Fuming Ryanair customers warn other Irish holidaymakers of 'absolutely crazy' voucher policy

Furious Irish holidaymakers are sharing a stark warning to prospective flyers due to "absolutely crazy" problems with redeeming Ryanair gift vouchers.

On RTÉ Radio 1's Liveline with Joe Duffy, callers complained about Ryanair's strict rules, which left many unable to use their vouchers.

One caller, Noel Welch, shared how his Ryanair gift voucher from his son, daughter-in-law and grandchildren couldn't be used because the airline didn't recognise the recipient as a valid name.

Noel said his son had written 'Mam Dad Welch' as the holder as a token name as it was a gift to both Noel and his wife. According to Noel, Ryanair customer service told him only minor changes to the name were allowed, limiting him to a two letter change only. "It's absolutely crazy," Noel said, "the most important thing on a gift card is the code, not the name."

He added that Ryanair responded to his query, and corrected the name to "Noel Welch" after the fact. However, many other callers had similar issues.

After listening to Noel, Joe noted that this airline policy makes it difficult to use gift vouchers, especially when given as surprises, since it requires knowing the recipient's exact passport name in advance.

Margaret O'Sullivan, another caller, shared her struggle with redeeming a €250 voucher. Despite matching her name to her passport, she couldn't redeem it. She said, "We tried taking out the apostrophe and putting in the apostrophe. [We] can't get anywhere at all."

Another caller, Charlie, had two vouchers totaling €300 but couldn't use them despite entering the correct details. Ryanair's suggestion to try different browsers and devices didn't help, and his request to consolidate the vouchers was denied.

Joe stated that he felt the policy was too rigid, saying, "300 quid is 300 quid."

A spokesperson for Ryanair said: "This voucher was purchased under an incorrect name "Mam Dad Welch" on 9 December 2023. Mr Noel Welch contacted customer service on the 26 May to request a name change to Noel Welch.

"This name change has been actioned and issued to the new email address as requested, by the person who made the original gift card purchase. We look forward to welcoming Mr Welch on board his Ryanair flight."

The airline's gift voucher terms and conditions say: "While name changes are not permitted on Gift Cards, we will accommodate minor spelling corrections, provided we reasonably believe you are correcting a mistake and not trying to change the recipient’s name to someone else."