Italian investigation launched over easyJet baggage prices: what should Hungarian travelers now pay attention to when booking?

The recent move by the Italian competition authority is not just another general airline dispute, but a very specific consumer protection case: on May 26, 2026, the Italian AGCM officially launched an investigation into easyJet because of how the company presented the fees for checked baggage and sports equipment on the online booking process for round-trip flights. This topic is important for Hungarian travelers as well, because in the price competition between discount and hybrid airlines, it is increasingly common that not the base fare, but the added services, including baggage fees, determine the final cost of a trip.

The essence of the current case is that, according to the authority, easyJet's booking interface did not always make it clear enough how much the additional service actually costs on individual legs of the journey. The investigation does not yet imply guilt or an automatic fine, but it is a strong signal that in Europe, more and more attention is being paid to how airlines price and present optional items that can significantly increase the traveler's final cost.

What exactly happened in Italy?

According to the Italian competition authority, the Autorità Garante della Concorrenza e del Mercato, in easyJet's online booking process, the transport of checked baggage and sports equipment for certain round-trip bookings could appear such that the system offered these services together for both directions by default. According to the authority's objection, passengers then only saw an averaged or aggregated price, while many actually only wanted to purchase baggage for one leg of the trip.

The AGCM's position is that this can create a misleading situation, because the passenger does not necessarily perceive at first glance how much the service price is for the outbound and return flights separately. If they only want to buy a bag for one direction, they do not necessarily have to exit the system or interrupt the process in an intuitive way to override the default setting. The authority's concern, therefore, is not that baggage is paid, but whether the presentation and the selection logic are sufficiently transparent.

According to a report by ANSA, the Italian authority also indicated that the current proceeding was launched after a so-called moral suasion, or an official warning. This suggests that the authority had previously tried to achieve a voluntary correction of the criticized practice, but signs indicate that it did not consider this sufficient.

What does easyJet say?

In a statement sent to Euronews, easyJet stated that it is aware of the launched proceeding, is cooperating with the authority, and believes that it has acted in accordance with the relevant consumer protection rules throughout. The company also indicated that it will review the authority's decision and weigh its further steps in light of this.

This is an important detail, because the current news is not a final judgment, but an investigation phase. Hungarian travelers should therefore keep two things in mind simultaneously: first, the official investigation indicates that the problem seemed serious enough to launch an official proceeding; second, there is no closed determination of liability from the provider's side yet.

Why is this interesting for Hungarian travelers if the case started in Italy?

Because the issue goes far beyond the Italian market. Most Hungarian travelers today no longer fly exclusively from Budapest, but regularly book from Vienna, Bratislava, Prague, Milan, Berlin, or with departures from London, depending on where they find better prices and better schedules. easyJet is typically an airline that many Central European passengers use via regional hubs.

Furthermore, the discount booking logic is familiar to almost every European passenger: the base fare is favorable at first glance, but the total price is only revealed when we add checked baggage, seat selection, priority boarding, possible sports equipment, or flexible modification options. The more such add-ons appear during booking, the more important it is that the passenger understands exactly which service refers to what, for which leg it is valid, and how much it costs separately.

The case is therefore not just about easyJet. In fact, it is about the fact that the transparency of optional fees has become an increasingly sensitive issue in the European travel market. For Hungarian travelers, this is particularly important because price-sensitive bookings often depend on differences of a few dozen euros, and a poorly understood baggage fee can easily erase the advantage of a ticket that seems cheap.

Where can the total price slip?

When booking flight tickets, most people still compare the base price first. This is natural, but today it is rarely enough. If someone travels with only carry-on baggage for a summer city break, a favorable base price may indeed be a good deal. However, if checked baggage is needed for a one-week beach trip, then the extra services make the decisive difference. The same applies to sports trips, ski equipment, bicycles, golf bags, or diving equipment.

The current easyJet case shows that it is not enough for the extra fee to appear somewhere on the interface. How it appears also matters. If the system automatically adds something for both directions, if the price only appears as an average, or if selecting one leg of the journey is more complicated than necessary, this can distort consumer decisions on its own. A passenger is not reading a legal text, but is trying to navigate quickly through a multi-step booking process.

What should a Hungarian traveler pay attention to now when booking?

The first and most important rule is that for round-trip flights, we should not only look at the final total, but separately check the services for the outbound and return flights. If we choose checked baggage, it is worth checking if we actually need it for both directions. For city breaks or circular trips, it can easily happen that a smaller bag is enough for the outbound journey, but a checked suitcase is needed for the return, or vice versa.

The second piece of advice is to always treat sports equipment with special attention. These items often carry higher fees and can easily be bundled with other baggage options. If someone, for example, is taking a bicycle or ski equipment, they should not assume that the system automatically puts together the most favorable combination for them.

The third important step is to save screenshots or booking summaries before payment. This is not a very flashy piece of advice, but it can count for a lot in a disputed situation. If it later becomes questionable how a fee appeared during booking, the saved screens can help accurately reconstruct the process.

As a fourth point, it is worth comparing the total price offered for the same route with other airlines. The deciding factor is not which company offers the cheapest base fare, but which offer is the most favorable including baggage, seat, and every actually necessary extra. Many Hungarian travelers lose money here: they select the lowest tariff on the first page, then by the end of the booking, it turns out that the total price is no longer competitive.

Can something change in the practices of airlines?

In the short term, it is not certain that an immediate, visible change for everyone will occur. An official proceeding can take months, and it may happen that the provider refines the interface in the meantime, even before a final decision is reached. In the long term, however, such cases usually go beyond a single company. If an authority in a large market, such as Italy, finds a certain pricing or presentation practice problematic, other airlines and online booking systems also pay attention to this.

Therefore, the current case may result in an even greater emphasis on the separate listing of individual services, clearer marking of prices per leg, and a review of default settings. From the travelers' perspective, this would be a positive direction, because it is not about the eliminating optional fees, but about ensuring that the decision can be truly conscious.

What does this mean before the 2026 summer season?

Before the summer season, most passengers now still decide primarily based on ticket prices, baggage, and flexibility. Some bookings are furthermore made later, under greater price pressure, so travelers often click through the process more quickly. In such cases, it is even easier to overlook a detail that can cause several dozen euros in extra costs within a few minutes.

The Italian investigation into easyJet is therefore noteworthy in its timing. It serves as a reminder that while hunting for cheap summer tickets, the transparency of additional fees is at least as important as the tariff itself. On a well-chosen route, a good price can still be found, but the total cost can now only be realistically assessed by those who check item by item what they are purchasing.

Summary

Based on the Italian proceeding launched on May 26, 2026, part of easyJet's booking interface was targeted by the authority because, according to the competition authority, the presentation of checked baggage and sports equipment fees was not always sufficiently clear for round-trip flights. easyJet denies that it violated any rules and promises cooperation during the investigation. However, there is already a clear lesson for Hungarian travelers: the price of the base fare alone tells less and less about how much the trip actually costs.

Those traveling with a low-cost or hybrid airline this summer should separately check the baggage selected for individual legs, sports equipment fees, and automatically added extras. The current Italian investigation is not just about one company, but also about the broader European trend that the travel market works cleanly when the passenger truly understands what they are buying and for how much.