Card fees axed

MAJOR airlines are scrapping unpopular credit card fees in a move that could spell the end of the charges.

Passengers have long regarded the fees as simply another way for airlines to grab extra money from them.

But Virgin Atlantic has now revealed it has scrapped its 1.5 per cent fee while Monarch has announced it is to ditch its three per cent charge next week.

Flybee yesterday announced it was looking at cutting the fees. other airlines are likely to follow suit and the move is expected to save families hundreds of pounds on bookings.

James Daley of campaign group Fairer Finance said ‘the writing was on the wall’ for the charges. He added: ‘They are not just a rip off, they are illegal. These companies have been taking a gamble that the regulators were too stretched to bother with them. But actually it is something that makes consumers incredibly angry.’ Under UK law airlines should not use the transaction fees to make a profit.

Mr Daley said more flight firms would now consider slashing or abolishing the fees to avoid standing out. He said: ‘The less there are [charging credit card fees] the more embarrassing it will be to them and the more out of kilter they are with the market.’ ryanair and Thomas Cook both levy a two per cent fee. Thomson currently bills customers 1.5 per cent and easyJet one per cent.

EasyJet cut its charge from two to one per cent earlier this year, and British Airways – which currently charges £5 per ticket – is set to cut the charge to one per cent early next year and cap the bill at £20.

A BA spokesman said: ‘We do not profit from these charges, they contribute towards the fees levied by the credit card companies.’ A ryanair spokesman said: ‘our credit card charge reflects the cost of processing payments.’

Jet2 was the first airline to cut credit card fees a year ago but still charges American Express customers a 3.25 per cent.

The fees have also been axed by international airlines – including United Airlines, Aerlingus, Air Canada, and Scandinavian Airlines.

The office of Fair Trading has estimated that airline passengers spent around £300million credit card charges in one year.