An etiquette expert has advised what you should actually do if somebody wants to swap seats with you on a plane or a train and says there's only one acceptable reason for requesting a seat switch with a stranger.
This comes after influencer Audrey Peters was recently widely praised by her TikTok followers for refusing to swap seats on a plane so that a family could sit together, urging them to instead "book your flights earlier babes".
Audrey's experience is not uncommon, and there have been a number of stories of those who feel passengers should plan in advance if they want to sit together, not simply expect others to move for them once they get there.
In an interview with The Independent, national etiquette expert, and founder of The Protocol School of Texas, Diane Gottsman warned: "Wanting to sit next to a friend or preferring a window seat rather than an aisle, is not a good enough reason.
"If you and your spouse are separated, it simply means you booked late or did not plan in advance to book seats together."
Diane went on to reveal that there's really only one acceptable scenario where you could request a seat switch, and that's if you're a parent or guardian who found "no possible way" through pre-planning to ensure they ended up seated with their young child.
She did however go on to clarify that although this situation would make it perfectly "understandable" to ask for a seat swap, even then you can really only justify it if you've already made an effort to rectify the situation in other ways.
Diane also went on to remark that, even in cases where there's a young child to consider, "it's always best to ask a ticket agent or someone from the travel company if there is a possibility of changing or switching seats before you board the plane or train".
This is because asking a fellow passenger puts the other person "in an awkward position", and will naturally rely on their "goodwill" to say yes.
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