RYANAIR has denied ‘ripping off’ passengers who book flights from Britain to countries in the European Union.
The Irish airline’s booking system has a ‘default’ currency conversion option which is substantially out of line with normal exchange rates, according to the Irish Times.
Anyone booking Ryanair flights from the UK automatically sees costs in pound sterling as prices are fixed to the country of departure’s currency.
Last week, the airline’s default ‘guaranteed exchange rate’ option was £1.00 to €1.20 – despite the official exchange rate being around £1.00 to €1.12.
That means passengers flying from Britain to Eurozone nations could be charged almost 10 percent more than euro-denominated card holders.
While customers are allowed to switch from Ryanair’s automatic rate to cheaper ones, many people may not be fully aware of the savings that can be made by doing so.
The carrier has denied ripping off passengers with the so-called ‘Ryanair rate’.
“Customers have the option of paying in the currency of the card with absolute certainty of what the final payment will be at the time of booking,” a Ryanair spokesman told the Irish Times.
“Alternatively, they have the option of taking the, yet unknown, exchange rate applied by their bank/card provider.”
The spokesman insisted the option was “presented transparently, and no one is being ‘ripped off’.”
They added: “All customers are advised of the dynamic currency conversion rate applied and have the option to avail of this rate or not. Ryanair’s DCC presentation complies with all applicable EU and national laws on consumer protection.”
