A British Airways (BA) passenger was left in limbo after being wrongly blocked from boarding her flight and being forced to fork out hundreds of pounds to rectify the airline's error.
Claire Hannington, 45, was due to fly from Gatwick Airport to the Spanish party island of Ibiza on the morning of June 5.
However, the Hertfordshire-born interior designer was blocked from boarding the plane after BA staff at Gatwick Airport refused to accept her passport after following incorrect validity rules.
Ms Hannington told The Independent: “I was removed from the queue without time to process what was happening, ask questions or have the matter properly verified.
The Hertfordshire-born interior designer was blocked from boarding the plane after BA staff at Gatwick Airport refused to accept her passport
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“I was overwhelmed and in tears. I trusted the BA staff as the experts in these matters.
"I was told, emphatically, that my only option was to go to the Passport Office, get a same-day passport and buy a brand new flight.
“I felt deeply guilty, wrongly believing the error might be mine and that I had jeopardised my friends’ holiday as well.”
After being denied entry onto the aircraft, the 45-year-old set off to the Passport Office - but on the way, she received confirmation that her document was in fact valid.
Ms Hannington returned to Gatwick Airport and forked out £392 for an evening flight with BA
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She then headed to London City Airport where she was told by BA workers that she was eligible to leave the country on her current passport.
BA staff at the east London airport told Ms Hannington that their colleagues at Gatwick informed them that she had not boarded the aircraft because she missed her flight.
However, the only flight from City that afternoon would cost her an additional £780 to board.
After turning this down, Ms Hannington returned to Gatwick and forked out £392 for an evening flight with BA.
The interior designer proceeded through the airport with her passport without issue and joined the rest of her friends in Ibiza.
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The interior designer proceeded through the airport with her passport without issue and joined the rest of her friends in Ibiza
|GETTY
Under post-Brexit rules on passport validity for the European Union, a British passport must be no more than 10 years old on the departure day and at least three months left on the day of return from an EU country.
However, staff across multiple airlines have wrongly applied the rules to insist that British passports expire after nine years and nine months.
After the fiasco, the 45-year-old contacted BA customer support to request reimbursement and compensation for wrongful denial of boarding as per the law.
Customer services told Ms Hannington in a letter: “The airport records show that you arrived after the check-in deadline for flight BA2680.
"Regrettably, this means I am unable to accept liability on behalf of British Airways for the denied boarding.”
Ms Hannington said: "After 12 weeks of chasing, I’m left deeply disheartened that BA still refuses to own their mistake.
“Most troubling of all, they’ve even falsely claimed I wasn’t at check-in on time, despite clear evidence and witnesses.
“BA’s own motto is ‘To Fly. To Serve.’ Yet here they’ve served nothing but denial. Mistakes happen, but trust is earned by owning them.”
A spokesman for BA said: "We have apologised to our customer for their experience, and we are in touch to make things right.”