Ryanair: £550m from charges
Friday, 11 September 2009 02:56
Ryanair has been accused of earning some £550 million from extra charges.
Research by US firm IdeaWorks claims the Irish airline sees 19.3 per cent of its revenue coming from luggage charges, food and commission on car rentals and insurance.
Ryanair has long been criticised for advertising dirt cheap fairs and then piling on extra charges.
Ryanair's list of charges include £5 online check-in fee, £5 payment handling fee per passenger each way (meaning a couple on a return flight pay £20), priority boarding fee £3, £10 per first bag checked in, £20 for second and third bags, £30 for sports equipment, £35 to change flights, £100 to change the name on a ticket.
Next week Ryanair is increasing its luggage check-in fee from £10 to £15.
The airline is quick to point out many of these charges are optional and if passengers pay online with a Visa Electron card and only have hand luggage they can avoid the fees.
"If customers are so price sensitive and do not want to pay the ?5 online booking fees they can avoid doing so by taking a promotional fare," said a spokesperson for Ryanair.
"They can find these fares if they are flexible with dates and are prepared to travel at different times."
He also hit out at the coverage of the IdeaWorks report.
"Reports have focused on luggage charges and credit card fee, but there are a whole host of ancillary charges we raise funds from, including online gambling, snacks, and web loyalty programmes."
He added these charges helped to keep main prices lower.
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