[Article] Ryanair cash ban leaves customer in a flap

Victor

http://home.eircom.net/content/unison/national/1089653?view=Eircomnet

Ryanair cash ban leaves customer in a flap
From:The Irish Independent
Friday, 25th July, 2003
Clodagh Sheehy

RYANAIR doesn't much like the colour of Irish money.

The low fares airline has a penchant for plastic but not much interest in payment by cash.

Yesterday the company actually refused cash from a customer who wanted to buy a return ticket from Dublin to London Stansted.

And the Central Bank says Ryanair is perfectly within its rights to dictate the type of payment the company will accept.

Patrick Bourke from Bray, Co Wicklow, was turned away by Ryanair after he made a two-hour car journey to Dublin airport to pay cash, in advance, for a return flight to Stansted next week.

Ryanair explained last night that it will accept cash from customers "but only on the day of departure".

It said this was for security reasons.

The spokesman said it was "almost unheard of now for anyone to want to pay by cash. You'd be one in a million."

But he also admitted that anyone paying by credit card incurs a €6 fee and those paying by debit card incur a €1.50 fee. Mr Bourke said: "I don't think it's fair. I'm sure I'm not the only person in Ireland without a credit card."

"I had phoned head office earlier and they told me cash would be accepted but when I got there the supervisor said it had to be plastic or nothing."

"I don't have a credit card and I think that's my own business.

"When I said I hadn't got one, they suggested I borrow one."

"I put a call through to head office again and the person I spoke to said she would try and make an exception, but then she came back and told me they couldn't accept cash."

He said staff at the airport insisted he could not have been told by head office that cash was acceptable.

"Did they think I made that car journey for the fun?" he fumed.

The Central Bank said that once a retailer or company made it clear what type of payment they would accept before a transaction took place, they were acting within the law.

MadsL

Not only do they not like cash but it drove me nuts for years that our wonderful 'Irish' company would take Switch but not Laser in payment for fares.

How would you like to pay?
'Laser'
We don't take Laser. We only take Switch.
'But you are an Irish company, and I'm flying from Ireland'.
Sorry, we don't take Laser.
'Agggggh!'

sovtek

(a bit off topic)
Ryan Air is not the "low fare airline" it claims to be.
I met my wife (coming from South Africa) in Germany in May.
after paying for both our tickets, mine return, it was about €300 (advertised was £10 each way from Stansted).
On our return journey, checking into Stansted the check out clerk ordered us...yes ordered to put ALL our luggage on the belt. I hesitated a moment because I have never been asked to have my carry-on luggage weighed. She yelled at me to put the baggage on the belt. They weighed ALL of our luggage and then used that as our overall wieght. She then rapidly barked at us that we were overweight at that it would cost us £60(€90) if we wanted to fly.
I then said that we didn't have our carry on weighed at Frankfurt and that we weren't charged as being overweight there either.
She then barked that she could go and check that and then charge for that leg as well if I didn't want to get out of her face and go pay the £60(€90).
I gave her a bit of advice and then proceeded to the overweight counter.
I had to wait in line behind no less than 10 people who were also being charged for overweight baggage.
When we complained (after many rolled eyes and obscenities expressed under their breath by Ryan Air "Customer Service" staff), they pointed out that any baggage over 15K was charged as overweight. As far as I'm aware no other airline in the world has that low a weight restriction.
They showed us in the Terms and Conditions and quoted the weight restriction. K fair enough, but they don't say that your carry-on is considered in your over all weight. I also pointed out AGAIN that we weren't charged in Germany. She said that they were actually doing us a favor by not charging us right then for that leg as well (which is dubious at best).
We ended up having no choice but to pay which left us with no money for food or even a drink with a few hours to wait in Stansted.
Needless to say I WILL NEVER fly Ryan Air again.
With all the people in line it's obvious that this is a intentional scam by RA to extort everyone at their connection in Stansted where they have no choice but to pay if they want to get home.
Besides the debacle over the refunding taxes there should be gathering hard done by RA "customers" and class action taken against them.
Anyone else have similiar gripes? I'd love to form a group and get O'Leary ousted.

Capt'n Midnight

Negotiable Tender.

de5p0i1er

They just want to screw him out of the credit card charge, there should be no reason to refuse legal tender.

The Sweeper

These days, I fly bmi to be honest.

Capt'n Midnight

Page 14 Aug 2003 Computerscope

- to cut a long story short a customer double booked on their internet site becuase the error message indicated that one it's causes could be tickets no longer available on that particular flight...

"A spokesman.... ...confirmed to ComputerScope that although the company was 'flexible' when dealing with genuine mistakes, it was indeed company policy to regard bookings on two separate flights as being bona fida purchases."

" .... the spokesman suggested that had a customer contrived to purchase two tickets on separate ocassions in their own name on the same flight , the company would be more likely to concede that a mistake had occured"

The second part has too many conditionals and no indication as to what the would do even if they "conceded that a mistake had occured".




Bottom line
RyanAir break even on flights and make profits on the extras

once you know the rules you can play the game (eg: they also define on time as arriving within a hour of the stated time - most other airlines use 15 minutes - you have to know the rules)

PS. anyone want to drag up the free flights for life customer...

bloggs

I got a flight a few weeks ago with Ryanair, from Dublin to Standstead, i just checked in my bag as normal. When i got to Standstead i had to get another flight, so i went to check in my bag again, but the girl said because it had a lot of loose straps, i would have to check it in to the overweight baggage section.

Does this mean that i was charaged extra, because they never said anything and, i didn't see anything on my credit card?

The other weight thing is a bit of a mystery to me, as i have seen some people asked to go to the overweight check-in, while others had about 10 very large bags and they just checked them in normally?

tribble

so far nobdy has pointed to a situation where Ryanair Air broke any rules or conditions, never mind any laws.

Sure, they aren't the most pleasant company to fly with (my vote goes to SAS) but you pay your money you makes your choices.
Understand the conditions and follow them - then you'll have very few problems.

tribble