A British holidaymaker has claimed that he was forced to measure his bag four times by EasyJet staff before he was allowed onto his flight.
Richard Deakin, 37, said he was asked by airline staff to put his luggage in the sizer before boarding his flight from Luton to the Spanish city of Malaga.
Mr Deakin had only brought hand luggage with him on the flight for his four-day trip to see his friend living abroad.
The 37-year-old said his bag was stuffed with clothes and multiple tubs of gravy granules for his friend's mother.
Richard Deakin, 37, said he was asked by airline staff to put his luggage in the sizer before boarding his flight
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Mr Deakin posted footage of the incident on TikTok - and admitted the request from airline staff left him feeling irritated.
The holidaymaker said that prior to the video being filmed, he had already shown staff that his bag was indeed the permissible size to bring on with him free of charge.
The 37-year-old security consultant claimed he was then made to put his luggage in the sizer two more times in front of easyJet staff.
He said he was confident his bag would fit after measuring and weighing it himself before travelling, and slammed the measure as a "money-making tactic".
The EasyJet customer said that he knew he could have removed items from his luggage
| GETTYMr Deakin said: "At first it's a bit of a struggle pushing it down, but then it just slides in and goes all the way down to the bottom."
The easyJet flyer added that he knew he could have removed items from his luggage to allow the bag to slide into the sizer more smoothly, but did not do so initially "out of principle".
The 37-year-old added that he feared his flight may have taken off without him "because of how long it was taking to prove to the airline staff that his luggage was the correct size".
Eventually, Mr Deakin said he put his "ego" to one side and took out a book and charger in an attempt to slide his bag in more easily.
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After the incident, Mr Deakin called on other travellers to refuse baggage fees if their luggage is within the acceptable limit.
He said that many holidaymakers fall "right into the trap" of being extra because they are not "persistent".
After footage of his run-in with staff went viral online, some social media users praised the 37-year-old for sticking to his guns, but others fumed at him for the manner in which he spoke to staff.
Under easyJet's current guidance, all passengers are permitted to bring on one small bag free of charge, so long as it is no bigger than the maximum size limit of 45 x 36 x 20 cm.
Mr Deakin called on other travellers to refuse paying baggage fees if their luggage is within the acceptable limit
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A spokesman for easyJet said: "We have a well understood bag policy and customers are only charged if their bags are too large, in fairness to customers who have paid to bring larger bags.
"And we do not tolerate aggressive or threatening behaviour towards our ground crew.
"Once Mr Deakin was able to fit his bag in the gauge, he was not charged and was able to board."
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