Ryanair card - topping up

benjus

So I have bitten the bullet and got myself a Ryanair prepaid card for paying for flights.

I see that when topping up with a debit card the minimum top-up is £150. Has anyone tried topping up with a smaller amount using a bank transfer?

greyteam1959

I think the minimum top up by ANY method is 150.00 might be wrong though.
Thats why I, & many others are not ever going to use this new card.

johne2010

Question: You pay into the Ryanair Bank £150 spend £75 on a flight, you don't need another flight for 8 months, Ryanair bank get interest on remaining £75 for 8 months, you then are charged inactivity charges, you then need to book another flight for £75, but not enough £'s on card to pay for flight therefore you need to top up with another £150 leaving at least £100 in the Ryanair bank for them to make more interest on. Is this the way Ryanair is raising interest free loans?

budgetflyer

Ryanair dont get the money johne2010, R. Raphael & Sons plc who are the card issuers do. Ryanair probably get a small commission of transaction fees.
BTW you don't have to leave money on the card as described. A more sensible way would be to withdraw it via an ATM (small fee) within the 6 month period to keep the card "active" and then load it again when you need to use it again.
Its all more hassle than I am willing to put up with, so I doubt I'll get one

johne2010

Thats the crux of the debate Bugetflyer "A more sensible way would be to withdraw it via an ATM (small fee)" and I do suspect that Ryanair have a very cosy relationship with R. Raphael & Sons plc

benjus

Hmmm... thanks. I was really just wondering what they would do if you made a bank transfer for a smaller amount and if anyone had actually tried it.

For the time being, using the card to pay for things in the UK is free, so after buying the flights I will probably just spend the rest of the balance.