Ryanair has unexpected charge for spelling correction to surname

reallydismayed

I had booked a flight with Ryanair from La Rochelle in France to London in late July, but my plans changed and I had to book another flight for the 10th July (on the same route).

I then thought to myself "I wonder how much it would cost to change the name on the other flight?" As I had the new booking on the screen in front of me, I clicked on "Change passenger name" and got a new page that said at the top:

"Within 24 hours of making your booking, you can amend spelling errors of either the first or surname free of charge. Any other changes will incur a name change fee. If payment is required, the fee will be applied and shown to you before you confirm and move on to pay for the change(s). No payment will be taken until you have provided payment details."

I thought "Well, I want to get a quote for the actual cost of changing the name to someone else, so I will change the surname from xxxxxx to Smith."
So I did that, and the website altered my surname without asking for any money.

I thought "OK, they have a very broad definition of spelling errors. I will try again after the 24 hours are up and meanwhile I will change the surname back to the correct one."

So I tried doing that, and the website asked for 110 euros!

(At this point I panicked and booked another seat on the plane for 50 euros.)

Now it's possible that buried deep in the small print it says you only get one chance of changing spelling errors in that first 24 hours. But I didn't see it and having read their message, I certainly wasn't expecting to only get one chance.

richardw

Spelling errors and name changes are different things, there should be different charges.

Westin

you only get one chance of changing spelling errors in that first 24 hours. But I didn't see it and having read their message, I certainly wasn't expecting to only get one chance.

Not wishing to sound harsh but how many chances do you expect to receive to spell your name correctly?

jpsartre

reallydismayed wrote: »

I then thought to myself "I wonder how much it would cost to change the name on the other flight?"

Next time you wonder about these things just refer to the fees list:

https://www.ryanair.com/gb/en/useful-info/help-centre/fees

reallydismayed

jpsartre wrote: »

Next time you wonder about these things just refer to the fees list:

Yes, I was surprised to find it there when I later browsed Ryanair's web site.

Nearly all of the extra payments you can make to Ryanair vary depending on the journey, time of year and closeness to departure.

reallydismayed

Westin wrote: »

Not wishing to sound harsh but how many chances do you expect to receive to spell your name correctly?

Er, unlimited chances within the first 24 hours, as stated in my quote from Ryanair.

Rainbowgirl84

reallydismayed wrote: »

Er, unlimited chances within the first 24 hours, as stated in my quote from Ryanair.

Where does it say unlimited chances?

glentoran99

So you changed a name just to see, Very strange behaviour

Rainbowgirl84

Why did you not try and change the name on the other flight to find out the cost?

Westin

reallydismayed wrote: »

Er, unlimited chances within the first 24 hours, as stated in my quote from Ryanair.

Er,I think Ryanair would expect their customers to know how to spell their own name correctly. Even if you fail the first time then they allow a second chance to correct it. Not sure they expect someone to mess up spelling their own name a second time.