I used to be booted off my £7,000 vacation when employees tousled passport guidelines
A humiliated mother claims airport staff booted her off a family holiday worth £7,000 – as they were applying the passport rules for the wrong country.
Anna Laffin was gearing up to fly from Manchester Airport to Morocco with her family on July 25 when she was barred from boarding the plane.
Airport staff insisted that her passport, issued in May 2014, was too old.
The 46-year-old nurse pleaded with them, explaining there was still six months left on her passport and that she only needed three months left to visit Morocco.
But tearful Anna was forced to watch her daughter Ariane Laffin, 11, her partner Mark Elliott, 48, and his daughter Errin Elliott, 18, board the flight without her.
Anna Laffin (pictured) was barred from boarding her flight to Morocco as airport staff insisted her passport was too old
Ms Laffin had spent £7,000 on a holiday to Morocco with her daughter Ariane Laffin, 11, her partner Mark Elliott, 48, and his daughter Errin Elliott, 18, board the flight without her
Ms Laffin was escorted away to collect the luggage removed from the plane before taking a lonely taxi home.
But the following day Ms Laffin says she spoke to a TUI customer service agent who apologised and said she’d been wrongly denied boarding.
Ms Laffin said staff wrongly applied a rule for visitors to the European Union, rather than Africa, that required her document to be less than ten years old.
TUI confirmed the passport was valid for her 11-night Morocco getaway but said their ‘airport partner’ Swissport was responsible for the blunder.
Swissport has been approached for comment.
Ms Laffin has been left enraged by the member of staff’s insistence on her passport being unsuitable for travel and how little time she had to research the issue before her family had to board the flight without her.
Remembering the ‘humiliating’ experience, the nurse, from Eccles, Greater Manchester, said: ‘I didn’t bother renewing my passport because I thought I would get another holiday out of it.
‘They checked it at the bag drop area and we spent three and a half hours in the departure lounge until one member of staff challenged it at the gate.
‘She took me to one side, made a call then said “your passport is invalid because it was issued ten years ago”.’
Ms Laffin’s passport was ten years and nine-months old at the time of intended travel. It was due to expire in February 2025.
‘I had six months left and I only needed three months,’ said Ms Laffin. ‘I was trying to explain to her that I’m not going to an EU country, I’m going to Morocco but she said it doesn’t matter and if she let me through I’d get deported and they’d get a fine.
‘This was in front of everyone boarding and it was humiliating.
‘I was worried and the kids were at the gate ready to go so they pressured us and didn’t give us time to think so I just told them to go and that I’d sort it out.
‘I was tearful and angry but I wanted to keep calm so it didn’t give them a reason not to put me on the flight. I had to sit there and watch the plane reversing on the runway.’
Ms Laffin’s passport was issued in May 2014 and due to expire in February next year
Ms Laffin and her family pictured relaxing in the departure lounge. They spent three-and-a-half hours here before being approached by a member of staff at the gate
Ms Laffin was due to fly from Manchester Airport (pictured) to Morocco on July 25, 2024
Anna says she checked the Government’s website to find out if she needed to renew her passport shortly after booking the £7,000 trip in spring.
The Government website advises visitors to Morocco only need their passport to be valid for another three months and it doesn’t reference a ten-year limit.
TUI said they were in touch with the family to resolve the issue and ensure Ms Laffin is ‘adequately compensated’.
She paid £200 for an emergency passport shortly after leaving the airport and was given an appointment in Liverpool on July 29.
The day after her refusal she visited a TUI estate agents shop and called their customer services to avoid having to wait for new documentation.
Ms Laffin said: ‘TUI admitted fault on Friday and told me they were extremely sorry.
‘They asked if I wanted to book another holiday but I told them it’s too late because my family was there so they offered to look at getting me on the next flight.
‘I was still angry but I felt relieved at that point because I knew I was going to get to Morocco.’
TUI paid for a taxi and hotel so Ms Laffin could jet off to join her family in North Africa from Birmingham Airport two days late on July 27.
‘I was exhausted when I got there because of the travel and the stress,’ Ms Laffin said. ‘It was one of the most stressful times.
‘It took a while for me to settle in because I was so angry.’
Ms Laffin confirmed she lodged a complaint with TUI but she is still waiting for them to pay for her solo flight from Birmingham as they said they would.
TUI said they will be refunding her for the cost of her new flight as well as giving her a gesture of goodwill.
Ms Laffin (left) paid £200 for an emergency passport shortly after leaving the airport and was given an appointment in Liverpool on July 29
TUI paid for a taxi and hotel so Ms Laffin (pictured) could jet off to join her family in North Africa from Birmingham Airport two days late on July 27
The nurse said it took her a ‘while to settle in’ on holiday because she was ‘so angry’
The mother-of-one shared a TikTok explaining her experience and it has been viewed more than 330,000 times.
One commented: ‘How awful for you!’
A second said: ‘I hope you got compensation.’
A third added: ‘I’m sorry that’s happened but glad you got out there and had at least most of your holiday.’
A TUI spokesperson said: ‘We were very sorry to hear about Ms Laffin’s situation.
‘Unfortunately, she was incorrectly denied her boarding at the gate by our airport partner and not TUI.
‘We are in touch with her to resolve the situation and ensure that she is refunded and adequately compensated.
‘This is not how we want our customers’ holidays to start, so we would like to once again apologise to Ms Laffin for the mistake. We hope she was able to enjoy the rest of her holiday.’
