Scott McCormick and his girlfriend Helena Boshwick, 33, were due to fly from Birmingham Airport on May 1 to Palma de Mallorca, Spain, for a week-long holiday and gym-mentorship event.

The 33-year-old said they had not pay to reserve seats – which typically costs between £4.50 and £33 per seat – because it was a short two-hour flight and they didn’t mind if they didn’t sit together.

Everything went as normal and the couple were first in the boarding queue, when a Ryanair staff member asked them to step aside while the rest of the passengers boarded.

After all passengers were gone, the staff member reportedly told the couple the flight was full and that there was only one available seat left.

Scott said the two had a ‘meltdown’ as they had wanted to travel together, but says the staff member said it was because they ‘hadn’t reserved a seat’.

The gym-owner claims they protested and were finally told that they could both get on the next flight and receive a refund for both tickets.

But when the couple went to the check-in desk again, they were reportedly told they still had to pay for one of the tickets, while Scott claims he never received a refund.

After sharing his ordeal on social media, many suggested Scott and Helena were singled out because they had not reserved seats – suggesting a technique many use to keep fares low could end up costing people more.

However Ryanair explained the issue occurred because they switched planes from one with fewer seats and as a results ‘one passenger was unable to travel’.

Scott, from Birmingham, West Midlands, said: “We checked in the night before and we didn’t reserve a seat but you normally just get a random one.

“Me and my partner thought it’s not that much of a problem if we’re not sitting together for a two-hour flight, we’re adults here.

“We turned up, everything went as normal, went through security as normal, went to the gate after waiting a couple of hours and we were the first ones at the gate ready for boarding.

“The lady scanned our boarding passes and told us to step to the side for a second. That moment was a red flag, I thought, ‘there’s something happening here’.

“We stepped to the side and watched all the people board the flight. I asked her to tell us what is going to happen and she said no.

“When everyone boarded, she said, ‘the plane is full, there’s only one seat remaining and we will have to reimburse you for the other seat or you’ll have to get on the next flight.’

“We were having a meltdown at this point. There was no compassion or care whatsoever. After going back and forth we said we’re not going to take separate flights and be in separate countries for hours.

“We said we wanted to get on the next flight together. They said ‘you can do that, we will fully reimburse both tickets and put you on the next flight for free.’

“I asked if we can have that in writing or an email for them to confirm it in some way. They said it’s on the system, and when we go to ticket sales, they will reimburse us and we can get on the next flight.

“We went down to ticket sales and they said we still have to pay for one ticket, only one is reimbursed. One of the seats was put down as a cancelled booking and the other was a missed flight so we’d still have to pay for one seat and be reimbursed for the other.

“That’s the biggest part of the [issue], we were just lied to at the gate but then we still sold us a seat and we still have seen no sign of reimbursement.”

The couple reportedly had to fork out another £100 for the new ticket and waited around four hours to board the next flight to Palma.

The ‘angry’ holidaymaker claims the experience felt like discrimination as he felt the couple got singled out for being young and without kids.

Scott said he will now avoid flying with Ryanair due to the staff’s lack of compassion and empathy.

While a Ryanair staff member reportedly told the couple that a refund would be processed for one of the tickets, Scott claims he has still not received it or heard from the company.

Scott said: “Ryanair should have asked all passengers if anyone would like to volunteer their seats.

“It felt like discrimination, how do they pick out these people, is it because we’re young and we have no kids so there’s just two of us, is it to do with something we don’t see or understand.

“There was so much of it that was really frustrating, and it’s the lack of care, no empathy. You can be bawling your eyes out and they just don’t care, they’re dead pan.

“We had to go through check-in again and we had another four and a half hours until the next flight. We paid around £100.

“We just had to get over what happened, it was a terrible way to start a holiday. They said at ticket sales they would be doing this themselves and get everything over and start the process so I haven’t formally complained. I don’t think they did, I definitely haven’t got the money back.

“We just got caught in a big company’s terms and conditions. The biggest stress was at the gate when they said we aren’t going on this flight.

“There’s a point when we were so angry we just had to take ourselves for a five-minute walk. Otherwise, you won’t be able to defend yourself coherently.

“I would avoid it [Ryanair] if I could now. Why am I being singled out?”

When Scott shared his ordeal on social media, many were shocked to hear what happened to him – though some suggested reserving a seat can help avoid being ‘singled out’ for not getting aboard.

One said: “Prepay for a seat, then problem solved. ALL airlines do this.”

When someone suggested queuing early to ensure you get a seat, another responded: “Or just book your seat [laughing emoji].”

A third wrote: “This is crazy! Surely if you pay and don’t reserve a seat, you still paid with the intention of getting on a flight how can they not allow you on?”

A fourth echoed the opinion of many commenters and said: “Why do people still fly with Ryanair? It blows my mind! It’s the most awful airline.”

Ryanair said that Scott is not entitled to a refund for the flight from Birmingham to Palma de Mallorca as he was reaccommodated onto the next available flight.

A Ryanar spokesperson said: “This flight from Birmingham to Palma de Mallorca (1 May) was not ‘overbooked’ – it was scheduled to operate on a 737-8200 (197 seats) but for operational reasons had to be swapped to a 737-800 aircraft (189 seats).

“As a result, one passenger was unable to travel on this flight, and was reaccommodated onto the next available flight to Palma de Mallorca.

“Mr McCormick’s travel companion was not refused boarding but chose not to board and travel on this flight from Birmingham to Palma de Mallorca and was required to pay a Missed Departure fee ( £100) to be booked onto the next available flight.

“Mr McCormick was notified by email on the day of travel (1 May) that he was entitled to claim back reasonable receipted expenses, however Mr. McCormick has yet to submit any expense receipts to Ryanair.”