Ryanair slates Thomson agents for ‘fleecing passengers’

Saturday, 17 Aug, 2005 0

Thomson travel agents have been branded “unscrupulous” by Ryanair for loading charges onto the budget airline’s fares and not informing customers.

Thomson declined to comment on claims by the no-frills carrier that tickets purchased through one branch of the UK’s leading agency chain were 85% higher than the price quoted on the Ryanair website. Others were 70% and 69% more expensive.

The airline said a Thomson agent in Barrow in Furness quoted £53.26 for a Liverpool-Dublin flight which was advertised at £28.85 on its website – a hike of 85%.

Ryanair urged consumers to avoid agents and go online to book direct in order to avoid the additional charges.

The Irish carrier’s head of sales and marketing Sinead Finn said: “Ryanair offers the lowest fares in Europe by selling direct on www.ryanair.com. However, some unscrupulous Thomson travel agents are fleecing passengers by selling our flights at vastly inflated prices, with some charging a whopping 85% more than the web fare available.

“Consumers are entitled to be told if a handling charge is being levied on their ticket but unfortunately many Thomson travel agents are not informing their customers and instead are ripping them off.

“Rip-off Britain is alive and well so don’t let travel agents take you for a ride. For the lowest fares, cut out the middlemen by booking directly.”

It is not known how many Ryanair seats are sold by agents who charge handling fees but it is thought to run into the tens of thousands.

Report by Phil Davies

Phil Davies

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