SEVERAL airlines in Europe are set to bump up the price of their hidden costs with UK holidaymakers impacted by the measure.

British holidaymakers will be affected as UK routes won’t be an exception in the hike.

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The Lufthansa Group covers Lufthansa, Eurowings Discover, Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines, Swiss and Air Dolomiti.

And from the start of this month, Austrian Airlines, Lufthansa and Swiss raised the cost of seat reservation prices.

Seat reservation prices aren’t often included in the initial price, making them a hidden charge to customers.

Most economy class passengers travelling on short-haul flights won’t be affected by the measure, with seat reservations for “regular seats” remaining free of charge.

However, anyone who wants to book certain seats like an extra legroom seat will now need to pay.

Meanwhile, holidaymakers flying on an Economy Light Fare on short and medium-haul flights will need to pay to have their assigned seat changed.

This means passengers will be issued an assigned seat for free but will have to pay for any changes.

A Lufthansa spokesperson has said assigned seats can be changed at an airport desk without a charge.

Those passengers travelling on medium and long-haul flights will also pay a fee if they want to pick their seats.

Just like on short-haul routes, seats will be assigned for free but holidaymakers will pay to change their seat reservation.

This amount will not be fixed. Instead, it will be based on factors like a passenger’s route and the type of seat they’d like to book, such as a regular seat compared to an extra legroom seat.

The cost of seat reservations will start at €14 (£11.70) but cost as much as €115 (£97) for economy passengers travelling on long-haul services.

Families travelling with children and groups of holidaymakers on a joint booking will be seated together where possible.

Earlier this year German carrier Lufthansa also increased the price of its flights by up to £60 in a bid to cover new EU regulations.

Lufthansa introduced an environmental charge of up to £60 to its fares.

Holidaymakers now have to splurge extra when flying from EU countries as well as Britain, Norway and Switzerland.

The increase will be effective as early as Wednesday but will cover flights starting from January 1, 2025, onwards.

EU regulations force airlines to use more sustainable jet fuel in a bid to reduce emissions, and subsequently, drive up costs.

The German airline said: “The surcharge is intended to cover part of the steadily rising additional costs due to regulatory environmental requirements.”

It comes as flight experts have warned travellers that plane tickets will likely skyrocket this summer.

A group of aviation industry leaders have revealed that worldwide inflation and jet fuel costs are significant factors in the price hike.

Earlier this year, Lufthansa has launched a new airline with routes across Europe, including Hanover, Düsseldorf, Bordeaux and Birmingham.

Holidaymakers in Birmingham will be able to fly directly to Munich when the new route takes to the skies tomorrow.

It comes after the German carrier scrapped all of its flights to a popular UK airport in February.

Lufthansa only started running flights between Liverpool’s John Lennon Airport and Frankfurt in May 2022.

Flight compensation rules

A look at your rights if a flight is delayed or cancelled, when your entitled to compensation and if your travel insurance can cover the costs.

What are my rights if my flight is cancelled or delayed?

Under UK law, airlines have to provide compensation if your flight arrives at its destination more than three hours late.

If you’re flying to or from the UK, your airline must let you choose a refund or an alternative flight.

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You will be able to get your money back for the part of your ticket that you haven’t used yet.

So if you booked a return flight and the outbound leg is cancelled, you can get the full cost of the return ticket refunded.

But if travelling is essential, then your airline has to find you an alternative flight. This could even be with another airline.

When am I not entitled to compensation?

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The airline doesn’t have to give you a refund if the flight was cancelled due to reasons beyond their control, such as extreme weather.

Disruptions caused by things like extreme weather, airport or air traffic control employee strikes or other ‘extraordinary circumstances’ are not eligible for compensation.

Some airlines may stretch the definition of “extraordinary circumstances” but you can challenge them through the aviation regulator the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).

Will my insurance cover me if my flight is cancelled?

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If you can’t claim compensation directly through the airline, your travel insurance may refund you.

Policies vary so you should check the small print, but a delay of eight to 12 hours will normally mean you qualify for some money from your insurer.

Remember to get written confirmation of your delay from the airport as your insurer will need proof.

If your flight is cancelled entirely, you’re unlikely to be covered by your insurance.

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However, the route was scrapped, despite an increase in the number of flights between the two airports in the summer of 2023.

Meanwhile, Lufthansa will also be introducing “business class style” economy seats without the hefty price tag.

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Nick Knowles has pulled out of this week’s Strictly Come Dancing show after sustaining an injury.

The DIY SOS presenter and his partner Luba Mushtuk will not perform on Saturday night’s show, which is movie week.

The pair were due to perform the charleston to Rain On The Roof from the film Paddington 2.

A post on Strictly’s Instagram page said that Knowles, 62, had sustained an injury during rehearsals and will not dance this weekend.

“As per the rules of the competition, Nick and Luba will receive a bye through to next week when he is hopefully able to dance again.

“Everyone at Strictly Come Dancing wishes Nick a speedy recovery.”

No further details about the injury have been disclosed.

Two days after this series’ first live show, Knowles revealed he had injured his arm and shoulder while changing a tyre, but was given medical clearance to perform last weekend.

He told Strictly spin-off show, It Takes Two, that he had suffered the “painful” injury on the way to a family party on 22 September to celebrate his birthday and now had to wear a sling.

In a video posted to X, Knowles admitted it had been a “tough week”, but he was “very excited” to dance and his shoulder was “getting stronger every day”.

On last weekend’s programme, head judge Shirley Ballas said that what Knowles and Mushtuk had achieved with only 16 hours of rehearsal time was “absolutely amazing”, after they performed an American smooth to Blur’s Parklife.

