Spitting feathers ----- DFDS (1 Viewer)

[magicsurfbus]

On some of the DFDS ferries you can sit right at the front of the restaurant gazing through the huge full height viewing window and pretend you're driving the ship.

Plus on a recent crossing we took, as soon as the catering manager realised the coffee machine was knackered he went around handing out replacement drinks to those who'd already got coffees and hadn't whinged yet. I have no complaints about them - and there's less of a chance of acquiring unwanted hitch-hikers at Dunkirk than Calais.

 

[robnchris]

You must be unlucky in who you dealt with, this year we changed our ferry ports and crossing dates, DFDS were fantastic, no extra charge and only took about 10 mins on the phone to sort out.
We are well impressed with them and will use them again if only for their excellent customer service.

 

[Dorwyn]

What this thread does highlight is the difference in customer response created by short sighted money grabbing versus sensible customer relations.

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[tacr2man]

They are not the cheapest these days and I have tried to get an earlier booking back and they wanted £60. But my biggest grumble with DFDS is that when you try and book for a 7m van with a bike rack you have to pay for 10m that is a huge increase from 7m and since they brought that in I have stopped using them

I spoke to them via chat about making on line booking as their vehicle size only goes to 10mtrs and i needed 12mtrs so they said just book 10mtr +2mtr trailer seemed fair enough to me . When I went from UK got there a bit early as M25 was fairly fluid and they moved me up to earlier (more expensive sailing) FOC .

 

[TCG]

I know they are all guilty of charging for changes and although I'm sure it's all covered in their T&C's it don't make it right.
It not as though they have to go through any paper/ticket/sales invoices. It all on computer and take seconds to amend/change a booking.
It's no real hardship to land in Dunkirk instead of Calais -- it's the any excuse to charge extra attitude that revs me up.

But bottom line is you screwed up your booking, not them, therefore you pay for your mistake, it is only 16 quid after all hardly going to break the bank

 

[Yorick]

You must be unlucky in who you dealt with

Maybe they wait until the end of the chat to decide if the customer is rude. Then they giggle and say NO CHARGE if the customer was friendly

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[cakey]

In the days of Norfolk Line we used to travel down to Dijon and back 5/6 times a year. Hardly ever turned up for the ferry we were booked on, we were always early, never a problem. After DFDS took over on our second trip with them, as usual we turned up early. Presented the docs and apologised for being early, to which she replied that's ok that will be £120 please. If I remember rightly it was a winter special and I had paid £19 each way. I said you must be joking, she said yes it is a lot isn't it I will speak to my manager. She came back, good news I can do it for£69. These were amendment costs to an existing booking. Ok what will it cost me to make a new booking on the next ferry? 49 euro's. Haven't travelled with them since

 

[Richard n Ann]

Anyway doesn't "spitting feathers" mean you're thirsty? And "spitting blood" means you're angry?
Maybe it depends where in the country you are.

 

[Bognor Saint]

On the tunnel it asks if you have a bike rack , but as far as I know doesn't charge if you have.

Correct.

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[MR. FUSION]

As we don't have any Tesco vouchers left at the moment we thought we try DFDS ferry for the first time in 20 years. All done last night and £50 cheaper. Then I noticed I'd mistakenly chosen a sailing to Dunkirk - easily done if you look at there sailing choices. I contacted them this morning to make the change to Calais sailing.

Dover] to accept invitation to chat ...
11:51:23 AM Dover: Invitation to chat with Dover has been accepted by Sam B
11:51:24 AM Samantha B: Hello, how can I help?
11:52:31 AM Alexander McLean: Hi I booked a crossing yesterday but failed to notice I had chosen a sailing to Dunkirk. I need to change it to Calais
11:52:59 AM Samantha B: Hello Alexander can i take the booking number from you please and i will check this for you
11:53:31 AM Alexander McLean: 16126815
11:54:21 AM Samantha B: I have a 16.50 or 18.20 on the Dover to Calais crossing ?
11:54:49 AM Alexander McLean: 18.20 Please
11:56:32 AM Samantha B: To change the booking it would be an additional 16.00 pound
11:59:07 AM Alexander McLean: You are joking!!!! So much for customer service - Robbing bleeders spring to mind. Dunkirk is only 25 minutes a way so I'll drive it. Thanks for nothing and be aware your pettiness has lost you another good customer

Not happy. A £64 crossing is OK ------- an extra £16 isn't

I suggest you don't have a look at their prices from Newcastle, you might need oxygen.......

 

[Deleted member 29692]

On the tunnel it asks if you have a bike rack , but as far as I know doesn't charge if you have.

I think it does charge but not enough to make it worth getting excited about.

 

[Deleted member 29692]

Maybe they wait until the end of the chat to decide if the customer is rude. Then they giggle and say NO CHARGE if the customer was friendly

Many many companies do exactly that. I certainly do.

There’s a sign over the bar in our local that says “service may vary according to my mood and your attitude”

Non-locals think it’s there as a joke.

