Digital Crosstalk

Easyjet to be sued by ‘too fat’ Italian passenger

Posted by Brian | Filed under air

Easyjet are being sued by an Italian passenger after it was alleged the budget airline branded her as ‘too fat’ to board a flight.

The passenger in question is one Anna Delluci. She claims, according to the Telegraph online, that Easyjet check in staff humiliated her with the slur after she was told to buy two tickets for her flight from Bari to Rome, due to her weight.

“I’m sorry, but you’re too fat, and if you want to fly with us, you have to buy two tickets,” the check-in staffer told the surprised passenger says Italian newspaper La Repubblica.

Delluci, who weighs 15.5 stone, claimed she was told to step onto scales in front of passengers in order to confirm her weight. Naturally, Delucci refused not only to step onto the scales, but also to board her flight and has launched the action against the airline.

However, Easyjet spokeman Thomas Meister said the company did not have special rules for overweight people and that Delucci’s treatment at the hands of Easyjet staff was an ‘unforgivable mistake.’ Easyjet also offered an apology.

Meister also claimed that while there was a rule regarding a minimum of 17 inches of space between seats, customers were expected to purchase two tickets if they knowingly could not fly comfortably but refuted any suggestion that Easyjet would ask a passenger their weight, or even weigh them in front of other passengers.

On Tuesday 25th August, Easyjet revealed that after an investigation into the incident it was discovered that the published report was in fact a hoax and never actually happened. It was believed a member of the public had reported the hoax story to the media.

United Airlines have also made headlines and come under fire regarding perceived ‘weight-ism’ on flights. Not content with breaking peoples’ guitars, UA had announced overweight passengers would have to pay for two adjacent seats if their bulk could not fit their allotted space – a scenario campaigners branded as ‘blatant discrimination’.

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