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Shares in academic research publisher Springer Nature gained on their first day of trading in Frankfurt on Friday, with Europe’s first major initial public offering since the summer boosting prospects for equity markets.

Springer Nature shares gained 8.2 per cent to close at €24.24 in Frankfurt, having priced the stock in the IPO around the middle of its targeted range at €22.50. The rise valued Springer, which sold €600mn of shares as part of the deal, at €4.8bn.  

Holtzbrinck Publishing Group and BC Partners own 53 per cent and 47 per cent, respectively, of the Berlin-headquartered publisher of journals such as Nature and Scientific American. Privately owned Holtzbrinck did not sell any of its shares in the IPO.

Springer’s first day of trading contrasts with the fortunes of some big European IPOs earlier this year. Spanish fashion company Puig Brands and beauty retailer Douglas, Germany’s biggest listing this year, have fallen sharply since they commenced trading and remain down 18.3 per cent and 24 per cent, respectively.

The publisher had delayed a previous plan to float in 2020 because of the Covid-19 pandemic, but this year joined a list of companies seeking to tap a rebound in investor interest.

The IPO market has been buoyed by falling interest rates, with a backlog of companies whose flotations were delayed during a two-year slump in activity now coming to the market.

On Tuesday, CVC-backed Żabka, Poland’s largest chain of convenience stores, said it hoped to raise 6.45bn zlotys ($1.7bn) in what is expected to be the country’s largest listing since e-commerce retailer Allegro’s $2.8bn IPO in 2020.

Last week Spain’s Europastry, one of the world’s top makers of frozen baked goods, launched its own IPO seeking to raise more than €500mn.

Private equity groups have sought to take advantage of investor appetite to exit their holdings, with flotations earlier this year of Douglas, owned by private equity company CVC, and dermatology group Galderma, controlled by Swedish buyout group EQT, as well as the €2.6bn IPO of Puig in Madrid and the €2bn Amsterdam IPO of CVC.

BC Partners first bought into Springer in 2013. Group revenues were €1.9bn and adjusted operating profit was €511mn in 2023.

Money raised from European IPOs in the first half of 2024 more than quadrupled compared with the same period last year, according to PwC analysis, with 23 IPOs in Europe in the second quarter alone raising €6.6bn. 

Investment and wealth management firm IPS Capital has moved closer to £1bn of assets under management with the acquisition of Greenwood Financial Planning.

The acquisition of Saffron Walden-based Greenwood bolsters IPS’s financial planning services and enhances Greenwood’s investment management offering.

It also boosts IPS’s AUM to £950m.

Mike Passfield and Richard Mumford will remain partners of Greenwood, with Passfield becoming a partner of IPS.

IPS managing partner, Jonathan Blain, said: “We are delighted to have joined forces with Mike, Richard and the team.

“They have a solid, well managed business, providing great client outcomes.

“This is another step towards the next milestone of £1bn AUM, delivering a professional well-rounded service offering to our clients.

“We are proud that the firm remains 100% in the hands of the working partners with the culture that this engenders, allowing us to make selective transactions such as this and adopting the best from both sides.”

Passfield said: “We’ve got to know Jonathan and the team at IPS over a couple of years and have been impressed with their business and culture, putting client needs at the absolute centre of their business, in a similar way to us.

“Richard and I consider this an ideal fit and are really looking forward to working closely with them and continuing the growth of Greenwood.”

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‘Massive internal injuries’

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Troubled UK utility Thames Water has not yet provided crucial financial details, according to several potential investors in a multimillion pound equity raise, limiting their ability to submit offers by a key deadline. 

Thames Water, which provides water and sewage services to around 16mn households in England, risks having to declare a default to keep it from running out of cash around Christmas. Its existing investors, which include the Abu Dhabi and Chinese sovereign wealth funds, UK pension fund USS and Canadian pension fund Omers, have refused to inject any more equity.

The company has previously said it needs at least £750mn by early next year and more than £3bn by 2030 to keep operating and to upgrade creaking infrastructure.

Rothschild is currently running an equity-raising process for the company. An initial sales pitch, which has been seen by the Financial Times, was sent to potential investors in July.

That document says they should submit proposals by “late October” after the “launch of the formal equity solicitation process . . . expected to commence post summer”.

According to the potential investors, more detailed information that would allow them to look at Thames Water’s books and complete crucial due diligence before submitting non-bindings offers has not yet been received.

Rothschild declined to comment but a person with knowledge of their position said that “progress was as planned”. Thames Water declined to comment.

The company, England’s largest privatised water utility, is struggling with a £19bn debt load and trying to fend off renationalisation.

An additional challenge is that while its banks have agreed to roll over £410mn of debt due for repayment on Monday, more debt needs to be extended by the end of the year.

The 16-page pitch sent by Rothschild to global investors in July flags the “UK’s mature transparent regulatory framework” and argues shareholders would benefit from “cash flow stability and inflation linked hedges”.

It also points to the benefits of serving the “fastest growing and wealthiest population in the UK”, and cites the “critical nature of its services and natural monopoly position”.

One potential investor who received the initial document said: “They need to open the books up and give complete transparency” adding that the document “appears to ignore reality; it fails to mention any chance of bankruptcy, or even just the financial distress”.

Another said the document “tells you nothing”. “No one can invest on that basis,” they added.

Thames Water’s 90 creditors are working on a separate restructuring plan to try to keep the company out of the government’s special administration regime. The creditor group has access to the company’s books and is in discussions with regulator Ofwat about making Thames Water more appealing to investors.

The group is in discussion with potential equity investors who want to negotiate directly, according to people close to the creditors.

Any equity injection or restructuring would also be shaped by Ofwat’s ruling on how much water companies will be allowed to increase bills and what they must spend on infrastructure in the next five years. This is expected in December.