Martin Lewis rule can save Easyjet and Jet2 passengers £250 - but not Ryanair

Martin Lewis has explained how families can sit together for FREE on BA, Easyjet, Jet2, and TUI flights this summer and save £250. BBC and ITV Lewis' Money Saving Expert team has revealed how you can sit together as a family and not pay extra.

MSE explained: "Sit together for FREE on BA, Easyjet, Virgin and more. A family of four could pay £250+ for peace of mind to book seats to sit together on return flights. Yet follow our Airline-by-airline seating guide and you can oft do it free (though even we struggle to find a way to beat Ryanair's charges)."

It added: "With most airlines, if you DON'T pay and just check in online as early as you can, you WILL get to sit with the rest of your group – as long as seats are still available." It went on: "All of the major airlines bar Ryanair told us their seat allocation systems will always try to seat groups on the same booking together.

READ MORE Foreign Office 'alters' Spain, Turkey, Greece travel advice amid 'red alert'

"So check in as soon as you're able to and you should get to sit together, as long as there are seats available next to each other that haven't been snapped up by folk who paid to reserve. Of course there are no guarantees – for that, you'll have to pay."

On its website, Easyjet warns: "If you haven't yet bought seats for your family the best way to ensure everyone is seated together is to check in as early as possible. Check in opens 30 days before departure and we recommend you check in as early and possible and no later than 7 days before your flight. Whilst our seating system will always try to seat families together, seats are allocated on a first come first served basis so the earlier you check in the more likely you are to be seated together.

"If you leave it to the last minute it's possible that there may not be enough seats left for us to seat your family next to each other." Ryanair says: "For safety reasons, children under the age of 12 must sit beside an accompanying adult, and infants (aged 8 days to 23 months inclusive) must sit on an accompanying adult’s lap. It is mandatory for an adult travelling with children under 12 (excl. infants) to reserve a seat.

"A maximum of four children for every one adult on the same booking will receive a reserved seat free of charge. This ensures parents of young children sit together during the flight. This will also allow you to check-in for your flight 60 days before departure. It is not mandatory for any other adults or teenagers in the booking to reserve a seat, however they may choose to do so if they wish to seat with the rest of the family."