I contacted DFDS to ask them to explain their high charges for changes to booking. The reply follows:
We work on flexi fares which means the price of the crossings change depending on how busy they get. If you book your crossing well in advance it will be cheaper because the outgoings for the ship are not as high. However as the passenger and vehicle volume increase, the ships costs go up, more weight equals more fuel, more passengers equal more refreshments/staff etc. so to make sure the ship turns a profit so it can still run, the prices have to match the outgoings so the price will increase on the crossing as more people book up. (underscoring is mine, see later comments)
If you book early and the crossing costs £30.00 for example, then 3 months later you wanted to change the date and the price of the crossing had gone up to £40.00, if you made the amendment online you would need to pay the difference in fare class, if you were to make it over the phone there would be a £10 amend fee, unless you booked a flexi ticket which amendment charges do not apply. Also on a flexi ticket if you wanted to amend the date within a 72 hour period, either before or after, you could change your date of travel over at the check-in with no additional cost, even if there was in increase in fare class, however if you made the change over the phone for within this 72 hour period you would need to pay any addition in fare class. On a flexi ticket you can also cancel your booking, more than 48 hours prior to departure, and receive a full refund for your booking.
The crossings are cheaper when booked in advance as the outgoings don't appear as high when people first book, so we do reccomend people to book well in advance for their desired travel dates as you will get the best price possible."
Re the first paragraph, I was charged 3 times the original amount, yet the ferry was nearly empty. Therefore it should have been cheaper, if it is dependent on passenger volume.
Flexi bookings are much dearer, so barely worth it. And regarding booking early, this is often torpedoed by the various offers from various carriers that come up nearer the travel dates.
I still see no point in booking months ahead, when it's highly likely that some other factor will occur needing a change to the booking, with its consequent swingeing charges. And I never book the return until a few days before, when I know from which direction I will be approaching the channel. And then I can take my pick of the prices, and the consequential costs such as distance to the port, amount of nights of further accommodation, etc
Above all it is the resentment of being stung.
We work on flexi fares which means the price of the crossings change depending on how busy they get. If you book your crossing well in advance it will be cheaper because the outgoings for the ship are not as high. However as the passenger and vehicle volume increase, the ships costs go up, more weight equals more fuel, more passengers equal more refreshments/staff etc. so to make sure the ship turns a profit so it can still run, the prices have to match the outgoings so the price will increase on the crossing as more people book up. (underscoring is mine, see later comments)
If you book early and the crossing costs £30.00 for example, then 3 months later you wanted to change the date and the price of the crossing had gone up to £40.00, if you made the amendment online you would need to pay the difference in fare class, if you were to make it over the phone there would be a £10 amend fee, unless you booked a flexi ticket which amendment charges do not apply. Also on a flexi ticket if you wanted to amend the date within a 72 hour period, either before or after, you could change your date of travel over at the check-in with no additional cost, even if there was in increase in fare class, however if you made the change over the phone for within this 72 hour period you would need to pay any addition in fare class. On a flexi ticket you can also cancel your booking, more than 48 hours prior to departure, and receive a full refund for your booking.
The crossings are cheaper when booked in advance as the outgoings don't appear as high when people first book, so we do reccomend people to book well in advance for their desired travel dates as you will get the best price possible."
Re the first paragraph, I was charged 3 times the original amount, yet the ferry was nearly empty. Therefore it should have been cheaper, if it is dependent on passenger volume.
Flexi bookings are much dearer, so barely worth it. And regarding booking early, this is often torpedoed by the various offers from various carriers that come up nearer the travel dates.
I still see no point in booking months ahead, when it's highly likely that some other factor will occur needing a change to the booking, with its consequent swingeing charges. And I never book the return until a few days before, when I know from which direction I will be approaching the channel. And then I can take my pick of the prices, and the consequential costs such as distance to the port, amount of nights of further accommodation, etc
Above all it is the resentment of being stung.