Iberia starts charging for seat selection …. even at check-in

Sometimes an airline does something which makes you want to bang your head against the wall at its sheer stupidity.  The latest attempt by Iberia (which is BA’s little sister, remember) is just one of those events.

British Airways, of course, has seat selection fees.  The most shocking of which, frankly, is the £60 per person, each way, fee to select a seat in Club World!  Unless you are a Bronze, Silver or Gold BA cardholder, paying £1500+ for a business class seat does not actually give you the right to choose to sit next to your partner ….

Iberia has a found way to take it even further.  Here are the fees:

Domestic – £3 before check-in, £5 at online check-in, £7 at the airport

Short and mid-haul – £9 before check-in, £13 at online check-in, £18 at the airport

Long-haul – £25 before check-in, £30 at online check-in, £35 at the airport

The best bit, though, is this.  Partly for advertising standards reasons (if the fee cannot be avoided, it would have to be included in flight prices shown in advertising), Iberia gives you the option of NOT paying at the airport!

This is how it appears to work.  You arrive at the check-in desk with no seat reservation for your Iberia flight to New York.  The check-in agent asks you for £70 in order to enter into a discussion with her on selecting seats (eg ‘middle block or aisle?’, ‘front or back of the plane?’).  If you do not hand over £70, the agent or her computer will randomly select two seats for you from the seats remaining, which you will be forced to accept.

Perhaps I am getting old, but this appears to be completely bonkers.

Even the fee itself is pretty shocking.  The fees I quote are per person, each way – a couple would have to pay an extra £100 on an economy trip to New York.  The good news is that the fee does not apply to Avios redemption seats.  oneworld Sapphire and Emerald cardholders are also exempt.

Of course, Iberia isn’t charging business class passengers for seat selection.  Because that really would be crazy, wouldn’t it, BA ….?

---

How to earn Avios from UK credit cards (April 2024)

As a reminder, there are various ways of earning Avios points from UK credit cards.  Many cards also have generous sign-up bonuses!

In February 2022, Barclaycard launched two exciting new Barclaycard Avios Mastercard cards with a bonus of up to 25,000 Avios. You can apply here.

You qualify for the bonus on these cards even if you have a British Airways American Express card:

There are two official British Airways American Express cards with attractive sign-up bonuses:

You can also get generous sign-up bonuses by applying for American Express cards which earn Membership Rewards points. These points convert at 1:1 into Avios.

Run your own business?

We recommend Capital on Tap for limited companies. You earn 1 Avios per £1 which is impressive for a Visa card, along with a sign-up bonus worth 10,500 Avios.

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 12th May 2024, the Capital on Tap Business Rewards Visa card is offering a bonus of 30,000 points, convertible into 30,000 Avios. You must have a Limited Company to apply. Click here to learn more and click here to apply.

You should also consider the British Airways Accelerating Business credit card. This is open to sole traders as well as limited companies and has a 30,000 Avios sign-up bonus.

There are also generous bonuses on the two American Express Business cards, with the points converting at 1:1 into Avios. These cards are open to sole traders as well as limited companies.

Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which earn Avios. This includes both personal and small business cards.