Season Tickets, Debit Cards and Surcharges

[Flaggers]

Could someone who still has the hard-copy from the renewal pack to hand check something for me please (my Dad has mine atm..)

On the fill-in-the-form page on the hard copy version, there are boxes for Payment Method, and has "cash", "Cheque", "Payment Plan" "Debit Card" "Credit Card*"
...and the asterisk indicates 3% surcharge for all payments by this method - i.e. credit card, and ONLY CREDIT card.

BUT

If you look at, print out and use the online version off the OS (page 7), the 3% surcharge applies to ALL card payments, debit or credit....

Unless I've missed something, the online brochure is DIFFERENT from the hard copy version to the tune of 3%...

Can anyone check and confirm this with their hardcopy version, please - the online version is attached below...

 

[Redstone]

Yes, that's true. The asterix denotes just credit card.

The following is taked directly from the renewal pack...

"If you are paying for your season ticket by credit card, such as Mastercard or Visa credit card you will incur a 3% surcharge on top of the value of the season ticket. If you are paying by debit card card, such as Maestro, Visa debit or Solo card, you will avoid the surcharge."

 

[zigga-zagga]

Another thing about payments.

If you intend to pay by CREDIT card and can't afford to pay off the entire amount when you receive your first statement, thus avoiding interest, it is worthwhile taking out the easy payment plan.

A £480 season ticket costs about £522 over 10 months, an increase of about £42. A 3% surcharge on your credit card is £14.40 plus interest on outstanding balances means that you could be better off spreading the payments over 10 months.

 

[winnits]

Yes, that's true. The asterix denotes just credit card.

The following is taked directly from the renewal pack...

"If you are paying for your season ticket by credit card, such as Mastercard or Visa credit card you will incur a 3% surcharge on top of the value of the season ticket. If you are paying by debit card card, such as Maestro, Visa debit or Solo card, you will avoid the surcharge."

Weird! They used to charge 3% on a Visa Debit.

 

[Flaggers]

UPDATE!

Forest do NOT charge a surcharge on debit cards.

Additionally, the chap in the ticket office was concerned and curious to know that the online brochure differs from the printed, mailed version.

Flagman + dad renewed Steady flow of people renewing, but ticket bod couldn't say how many had been sold.

 

[Darth Pierre]

yer i asked at the weekend

he just said they only charge credit cards

 

[poole_red]

[quote='Sir' Flagman. ]
UPDATE!

Forest do NOT charge a surcharge on debit cards.
[/quote]

Unlike Ryan bloody Air who charge a £20 surcharge on any credit/debit card bar Visa Electron! :rant:

 

[Rigler]

Another thing about payments.

If you intend to pay by CREDIT card and can't afford to pay off the entire amount when you receive your first statement, thus avoiding interest, it is worthwhile taking out the easy payment plan.

A £480 season ticket costs about £522 over 10 months, an increase of about £42. A 3% surcharge on your credit card is £14.40 plus interest on outstanding balances means that you could be better off spreading the payments over 10 months.

Or do as I've just done.

Apply for a NEW credit card which offers 0% interest on purchases for the first 9 (or 12 or whatever) months. There are plenty of such offers around.

Use this card solely for buying your season ticket and nothing else, then pay it off over nine months. This way you only pay the 3% for the convenience of paying in installments.

Destroy the card and do the same again next season.

 

[Alex_NFFC]

I want to know how Forest have made a 16% increase in season ticket sales and they are only on sale for renewal season tickets. Is this because you get charged £5 on post and packaging and also get charged 3% if you pay by card etc?

 

[Darth Pierre]

i was wondering the same thing

the only people who can get a season ticket so far are those that had one last year.

so how have they had more sales?

 

[Alex_NFFC]

Unless more people have purchased the away membership.

 

[trent-ender]

Maybe because we had more season ticket holders last year than the year before? Therefore there'd be more people to renew this year?

 

[andyred]

I want to know how Forest have made a 16% increase in season ticket sales and they are only on sale for renewal season tickets. Is this because you get charged £5 on post and packaging and also get charged 3% if you pay by card etc?

We've made a 16% increase on this time last year. Not on the total number of sales.

