‘I can’t get a refund’: Nashville woman says Southwest blocked her at the gate and made her pay $450 as she’s ‘wide at the bottom’

A Nashville woman says Southwest Airlines stopped her from boarding a flight and forced her to buy an extra seat for $450, even though she says she has always fit comfortably in a single seat. Ruby Cosby‘s experience at Nashville International Airport has brought attention to the airline’s “extra seat policy” and how it is being applied.

According to The Daily Mail, Cosby was checking in her bags for a trip to Los Angeles when a staff member told her she would need to buy a second seat. This came after Southwest put its “extra seat policy” into effect on January 27, which requires passengers to buy a second seat if the armrest cannot fully extend. 

Cosby posted a video on TikTok voicing her frustration. “So you’re just looking at me and telling me I can’t fit in the seat,” she said, adding, “You’re not gonna let me go get in the seat first before you assume I can’t fit in the seat.”

Southwest’s extra seat policy raises serious concerns about fairness and consistency

Cosby acknowledges she has wider hips but says she has flown with Southwest many times before without any problems, only ever needing a seatbelt extender. She said flight attendants were rude even after she spoke with a manager, leaving her with no choice but to pay $450 for the seat next to her. Since she had a round-trip ticket, she would also have to pay another $450 for her return flight, bringing the potential total to $900.

With little time left and few options, Cosby tried to get a refund for her original ticket but was told a refund was unlikely because she had booked an economy seat. “Sir, so you’re telling me I can’t get on the flight, I can’t get a refund,” she said, adding, “I’m like ‘What are my options?'” She had to call her family for help to cover the cost of the extra seat. Stressful airport situations like this are becoming more common, as seen when a Florida woman showed up without her wallet or ID and still had to find a way to board her flight.

When Cosby returned to rebook, a different, “thicker” employee initially had no issue with her buying just one seat. It was only after that employee spoke to a manager that the requirement for a second seat came up again. Cosby said she is worried about how the policy could be misused. “I understand having a policy put into place to make sure others are comfortable; my main worry is that there’s nothing put into place to stop discrimination or anything from happening,” she said.

She also feels the policy is too open to personal judgment. “It’s just based on perception, that’s my worry. I feel like this policy can be used unfairly because there are no guidelines,” Cosby stated. She eventually flew to Los Angeles by booking a $350 ticket with Delta Air Lines, where she only needed one seat. Poor airline treatment is not always limited to individual passengers either, as an entire plane of passengers was stranded by American Airlines without any way to leave the terminal.

Southwest planes typically have a minimum seat width of 15.5 inches, with legroom ranging from 31 to 33 inches. Southwest released a statement saying, “We began communicating changes to our policy, which is in line with industry standards, almost a year ago,” and added that they ask customers who may need an extra seat to let them know before their travel day.