Croydon woman banned from plane because of ‘light’ stamp on passport

A woman from south London was banned from her TUI flight because staff feared a “slight mark” on her passport would see her turned away at Mexican border control.

Laila March, 25, from Croydon, was forced to pay £1,200 for a British Airways flight after she was blocked from boarding her original TUI flight at Gatwick Airport on June 7.

She was told she couldn’t get on the plane because her passport was damaged – even though she had just returned from Morocco the day before.

Ms March has since been told that TUI will reimburse the cost of the BA ticket.

“I think it’s crazy that TUI can say my passport is damaged and not allow me to board for fear I won’t be allowed into Mexico by passport control and then another airline has no problems on the same passport, Let me fly to Mexico and then I go through passport control,” Ms March said.

“It was a very small mark, almost like a little scratch on the right side of the page, but you have to look very closely to see it – I hadn’t even noticed it until they pointed it out.”

The UK Passport Office website states that a passport is considered damaged if “you cannot read any of your details, any of the pages are torn, cut or missing, there are holes, cuts or tears in the cover, the cover is peel off or there are stains on the pages, for example ink or water damage”.

Ms March lodged a complaint with TUI in the hope of getting a full or partial refund for her BA flight, which cost more than the holiday.

She was told TUI would investigate the matter, but on June 16 she received an email saying her case had been closed.

On June 21, she received another message saying that the company would refund the cost of the BA ticket within the next two weeks.

Ms March has now applied for a new passport amid fears she will be refused again by TUI for her trip to Jamaica in September.

“This whole experience with TUI has just left a sour taste in my mouth and I just want to avoid it happening again,” she said.

A spokesperson for TUI UK and I said: “We are sorry to hear that Ms March was unable to travel with TUI as planned due to the damage to her passport.

“Customers are advised by email and on our website at the time of booking and prior to travel that UK Government passport requirements must be complied with.

“We strongly advise customers to check that their passports are not damaged, as if there is any concern that a passenger may be refused entry to their destination, they will be refused travel at the discretion of our check-in team.”

Details on passport validity can be found here.