Image: Chris Radburn - PA Wire
A few weeks ago we told you about yet more costly changes to Ryanair's booking fees that meant customers will have to use the airline's own pre-paid card to avoid being hit with its £6-a-head flight charge.
We've managed to get a look at a copy of the terms and conditions for that card - which will be officially launched on 4 October - and it shows that customers choosing to use it will be hit with more eye-watering charges.
Significantly, the move also means that customers will now have to jump through more hoops to avoid fees altogether when booking flights with Ryanair.
The fees revealed
Fees on the Ryanair Cash Passport include a whopping 5.75% foreign transaction fee - more than double the 2.75% typically charged on other prepaid cards - with an added £2 ATM charge whenever you use the card to withdraw cash.
Not only that, but if the card is unused for over six months, customers will face a £2.50 inactivity charge per month.
Finally, anyone wanting to use the card to withdraw cash at a bank or bureau de change will be hit with a £4 charge - on top of the 5.75% charge if this is done overseas. And from April 2012, a 50p fee will be added on top for all transactions, excluding bookings with Ryanair.
To put that into context, if you wanted to withdraw £100 worth of local currency abroad, you would be hit with a whopping £10.25 in charges (£4 standard fee, a £5.75 foreign currency fee plus the additional 50p charge).
Why do train fares keep rising?
Only one way to avoid paying fees
Furthermore, and perhaps most significantly, Ryanair's latest move means the airline's customers are left with just one way of avoiding fees altogether when booking.
That's because the Ryanair Cash Passport charges a £6 'cash out' fee on all closures - meaning even those who simply use the card once to book flights will have to pay out to close it or face even bigger charges for leaving the card unused.
The only way users can avoid the fee is by uploading exactly the amount needed to cover the cost of flights, before cancelling immediately once the payment has been processed. Any amount left on the card will be subject to the £6 fee.
Ryanair not the only firm to charge
Unfortunately, Ryanair is not the only airline which charges these 'hidden' booking fees - the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) is currently investigating the practice of credit and debit card surcharges.
Indeed, since Which? launched a super-complaint, which led to that review, some providers have actually increased the amount they charge card users on their bookings.
Here's a list of the surcharges imposed by some of the major online booking services:
Ryanair - £6 per passenger per leg (was £5 before super-complaint)
EasyJet - £8 per transaction (was £5.50 before super-complaint)
Flybe - £4.50 per person per one-way journey
Thomas Cook - £3 per person per flight
Thomson - £3.95 per transaction
Which? has called on the government to take action on these "unfair" charges, and is urging people to pledge support for the campaign by emailing Financial Secretary Mark Hoban.
In response, the Treasury has said that the government is committed to stopping retailers imposing surcharges on card customers and will be responding to the OFT's recommendations shortly.
Compare credit cards on MSN Compare
'One of the most expensive cards on the market'
Stephen Heath, CEO of FairFX, the company that revealed Ryanair's latest fees, said: "Previously Ryanair customers could choose a prepaid MasterCard that was competitive for purchases abroad and in the UK. Now they have to use what is one of the most expensive cards on the market with little other use than booking their flights with.
"It's interesting reading the terms and conditions for this new Ryanair Cash Passport and I think Ryanair customers are in for a nasty shock. The Travelex Cash Passport has also consistently had higher charges than many other pre-paid card providers and it's rather fitting that Ryanair, also known for its excessive charges, have jumped into bed with them."
When we spoke to them, Ryanair challenged the claim that its card was uncompetitive, pointing out that, unlike many of its competitors, it charged no issue fee to customers taking out its card. The airline also argued that its flat 50p transaction fee would work out cheaper on larger purchases made in the UK.
Stephen McNamara of Ryanair said: "Unlike most MasterCard Prepaid products, including the Fair FX card, the Ryanair Cash Passport card is free to purchase, free to top-up and free to use on Ryanair.com, making it one of the most competitive MasterCard Prepaid products available. However, the Ryanair Cash Passport will also provide passengers with the additional benefit of avoiding Ryanair's £6 per passenger per flight administration charge."
Note: the article above contains a correction. Ryanair had originally told MSN Money that all holders of the Ryanair Cash Passport would be subject to a £6 'cash out' fee. They have now corrected their position, which has been represented above.
Related links
Compare credit cards on MSN Compare
Are insurers ripping off motorists?
Why do train fares keep rising?
