advice web site, which confirms this and that same site directs you to the Canarian Tourist Board which says the same.

I hadn’t realised that airlines could have different boarding requirements to the entry requirements of the destination. Seems confusing!! 

Nashy1000

When we got to Gran Canaria airport no one asked us for Covid test certificates.