Ryanair pilots — a High Court group claim

High Court Proceedings Concerning the Ryanair Engagement Model

What the courts have found about this structure

Courts and public authorities in several European countries have examined the arrangements under which pilots were supplied. Those decisions are not this claim. They are part of the factual picture, and they do not determine the causes of action before the English court.

Lutz v Ryanair DAC & Storm Global Ltd

England & Wales — Court of Appeal, [2025] EWCA Civ 849

The Court of Appeal considered a pilot supplied through an agency and a personal service company set up at the agency's direction. Permission to appeal to the Supreme Court was refused.

Kenyon v Ryanair DAC & Others

Spain — Juzgado de lo Social núm. 3 de Girona, Sentencia 311/2025

The Spanish court examined an arrangement requiring an Irish company, personal performance of the work, and the degree of control exercised over how and when the pilot flew.

Berlin-Brandenburg State Social Court

Germany — L 16 BA 48/23, 21 January 2026

A social-security test case concerning pilots supplied through a British intermediary and, from 2009, Irish one-person companies. The court looked at how the arrangement worked in practice rather than at the contractual labels.

Those decisions were given in England, Spain and Germany. Proceedings and investigations have also been brought or conducted in France, Belgium, Italy, Sweden and the Netherlands, concerning questions of social security, taxation and the place where the work was actually carried out.

Financial Consequences

The Claimants contend that the engagement arrangements gave rise to a range of significant financial consequences.

These are alleged to extend beyond immediate remuneration and include fiscal, taxation and social security issues together with other consequential financial losses.

The assessment of those losses forms an important part of the ongoing litigation.

International Dimension

The proceedings involve pilots from several European jurisdictions.

The issues under investigation include differences in national taxation and social security systems together with the manner in which the engagement arrangements operated across different countries.

Accordingly, the litigation has a substantial international dimension.

Joining the Litigation

If you were engaged through the same or a similar engagement structure and believe you may have suffered financial loss arising from those arrangements, you are welcome to contact The Claims Compensation Group for a confidential discussion regarding your circumstances.

Whether an individual has a viable claim will depend upon their own factual position and the evidence available.

Find out if you are inside the group →