A CHRISTCHURCH man has warned Ryanair passengers of an airline ‘rip off’ that almost ruined his holiday.

Simon Miller, 47, of Manor Road, has urged travellers to print off their boarding passes before arriving at the airport to avoid a hefty charge.

He came forward after the Daily Echo reported that 56-year-old Angela Jarvis was charged £70 to simply print off a boarding pass earlier this month, and said the same mistake cost him £350 when the family visited their holiday home in Murcia last year.

He said: “When I read the article, I realised that was exactly what happened to me.

“There were five of us travelling and it ended up costing about the same amount as the flights. It was unbelievable.”

Mr Miller’s wife Sandra and the couple’s three sons, aged 12, 17 and 20, had arrived at Bournemouth Airport without the boarding passes as their printer wasn’t working.

When they arrived, they were warned by airline staff that they would face the same charge for their return journey if they were unable to print out the passes in Spain.

“We were told we could get another flight in a few days’ time if we wanted, but we were all packed up and ready to go so I just decided to pay it,” said Mr Miller.

“We had absolutely no idea that the charges would apply, and it was a real shock.

“Fortunately, I was able to find the money, and then I printed the boarding passes off in Murcia, but it really put a dampener on the holiday.

“As I was flying out there, I just kept thinking: ‘I’ve been ripped off here.’”

He said he wanted to warn other travellers of the cost.

“We’re flying out with Ryanair again this year, but we’ll be prepared and I won’t give them a penny more than I have to,” he said. “I hope this helps other passengers in the future. It can really ruin your holiday.”

A spokesperson from Ryanair said: “Passengers who fail to check-in online and print their boarding card are subject to a £70 boarding card reissue fee.

“The online check-in facility is available from 15 days prior to each scheduled flight departure time, up until the online check-in deadline of four hours before each scheduled flight departure time.

“Once a passenger has checked in online they can reprint their boarding card up to two hours before each scheduled flight departure time. As outlined in Ryanair’s terms and conditions, if you fail to present a valid boarding pass at airport security or at the boarding gate and there is sufficient time to re-issue you with an alternative form of boarding pass, you will be charged a boarding pass re-issue fee.”