Debit Card Surcharges - OFT
 

So it looks like the debit card surcharges by such players as Ryanair will be stopped. However, from what I heard it could take two years unless they decide to play ball. How likely is that?

Re: Debit Card Surcharges - OFT
 

I don't see the problem. Anyone can get a pre-paid caxton card (avoid ryanair charges) or an electron card from halifax (avoid the others). Very easy. Very simple. And yes, there are solutions for spanish residents.

Anyone who can't be ar*ed to do that deserves to be hit with a charge.

I guess they'll stop taking payment by debit card and use paypal or something instead.

Re: Debit Card Surcharges - OFT
 

That is not really the point though.

Re: Debit Card Surcharges - OFT
 

Yes it is the point.

The "charge" is purely voluntary.

If you want to donate £s to Ryanair et al pay with a debit or credit card. If you don't want to, get yourself a pre-pay or electron card.

Pricing of goods and services is not based on the cost of providing them but what the market can bear. So it costs 20p to process a debit card and Ryanair charge £10. So what? That's how you make money;)

People are obviously prepared to pay that fee. Otherwise they would get a pre-paid currency card or an electron card.

Re: Debit Card Surcharges - OFT
 

Who wants to mess around with prepaid cards? Some people obviously have too much time on their hands if they can spend all day trabnsferring funds between accounts just to book a flight.

The bigger issue IMO is why my Spanish mastercard debit card is not recognised as a debit card so incurs additional charges as a credit card?????????

Re: Debit Card Surcharges - OFT
 

Precisely my bloody point!

For you it's worth paying, instead of making a couple of clicks and getting another card.

That's why capitalism functions so well. I hate to bung £40 to Ryannair and I love my cheap flights. You value your time more highly so bung £40 to ryannair and that gets me cheap flights.:thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup:

Re: Debit Card Surcharges - OFT
 

I have a La Caixa debit card but it is looked on as an electron card by Ryanair so I don´t pay. The whole point of the OFT issue is that it costs the company pence to use a debit card therefore they shouldn´t be charging extortionate amounts per passenger for the use of. If they need that money then it should be in the up front fare.

Re: Debit Card Surcharges - OFT
 

We have previously paid for a flight with an Halifax Elecron card and we were charged the fees but have managed to get one over on Ryan air this time, my daughter has paid for the flight but put my maiden surname not my married surname on it.

She called the call centre to have it changed and they wanted to charge £10 better than the £100 the website was quoting as well as having a stack of paperwork faxed to them and then wait 7 days.

I called their head office number (normal call rate) and was told by a very nice lady that all the documents can be taken to the airport and they can do it there and then, did that and it was duly changed their and then and at no charge.

Have even checked my booking and it is showing the right name.

Re: Debit Card Surcharges - OFT
 

We have just found a new twist that Michael is pulling to increase profits. Wanted to book 3 return flights from Liverpool to Cork. We live in Spain and have a Solbank pre-paid mastercard so knock off the admin fee which would have been £36 (3x£6x2). Card is denominated in EURO.

The ryanair website tells you the flight must be paid in the currency of the originating leg ie. GBP

Now follow this carefully until you have completed the booking there is no indication of the exchange rate they will apply to the purchase.

Today I have bought euro through our FX company and it was £1 : €1.11.

Michael is giving £1 : €1.20 so he is charging 10% to change my money.

Still the extra was about £6 so thats better than £36. On the Easyjet site you can change the currency at will and no surcharges for Electron Barclays Debit Card.

Re: Debit Card Surcharges - OFT
 

That's stupid!

It cost microsoft about £2 for the disks, packaging and transport for each copy of Office. They charge upwards of £60 for it.

In fact you can get OpenOffice for free and it does much the same and is completely compatible.

That's my point: some people don't mind paying stupid charges as it saves them time. Others don't mind a couple of clicks, getting different cards and avoiding the charges.

Just like some people will spend almost £100 on Microsoft Office when it costs them diddly squat to produce, and they could get Openoffice for free.

COST HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH PRICE CHARGED

Price is determined by supply and demand.

Re: Debit Card Surcharges - OFT
 

Fraid I can't bring myself to fly cattleclass but other airlines have similar issues, such as recognising my debit card as a credit card.

Re: Debit Card Surcharges - OFT
 

The discs cost little to produce but the program devolopment costs would make you cry

Re: Debit Card Surcharges - OFT
 

Just like the cost of drugs - nothing to produce but millions to develop and test.

Trouble is that once they have generated enough to cover the costs they don't reduce the price and the profits can be obscene - but that's business!

If they didn't have the opportunity to make wonder profits they wouldn't develop wonder drugs.

The same applies to Microsoft. Ryanair is a minnow compared to these guys!

Re: Debit Card Surcharges - OFT
 

Agree, it's a nonsense to suggest a copy of MS Office simply costs the price of the disc. Do the people at MS work for nothing? Rather a silly analogy.

Re: Debit Card Surcharges - OFT
 

When a client once asked why we were charging so much for a process on the computer that only took us a couple of hours.

Our answer "£5 to knock in the nail, £95 for knowing which nail to knock in"

Re: Debit Card Surcharges - OFT
 

Yee gods! intelligence.

Look at microsoft's gross margins (if understood) to see the obscene profits - and good luck to 'em. that's what it's all about.

If peops are too thick, too lazy or value their time differently, to get the right cards for free booking then so be it. I'm not saying uncle Mick's right and wee Willie's wrong. I'm just saying they operate different business models, and capitalism gives you the gift of choice. That should be celebrated, not legislated.

Grow up!

If people don't like Uncle Mick's service they won't buy it. They do. Truckloads more than buy BA's pile of pooh.

Think about it.

