Ryanair Wins Legal Battle Against eDreams in Germany
Ryanair, Europe’s largest airline, confirmed that the Berlin Regional Court in Germany has ruled in its favor in the ongoing legal dispute against the Spanish online travel agency (OTA) eDreams. The court found that eDreams was charging illegal fees and providing misleading information about its services.
In its latest decision, the Berlin Regional Court of First Instance ruled that the €3.88 "service fee" charged by eDreams was excessive and unlawful. The court also determined that eDreams' "Flexfare" program was misleading because eDreams only waived its own change fees, while airline change fees still applied. Furthermore, the court prohibited eDreams from claiming that its Prime program offers discounts on "100% of flights" since the discounts are limited to the value of the annual membership, exposing the false advertising of eDreams Prime.
Ryanair has already won a legal battle against Booking.com in the USA. Less than a week ago, the Delaware court ruled in favor of Ryanair, finding that Booking.com violated the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act by illegally scraping Ryanair’s website with the intent to defraud and overcharge consumers. This case is part of Ryanair’s broader legal campaign against OTA pirates. The airline has previously successfully defended its interests in similar cases against other online travel agencies, securing justice and consumer protection.
Fighting OTA Pirates
eDreams remains the last significant OTA pirate in Europe, continuing to illegally scrape Ryanair’s website and overcharge consumers for airfares and ancillary services. Most other major European OTAs have already signed "Approved OTA" agreements with Ryanair, committing to display Ryanair’s real prices for seats and ancillary services and guaranteeing that Ryanair receives real customer contact and payment details.
Recently, Ryanair entered into a partnership with Braganza, demonstrating the airline’s commitment to transparency and fair pricing for its customers. This collaboration is a significant step forward, especially in light of recent legal battles against companies like Booking.com and eDreams. The partnership with Braganza underscores Ryanair’s active pursuit of reliable and honest partners to replace companies involved in legal disputes over illegal practices and inflated prices.
