A man who hadn't seen his girlfriend in three months claims he was unable to visit her because of a stain on his passport.
Jamie McMann, 26, from Stockport, had booked TUI flights to Cancun, Mexico, to finally get to see his girlfriend, who had been travelling around South America.
There had initially been some confusion at the bag check-in desks at Manchester Airport on April 29, where Jamie claims TUI staff queried the small stain before they assured him it was fine for travel.
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He claims he has used the same passport to travel multiple times over the years to the likes of Tunisia, Romania and Serbia without experiencing any problems.
But it was upon reaching the gates to board the plane, that Jamie claims staff raised the stain as being a problem and that it had not been documented on the system by the staff member who had checked it hours before.
"I explained I had been through this with the TUI manager at check-in, who had explicitly assured me this wouldn't happen as they had already followed procedure," he said.
"The staff claim this was not documented, so they would have to ring her to confirm. For 25 minutes they try to get hold of the relevant line manager to absolutely no avail.
"Naturally my anxieties are high at this stage. Multiple members of staff look at my passport, scan it and reassured me that it would be fine.
"Despite this, minutes before the flight is due to leave, they are told not to let me on the plane. At this point I am a wreck of emotions as you'd expect. Anger, shock and sadness. I could not believe the disorganisation and lack of empathy I experienced."
At this point, unable to get on the flight he had paid £750 for and frantically desperate to get to Mexico, Jamie claims he found the closest passport office that was open in Liverpool. He was planning to try and get a new passport and book onto the next available flight.
He said staff at the office were 'shocked' at his experience but admitted that they would be unable to issue him with a passport on the same day.
In response, TUI said that the 'water damage' to his passport was 'sufficient for ground operations team to be concerned' - as they also reminded passengers of the importance of keeping passports in good condition.
"I find the closest passport office was in fact still open on the day. I was planning to sort my passport and then switch my attention to re-booking the soonest flight to meet with my girlfriend," he added.
"The emotional turmoil caused by being reassured that I would be able to board at check-in, then by multiple members of staff at boarding, to then moments before the plane leaves being denied, is considerable.
"Aside from the emotional consequences, this has jeopardised my plans, leaving me in financial disarray for travel costs and two weeks of accommodation across Mexico. I cannot afford to book another flight and as noted, will lose out considerably."
As a last resort, his girlfriend took a break from her south American travels and flew back to Stockport to spend a fortnight with him on May 6, meaning he also had to change his allocated leave at work.
Following the complaint, Jamie said that he contacted TUI. The airline has since apologised for the 'distress caused' and, in a statement to the Manchester Evening News, said they have contacted Jamie to discuss a resolution.
A spokesperson for TUI said: "We would like to apologise to Mr McMann for any distress caused by denying him to board our aircraft due to the water damage on his passport.
"It is the responsibility of the airline to ensure that customers will be able to pass border controls when they arrive in destination and the damage was sufficient for our ground operations team to be concerned.
"Our team has since contacted Mr McMann directly to discuss a resolution. We would like to remind customers of their responsibility to keep passports in good condition."
