Man Legally Changes His Name Just To Avoid Airline Booking Error Fee

(Juan Rodriguez – PMI/LEPA)

Because you can’t just fly under anyone’s name, some airlines institute a fee for travelers seeking to change the name on their already purchased ticket to ward against reselling them for a profit. But not everyone wants to pay for mistakes, like one student who decided he’d rather spend the money to change his name and get a new passport than pay Ryanair to fix a booking error.

The 19-year-old changed his surname by deed poll and paid £103, The Sun reported (via MarketWatch), because it was cheaper than the £220 he would’ve had to pay to amend the name.

He says his girlfriend’s stepfather initiated the chain of events that led to his new moniker when he booked him a flight with the wrong last name, all because of a joke he made on Facebook. See, he’s a fan of a certain superhero, and goes by that hero’s name on Facebook, which is where his girlfriend’s father apparently got the name from.

“Customers are asked to ensure that the details they enter at the time of booking are correct before completing their booking and we offer a 24 hour ‘grace period’ to correct minor booking errors,” Ryanair said in a statement.

This man legally changed his name to avoid booking error fee on Ryanair [MarketWatch]

by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist