Ryanair passengers charged £115 after name-change ‘glitch’ by budget airline

More than 150 consumers have complained of unfair fees

Martin Lewis has accused the airline of being blasé in the face of hundreds of complaints (Simon Calder)

Calls for Ryanair to become a “nicer airline” have been made after more than 150 customers complained of being hit with unfair name-change charges.

Some 162 passengers have come forward, claiming the low-cost airline automatically changed their companions’ surnames after booking to match that of the person buying the tickets.

If customers didn’t notice the mistake within Ryanair’s 24-hour grace period, they were charged a whopping £115 to correct the passenger name.

Martin Lewis, founder of MoneySavingExpert.com, has written to the airline as well as the aviation watchdog, the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), calling for Ryanair to stop penalising customers for what is allegedly its own mistake.

“I know you have over the last few years stated you want to make Ryanair ‘a nicer airline’. I hope you are able to deliver on that promise in this case,” Lewis wrote in an open letter addressed to Mr O’Leary, the airline’s chief executive.

“Sadly my personal letter to you is our last resort. We have been raising this issue with your press team since December. Yet the engagement and response we’ve had has been flaccid.

“There is a seemingly blasé attitude to customers who feel hard done by.”

Lewis has submitted a dossier of evidence along with more than 160 complaints to the CAA, all documenting what seems to be a widespread technical error.

“Customers tell us they have been penalised for incorrect surnames on their bookings, despite them having correctly entered these details at the time of booking. This error repeatedly seems to not be the fault of the customer, yet Ryanair has been charging those affected £115 to rectify what seems to be its own mistake,” said Lewis.

“The behaviour of your firm, in refusing to refund customers who have been affected or saying they can’t travel, does not seem to be the behaviour of a ‘nice airline’. I am sure you will be shocked to hear this has happened – and will want to rectify it – rather than waiting for regulatory engagement.”

The evidence received by MoneySavingExpert shows “a clear pattern” according to Lewis: passengers were booking flights for a second person (or more) with different surnames; they claim Ryanair’s booking system automatically changed their companions’ surnames to be the same as the lead passenger’s or account holder’s surname; and those who didn’t spot the error within 24 hours faced a £115 charge to change back to the correct name.

Some customers rebooked their flights entirely, as this worked out cheaper than paying the name-change charge.

MoneySavingExpert first raised the issue in December, after which many more affected consumers got in touch. The site received 268 complaints in total, with 162 of those made by customers who were happy to be formally included in the dossier.

The consumer finance platform said in a statement that it has tried to engage with Ryanair on the issue, “but so far it has insisted that there isn’t a problem despite compelling evidence, and has said it won’t refund customers for what appears to be its own mistake”.

The Independent has contacted Ryanair for comment.