 

[WatnallRed]

Yes hence compared to this time last year weve purchased 16% more.
eg this time last year 10,000 sold
this year 11600.

Probably becuase we may have had more last year than the year before and/or people have renewed quicker.

 

[Rich]

Unlike Ryan bloody Air who charge a £20 surcharge on any credit/debit card bar Visa Electron! :rant:

£4.75 or £5 per flight.

Nto unreasonable when your flight costs you £1, though.

 

[Flaggers]

A surcharge that is 500% of the ticket price is "not unreasonable" ?!?!

 

[Rich]

A return flight to Prague for less than a taxi to the airport is far from unreasonable.

Bigger picture.

They give everyone the option to pay no fees, they have stripped down the experience of flying to make everything completely optional.

Ryanair is one business model I truly admire. I think in years to come their model will be looked upon in the same way McDonaldization.

 

[Flaggers]

How can a £1 ticket business model be sustainable?

 

[Rigler]

i was wondering the same thing

the only people who can get a season ticket so far are those that had one last year.

so how have they had more sales?

Not strictly true.

People who went to more than 5 games last season have been offered the chance to buy a season ticket for next season before they go on general sale. The increase could well be partly due to people taking up this offer.

 

[Flaggers]

People who went to more than 5 games last season have been offered the chance to buy a season ticket for next season before they go on general sale.

Where have you read this?

 

[Rich]

[quote='Sir' Flagman. ]
How can a £1 ticket business model be sustainable?
[/quote]

I'll go over the finer points with you in person, alex.

In a nutshell, the plane, for arguments sake has 300 seats on it.

15 of those seats are available at £1.

25 available at £10

50 available at £30

60 available at £50

150 available at £150

Airport fees are kept to a minumum thruogh the 'short stay' operations, which mean that if the plane is on the ground for less than 30 minutes they don't pay the 'parking fee'.

Charging for checking in at the airport and baggage are genius ideas. Not everyone wants to take bags, for example, the more bags on board,the more fuel needed the more cost.

Checking in at the airport requires the airline to hire a check in desk, which they do, but they mix destinations and employ generic staff. Again, this faciltiy costs money, so the cost is passed on to, and here's the smart bit, the customers who use that facility, not every customer.

Ryanair have revolutionised short haul travel, and other carriers have tried to follow suit. They recognised that many people care more about getting to a destination at the right price than about how they get there.

Before Ryanair you had to book all of your flights through an agent, they utilised the internet so that you buy them direct, and again, passed this saving onto the customers.

 

[Flaggers]

Will you please stop being so reasonable!! Goddammit I want to shout at someone today!! It will have to be the boss at this rate!!!

 

[Rich]

Sorry, I just really admire Ryanair.

It's very rare that a company changes an industry, but that's exactyl what they've done.

They are alongside Microsoft, IBM, and McDonalds for me in business terms.

 

[andyred]

[quote='Sir' Flagman. ]
How can a £1 ticket business model be sustainable?
[/quote]

They need a certain number of passengers to avoid financial penalties or to keep a route or something or other.

We flew Ryanair to Italy last year and the total cost for two people with a return flight was 4p. We only ever take hand luggage, I have an old VISA electron card and we use airport check in anyway because it means you don't have to wait at the airport for hours.

 

[Rich]

It is true that they have passenger quotas to fill, however the regulations aren't as tuogh on them as they used to be, after Flybe decided to pay people to fly to fill their quota.

The FAA deemed it not to be in the spirit of the agreement, and environmentalists have real issue with journeys for the sake of journeys.

The cheap flights tend to be loss leaders, you getting a 4p flight isn't profit making. However, being able to advertise those flights entices people in who will pay a higher fee.

Next time you're on a Ryanair flight, ask around to see how many people paid the same as you.

Also, and this is a little sneaky (Flagman, you'll love this), find a flight that is in whatever offer, for arguments sake £1.

Now go back to the start screen, and try to buy 15 seats on that flight.

You'll see that you've gone over the quota for the cheap seats.

For arguments sake, say there were 6 of them left, you'd think that it would give you 6 at the lowest price, and 9 and the next rate.

However, all 15 will be at the higher rate.

Indeed, I think if you try to book more than 20 seats it defaults to the actual price of the seat, which is the highest amount.