Hidden Airline Credit Card Charges Exposed

Author: Emily Gorton

Author: Emily Gorton

You may want to control your instincts this winter and ignore the budget airline advertisements plastered on multiple billboards. Budget airlines for charging extra for services you may not know about. Customers could end up paying 30% more than the advertised sums as a result of extra fees such as credit card charges. The companies bmibaby, EasyJet, Ryanair and Jet2 were analysed in a study by Which?, in relation to four destinations: Paris, Rome, Malaga and Faro. All of these companies charge extra for credit or debit card use and also for checking in luggage. Flying to Paris with bmibaby showed a 25% increase in price when both of these services were used and for Ryanair it meant 50 extra across all of its routes. EasyJet had the smallest luggage and credit card charges out of all of the airlines, though this still means 26 - 38 extra. Ryanair's charges saw tickets at 8 - 29% higher than what was advertised, so make sure you aren't fooled by these advertisements and are aware of the credit card charges before booking. It has been argued that these are essential rather than additional services and therefore, airlines should not charge for them. A holiday without luggage seems ridiculous, particularly at this time of year where skiing necessities fill the holds of many planes. Also, the main way to book budget flights is over the internet, which means that it is virtually impossible to pay through another method than credit card. 30% of Ryanair customers use Visa Electron credit cards or debit cards to avoid extra card charges. However, Ryanair seem to have realised and are therefore intending to charge for the use of the Visa Electron as of the 1st of January. So, if customers use this credit card in the New Year, 5 will be added per flight, per person. Ryanair claim that the card charges are used to fund their website rather than as addition personal income. They also claim that the change in policy with the Visa Electron card has been prompted by the fact that the card is being phased out in the UK. It has been confirmed that after the 14th of December, Abbey will not be issuing this card to customers. Mastercard pre-paid cards remain the only loophole. These are now the only way to avoid a booking fee with Ryanair. Pre-paid cards are the opposite of credit cards seeing as you put money on them in advance and then spend it. However, there can be charges for even applying for one of these. The Tuxedo PAYG Prepaid Mastercard, for instance, charges a 9.95 application fee and a 3.5% ATM charge. So, if you are thinking about applying for one so you can evade Ryanair card-charges in the future, make sure you compare cards to find the best one for you.About the Author:

Emily Gorton is a staff writer and personal finance expert for the website Credit Card Comparison Online. The site allows users to compare zero percent on purchases credit cards.

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