The Ministry of Consumer Affairs has opened a disciplinary procedure against a sixth low-cost airline.

BarcelonaThe Spanish government continues its fight against the charge for hand luggage. The Ministry of Consumer Affairs, headed by Pablo Bustinduy, has opened a new disciplinary case against an airline. low cost for possible abusive practices. The procedure follows the fines of €179 million imposed on five airlines at the end of last year, three of which have had their court-appointed precautionary measures accepted in the last week.

"I want to be very clear: the Ministry of Consumer Affairs will always fulfill its obligation to defend consumers, no matter how powerful the companies in front of them are. No company is above the law," Bustinduy maintained this Thursday. The minister emphasized that charging for carry-on luggage is "illegal," as he said is determined by both Spanish legislation and European jurisprudence. In this sense, at the end of 2023, the European Parliament voted in favor of requesting thatTravelers can bring one carry-on bag onto airplanes free of charge, but more recently the member states of the European Union agreed to allow airlinescharge for hand luggage.

Since the sanctioning file is in the investigation phase, the ministry cannot release the name of the airline until the final resolution is signed, nor the number of fines it could receive. However, as was the case with the other five sanctioned airlines (Ryanair, Vueling, EasyJet, Norwegian, and Volotea), the reasons for the procedure are charging extra for hand luggage or reserving adjacent seats to accompany dependents, as well as opacity in setting prices. Ryanair received the largest fine, at €107 million, followed by Vueling, with €39 million.

This is a procedure that is expected to last for months. In the case of the latest major fine in the low cost, made public at the end of 2024, the investigation into the case dragged on for more than a year. Once the administrative procedure is completed, if a penalty is imposed, the airlines can appeal it, as Ryanair, Norwegian, and Vueling have done.

Preliminary suspension

The new Consumer Protection file comes after the High Court of Justice of Madrid (TSJM) provisionally suspended the sanctions imposed by the Ministry last Thursday. on Ryanair and Norwegian, who will be able to maintain their current baggage policy until a final ruling is issued. A few days later, the judges ruled in the same way. for Vueling, which had also challenged the fine in court.

"There will be no pressure or intimidation that can distract us from this task, and we will fight this battle to the end," Bustinduy added. The court accepted the precautionary measures requested by the affected airlines because it is "evident" that the sum demanded by the ministry is "very high, and advance payment would cause a mismatch and difficulties for the treasury." When imposing the sanctions, Consum explained that the calculation was made using the criterion of illicit profit obtained, that is, according to the profits obtained by the airlines from the infringing practices.