As for you cretins who think BA can compete. I looked at a ticket LHR to madrid the other day £700 BA. One way! That's a lot of G&Ts, credit card charges etc.

Re: Debit Card Surcharges - OFT
 

I think you should spend more time shopping for flights than you do shopping for new credit cards. BA are better value for money than Ryanair or any other pile of crap so called 'budget' airline!

Re: Debit Card Surcharges - OFT
 

Again I reiterate. I don´t mind paying for fair fares but for a family to have to pay x amount to pay by debit card is wrong. Strangely enough I am not the only one ask the OFT!

Re: Debit Card Surcharges - OFT
 

I am in total agreement, as it only costs less than 20p to carry out a transaction why charge £5 each way per traveller - for a family of 4 thats £40 when there is only the one card transaction. And it isn't just Ryanair who do this. And its the only method of payment they will allow us to use as they don't have offices where we can pay cash.

If I was to supply - say, 100 packets of sugar - to an airline and charge them £35 delivery charge per item and then stick a 50p stamp on a single jiffy bag they would be up in arms.

Everyone knows and understands the airlines have operational costs, but a 20p card charge could be built into every ticket sale without causing all this fuss - which means all airfares will go up by £10 each.

Re: Debit Card Surcharges - OFT
 

But you don't have to pay it. Get a different card!

A cup of coffee costs me about 20p at home. Starbucks charge me £3. What is your problem? You choose whether to buy or not.

As for BA & Ryannair whose better. Neither, they're different airlines with a different product and you choose if you want to pay mega bucks for surly service from a bunch of trolly dollies who go on strike every peak holiday season and have a relatively poor punctuality record or non striking, punctual Ryanair?

BA want £136 to fly return to malaga sept 14 for a week. The budget boys want about £70. Since I don't fancy lugging the kitchen sink to Spain and have the right card THAT'S THE PRICE I PAY.

Now, if you do want to carry the kitchen sink, and you don't feel like getting another card uncle Mick will add £40 for a bag and a tenner for the debit card. That's £120. I hope you still fly uncle mick because you're enabling me to get a cheap fare, but you might choose BA.

But that's the point. You choose. But there is nothing wrong with buying a product for 20p and selling it for £10. That's how people make money, dear.

Re: Debit Card Surcharges - OFT
 

Well dear, if the difference in cost between flying Ryanair and BA is 16 GBP then given me BA any day of the week. More comfort, no bloody announcements every few minutes and if I am still right food. Plus not having the stress of cardboard boxes being stuck over your hand luggage and best of all not adding to Uncle Mick´s pension.

Re: Debit Card Surcharges - OFT
 

Probably won't land on time, though:rofl:

Oh, BTW, last time I flew BA (LHR to AGP) for all their "nice stuff" i got code shared onto an iberia plane with bearded lady stewardesses and no booze (except San Mig) and no food. So much for "full service airlines!"

Admit it. They're all cr*p.

Re: Debit Card Surcharges - OFT
 

Unlike Uncle Mick, eh?
http://www.simplynetworking.es/news-..._comments.html

Re: Debit Card Surcharges - OFT
 

But Uncle Mick's punctuality record better than Wee Willie Walsh and BA. Oh yes, and BA lose more bags than any other airline in the world.

The more you pay the more they scr*w you up.:p

Re: Debit Card Surcharges - OFT
 

looking at flightstats most of BA's "flights" to this part of the world are code share

Re: Debit Card Surcharges - OFT
 

considering the bags are not handled by BA but by a baggage handling company except when actually on the plane, it must take a lot of effort to lose bags - or very disgruntled baggage staff.

So how does Mad Mick get away with it ??

Re: Debit Card Surcharges - OFT
 

With regard to punctuality I was told that they over-estimate the length of the flight so that when it comes in they can say it was early/on time. Smokin´mirrors!

Re: Debit Card Surcharges - OFT
 

Ooh, silly girl. They all do that, dear.

Who care handles the baggage! The twerps at BA lose more than any other airline.

Coincidence.

Nah. They're cr*p!:blink:

Re: Debit Card Surcharges - OFT
 

As somebody who takes a minimum of 4 domestic flights each and every single month I feel more than qualified to comment on this subject.

Firstly you haven't got a clue how much a Ryanair flight is going to cost you until you actually check out. Next, no charge if you don't own your own printer & cant print off a boarding pass. Baggage included in the price. Orderly boarding without having to queue for an hour at the gate to board the flight first. As much food and drink as you can consume during the flight (2 bottles of wine + a sandwich on Ryanair leaves little change out of £20) and let's not forget airmiles.

We haven't even got onto customer service yet, what happens if you board your plane but can't take off? With Ryanair nothing you just sit there waiting while BA take the trolley around. If you miss a connecting flight because of that delay, Ryanair will tell you to write a letter in & sleep on the airport floor, while the BA passengers dine in the Hilton Hotel.

Who in their right mind would actually CHOOSE to fly with these cowboys? they scrimp on everything so god knows what goes on under the bonnet of the aircraft!

Re: Debit Card Surcharges - OFT
 

I've just seen on the Solbank website that they have a 'Volar' prepay card that incurs no charges on Ryanair flights. However there is some small print

"1) Offer valid whilst Ryanair maintains the promotion and only applicable to tickets issued through www.ryanair.com."

So it looks like the Ryanair fans will be complaining about debit card surcharges with the rest of us before too long.

Re: Debit Card Surcharges - OFT
 

apologies if this is way off thread......

last week on flight from Malaga to Stansted, 30mins before landing the Polish senior attendant was bashing away with calculator, pen and paper trying to make the flight accounts balance and failed not once but 4 times.

so if you are worried about Irish debt just remember they are at the mercy of a flight attendant with calculator.