A woman sending her son to meet family in Toulouse found him removed from the plane and left alone at Gatwick Airport after he had boarded the flight.
Her 15-year-old child, Caper Read, boarded EasyJet flight EZY8333 to Toulouse as an unaccompanied minor, according to a report in the Guardian. He was then removed from the flight when another passenger also had the same seat assignment.
EasyJet told the boy that the flight had been overbooked. Not knowing what to do, the child texted his mother, who returned to the airport, finally getting him on the last flight of the day to the destination.
"It's crazy," Read's mother, Stephanie Portal, told The Guardian. "They left him alone in departures. Luckily, I had still not got on board my train to London and could come back and find him."
Overbooking has triggered outcry worldwide as an increasing number of passengers have complained about being pulled off when already seated on an aircraft-the most well-known being an incident on United Airlines when a passenger was dragged off the plane.
EasyJet has opened an investigation into the incident, and a spokesperson for the airline told the Guardian: "EasyJet is sorry that Casper Read's flight from London Gatwick to Toulouse was overbooked. We are investigating why he was able to board the aircraft as he should have been informed at the gate."
The spokesperson also noted that EasyJet has a policy for how to handle unaccompanied minors: "EasyJet has a procedure to protect unaccompanied minors but unfortunately this was not followed on this occasion and so this will also be investigated."
However, the exact policy for unaccompanied minors is, to say the least, hard to determine. On its website, EasyJet defines a minor as a person under age 14.
In the "Flying With Children" section of its website, EasyJet notes that "Children under 14 must fly with an adult. Fourteen and 15-year-olds can travel without an adult, but not if they're with other children aged 13 or younger."
However, in this section, the airline doesn't note what will happen when children under age 16 travel alone. It appears that children, ages 14 and 15, will be treated as regular passengers.
The terms and conditions section is also unclear:
"11.2.1 We do not accept Minors to travel without a person aged 16 years or older who will take responsibility for that Minor. In all circumstances, the Booking must be made by someone who is 18 years or older in accordance with Article 3 (General)."
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In a search of the website, TravelPulse couldn't find any further notices regarding the treatment or policy of children traveling alone.
If parents are booking a child through the EasyJet website, instructions insist parents agree that an adult will be flying with the child, even if they are age 14 or 15, but it also states that children of this age can fly alone.
While a policy may exist, it would be hard for parents to understand, at the time of booking, what to expect from the airline if something of this nature were to happen. If EasyJet has a policy in regards to minors between the ages of 14 and 15 years old, it would be best to display it prominently so that parents can brief children on what to expect at the airport and, as in this case, if problems do occur.
At the very least, the family will likely receive some form of compensation. The EU dictates that payments range between €250 and €600, depending on the length of the flight, and the airline has a detailed policy on who will and (likely) will not be subjected to removal from a flight.
It also clearly specifies when and how compensation will be delivered.
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