bmibaby Rip Off Merchants

dmg24

OWT_FOR_NOWT wrote: »

They are the only airline who fly from my local airport to my required destination. My next nearest airport is an all round trip of 300 miles where the carrier is easyjet, and since they haven't brought out their prices yet and my accomodation is already booked then my options are limited. I have flown with bmi baby for many years and never had a problem with the price but now they have well and truly over stepped the mark.

So I am assuming that flying with bmibaby rather than travelling to your next airport actually makes the trip good value?

Debt_Free_Chick

carolineb23 wrote: »

I'm not saying they are trying to hide the charges in a sneaky way or anything, but its a rip off to charge £5 per person as a booking fee for using a debit card for one transaction.

It's just a different way of getting to the total fee. If you booked an "ordinary flight" you'd just be given the total price. You have no way of knowing how they got to that total, but you can be sure that some accountant in an office somewhere has taken all the sepapate elements and added them up to get to the total.

With the budget airlines, you get the chance to avoid some of the costs and/or opt for a lower service at a lower price.

Surely its not much different to credit card companies charging £30 fees for going over your limit or whatever they were charging it for. But everyone jumps all over that trying to reclaim it because its 'unlawful'.

Technically/legally it's very different. The CC charge is deemed to be a penalty or fine for breaking the T&Cs. The CC issuer claims that the fine is "damages" for their loss, but they're potentially unlawful as the size of the fine is disproportionate to the loss incurred.

The airline is not issuing you with a fine or penalty (although I can understand that it appears that way), but simply showing you the extra cost of the ticket for certain methods of payment. And the price presented to you as an offer - which you don't have to accept.

It might also be worth thinking of this extra payment as "insurance" as the CC will refund you if the airline goes bust!

switch007

I'm so sick of everybody complaining all the time. Running an airline company must be so EXPENSIVE! Everyone expects fares for 20 pounds return half way accross the world. All these charges are quite justified because it's keeping the airline in the air. Go through the booking process, look at the complete price, if you don't like it, tough! I would even say it's a good thing that we aren't spending so much on going on holiday - we have enough debt as it is as a nation.

Look at all the airlines going into administration. This is what is going to happen to MORE airlines if they don't start charging more.

Why does everyone think every price increase is another 'rip off'. Some things are beyond the control of the airline (oil prices, the economy).

_Andy_

OWT_FOR_NOWT wrote: »

Yesterday bmibaby announced their summer 2009 prices. The exact same dates which I booked this time last year for August 2008 are more than double the price for August 2009.

Prices going up year-on-year? Shock, horror..

They also charge an extra £3.99 to check in which is total madness. What are you supposed to do? carry your own suitcase to the plane to aviod this. But the biggest rip off is if you don't pay using a bmibaby credit card then you get charged an extra £5 per person for using a debit card or £7 per person for using a credit card. In my case I was booking 8 seats so got charged on top of the rip off air fare an extra £40 for paying with my debit card. This is scandalous as it was only 1 transaction for the 8 seats.

So my advice to anyone who intends to fly with this airline is to get yourself a bmibaby credit card and only use it to pay for any flights you book with them.

OK so your suggestion, presumably, would be for BMI and all other airlines to ditch every charge they have, and then hike up all the fares to compensate for the decrease in revenue?

Altarf

OWT_FOR_NOWT wrote: »

now they have well and truly over stepped the mark.

Clearly they haven't otherwise you would never have clicked the 'Confirm' button and bought the flights.

alanrowell

dmg24 wrote: »

I'm feeling an alanrowell moment ...

2nd one tonight

budgetflyer

OWT_ FOR_ NOWT
if you look at the chart above, notice how the price Jan 07 was just above $50 a barrel, July 08 peaking at $145 -nearly 3 times higher !!!, and if you have listened to the news in the last 18 months, it should offer a few clues as to why BMIBABY have put their prices up.

payless

credit card charges.. would suppose credit card merchants fees are going up in this industry if they " insutre the flight" .. might just save your bacon if they go under !

grrrrrrrrrr

OWT_FOR_NOWT wrote: »

The airline with tiny fares what a joke.

Yesterday bmibaby announced their summer 2009 prices. The exact same dates which I booked this time last year for August 2008 are more than double the price for August 2009. They also charge an extra £3.99 to check in which is total madness. What are you supposed to do? carry your own suitcase to the plane to aviod this. But the biggest rip off is if you don't pay using a bmibaby credit card then you get charged an extra £5 per person for using a debit card or £7 per person for using a credit card. In my case I was booking 8 seats so got charged on top of the rip off air fare an extra £40 for paying with my debit card. This is scandalous as it was only 1 transaction for the 8 seats.

So my advice to anyone who intends to fly with this airline is to get yourself a bmibaby credit card and only use it to pay for any flights you book with them.[/quote)

can the person who posted this pathetic statement not wake up and smell the coffee? the price of oil has risen in the past year, obviously prices will be more this year as planes do not run on water. as for the charges yes all low cost airlines have extra charges, if the didnt they would all be going down the same route as xl, zoom and silverjet.

if you dont like the price why did you go ahead and pay?

stop moaning, many people in this country cannot afford holidays so think yourself lucky

grrrrrrrrrr

carolineb23 wrote: »

I'm not saying they are trying to hide the charges in a sneaky way or anything, but its a rip off to charge £5 per person as a booking fee for using a debit card for one transaction. Surely its not much different to credit card companies charging £30 fees for going over your limit or whatever they were charging it for. But everyone jumps all over that trying to reclaim it because its 'unlawful'.
I can't see why you have all jumped on the op who was pointing out that BMI baby seem to be adding more and more charges on in comparison to what they have charged in previous years.

wake up, its £2.50 per sector idiot, get a train or boat and stop whining, low cost airlines keep the fare as low as permitted, but the spirraling cost of fuel means that the extra costs you have paid for keeps the airlines flying. do you ppl not read the news, airlines and travel companies are going bust, none are making any profit, they are being taxed out of the skies. slate the goverment for not stepping in to help out and bring fuel costs down because in 10 years time the only airlines still flying will be charging so much no one will be able to afford it.