Ryanair lawfully denied boarding to passenger who missed check-in deadline by 2 minutes, court rules

An Irish-linked EU executive has failed in a legal challenge against Ryanair after being denied boarding at Brussels Airport for arriving two minutes after the check-in deadline.

Jonathan Murphy missed his Brussels–Dublin flight on 20 November 2024 after arriving late at the check-in desk, having not checked in online. Ryanair staff told him there was insufficient time to complete a manual check-in before the mandatory EU cut-off of 40 minutes prior to scheduled departure. He was forced to stay overnight in Brussels and pay an additional €100 to travel the next day, and sought a refund and compensation.

The Circuit Civil Court in Ireland upheld the airline’s position, confirming that EU regulations strictly require check-in to close 40 minutes before departure, with no discretion for airlines to make exceptions. Ryanair argued that allowing Mr Murphy to check in late would have breached safety and operational rules related to passenger manifests, baggage reconciliation and flight preparation.

The judge rejected the appeal, noting that even though the aircraft was later delayed for several hours due to snow, this was irrelevant to the statutory check-in deadline. The court affirmed that Ryanair had acted lawfully and that responsibility for missing the flight lay with the passenger.