The company's website is a disgrace. It's fiendishly complicated, with all of the add-ons it pushes at the user, and full of "gotchas" for the less capable customers.
I was checking in for a flight this morning, for an out-and-back trip tomorrow, and, as well as going through all of the hoops to complete the process, I have to do the same again this evening for the return sector, as there would be a fee to check in for that flight more than 24 hours ahead.
It's interesting that the site now makes a virtue of telling you that unless you pay, you most likely won't be sitting with your travelling companion/s. I remember that when the random seating model was first applied, the company strenuously denied that there was any intent to split up families or others on the one booking.