It isn’t.

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[PhilG]

DFDS are cheap as chips, never had a an issue changing a booking , turned up in wrong vehicles and all sorts, never been charged extra, never been made to wait.

I always take Dunkirk over Calais. No brainer for me . Never waited more than 10 mins to check in.

 

[gus-lopez]

DFDS are cheap as chips, never had a an issue changing a booking , turned up in wrong vehicles and all sorts, never been charged extra, never been made to wait.

+1

 

[Crazylegs]

DFDS are cheap as chips, never had a an issue changing a booking , turned up in wrong vehicles and all sorts, never been charged extra, never been made to wait.

I always take Dunkirk over Calais. No brainer for me . Never waited more than 10 mins to check in.

Been using DFDS for years when we were racing cars in Europe, they are consistently cheaper than P and O and indeed the tunnel. We have turned up early and late and I honestly think the difference between getting asked to pay more and getting on the next ferry is simply being pleasant and smiling at the person in the kiosk.

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[PhilG]

Been using DFDS for years when we were racing cars in Europe, they are consistently cheaper than P and O and indeed the tunnel. We have turned up early and late and I honestly think the difference between getting asked to pay more and getting on the next ferry is simply being pleasant and smiling at the person in the kiosk.

Agreed. Always book late ferries , and stop in Dunkirk when you get off, not drive down to Dover , rather than park up and wait for the dearer boat. Only time i had any issues was when we bought 6 people back that we hadnt took over , and even that wasnt bad, just made 2 pay foot passenger and put the rest on with the vehicle.

I did get bored of the same boat all the time , but went P&O with someone else , and suddenly it wasnt so bad.

 

[mfw]

When i look at dover calais or dunkirk travel to dunkirk is always cheaper

 

[SuperMike]

I swim over pulling the motorhome on a raft via a rope in my teefff. Dead cheap and good exercise.

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[emjaiuk]

I think it does charge but not enough to make it worth getting excited about.

Length is irrelevent on the Tunnel, I think the bike rack question is more to do with height.

Malcolm

 

[Deleted member 29692]

Length is irrelevent on the Tunnel, I think the bike rack question is more to do with height.

Malcolm

More than likely yes.

They do charge for a trailer though so length isn't completely irrelevant

 

[gus-lopez]

I assume when they ask have you a bike rack, they mean with bikes on it ?

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[CazPaul]

16 quid a fair price, like has been said you should try a quote from Newcastle, you can enjoy a weeks holiday for the price of the bleeding overnight ferry.

And we just turned up at the port once to come back to the UK, I am still having sleepless nights about the cost.

 

[Barclaybasher]

Use DFDS for Newhaven - Dieppe - basic but cheap, always found changing crossings easy (phone French number)

.........my change......extra charge, no problem

 

[two]

Plan B: When you get to Dover, see if they can let you transfer to a Calais crossing.

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[Zigisla]

I assume when they ask have you a bike rack, they mean with bikes on it ?

Hopefully they do. My bike rack is fitted but not used and I always - for the two occasions I have been abroad, said no to a bike rack without issue.

 

[Stealaway]

16 quid a fair price, like has been said you should try a quote from Newcastle, you can enjoy a weeks holiday for the price of the bleeding overnight ferry.

And we just turned up at the port once to come back to the UK, I am still having sleepless nights about the cost.

I don't consider £16 a fair price not when it can be done at the press of button on a keyboard, even if they have to look at a couple of pages. It's no skin off their nose to let you travel any time if there's room on the boat, but no - they love taking advantage of your mistakes / problem.

 

[pyro]

Try changing a prebooked flight with any airline, and it will cost you a lot more than £16

I understand the frustration, but I tend to regard £16 as small change against the other costs involved in motorhoming

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[Stealaway]

What about an extra £100 on top of the £84 we had paid for a return ticket on Eurotunnel because my wife needed urgent treatment on a broken crown. The train was half empty but did they care - No robbing bleeders

 

[two]

I made a hasty booking a couple of years ago and, whilst returning to adjust the time of the outward sailing, did not notice that the date had reverted to the earliest one available. Got there at the appointed time but “a week late” and was charged an additional £90 for an immediate ticket. If I’d had the presence of mind, I might have gone online and booked another ticket for a later trip and saved some of that. Of course, a flexible ticket might overcome such problems, if you keep repeating such errors, but they would cost you more than £16 each way.

 

[Dorwyn]

I never book a return since I never quite know which will be the most suitable return route, but find that if I leave it till 2 or 3 days before I start back it does not cost any more than if I had booked the return at the outset. But if you turn up and want to travel that day they really sting you. The only thing against that is that some breakdown or travel insurance companies will not repatriate you if you do not book a return at the outset. I have no experience of that but it was pointed out to me by an insurance broker. I am not stuck on the Dover/Folkestone route since I live in the south west and normally use the western route to SW France, which gives me a choice of ports and (limited) choice of ferry companies.

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