Five sneaky fees to avoid while going on holiday this summer – from car rental rip-offs to paying for seats

The Sun

19-07-2025

SNEAKY charges from airlines, hotels and car rental firms could catch you out this summer.
From unnecessary car insurance add-ons to paying for seats when you don't have to, you could end up forking out hundreds of pounds needlessly.
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Which? travel expert Jo Rhodes warns: 'It's easy to get stung by lots of extra fees, all of which can really push up the cost of your holiday.'
Blathnaid Corless explains how to avoid five common holiday bill cash traps.
PREPARE FOR AIRPORT PARKING
THE cost of parking at the airport can easily wipe hundreds of pounds from your holiday budget.
Book your space in advance to save money.
It costs up to £416 a week if you pay on arrival, but you can save up to £362 if you book in advance at Britain's biggest five airports, according to moneysavingexpert.com.
Finding a car park nearby could be even cheaper — and you could be even closer to the terminal.
You can save up to £60 by choosing an off-site car park compared to one on the airport grounds, according to Holiday Extras, based on two weeks' parking at Heathrow in September.
Beware of being charged an overstay fee if you pick up your car late.
Stansted, the most expensive, charges up to £67 per day, followed by Liverpool which costs up to £35, and Bristol Airport which will set you back up to £30.
If you are late because of a delayed or cancelled flight, you may be able to claim the charge from your airline or travel insurer.
Martin Lewis warns about strict passport rule that could see you board your flight - only to get sent home on arrival
It was revealed by the RAC this week that 11 of the UK's busiest airports have hiked the prices of their 'kiss and fly' parking, with drivers being charged up to £7 just to drop off their loved ones.
If you want to avoid the fee, some airports have free park-and-ride options — but give yourself extra time to get to the terminal.
SIT TOGETHER…FOR FREE
MANY airlines will charge you if you want to select your own seats and sit next to your loved ones.
WizzAir's website says it can cost up to £147.74 per person, per flight to sit together.
Ryanair passengers can reserve seats for an added fee of up to £38 per flight, while easyJet charges customers up to £29.99.
But if you book tickets together, most airlines - except Ryanair - will usually sit you next to each other anyway.
The trick is to not pay for seats when booking a flight, and check in online as early as you can to boost chances of sitting together.
'If you're travelling as a family, airlines typically seat young children next to at least one parent,' said Hannah Mayfield from travel insurance site PayingTooMuch.
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WIPE HUNDREDS FROM CAR HIRE
CAR rental companies often try to catch you out with extra fees for services you may not need.
These last-minute add-ons can add as much as £452 to the cost of a week-long rental, according to icarhireinsurance.com.
Excess protection, which protects drivers from large excess fees if the car is damaged or stolen, is the most expensive add-on.
Rental companies charge an average of £189 for this, but it can be bought from specialist providers for as little as £3.49 a day.
Some firms also allow for free cancellations, so you can make your booking and then rebook at a later date if the price has fallen.
Ben Wooltorton from icarhireinsurance.com said: 'Arranging standalone excess reimbursement before travel could save you hundreds.'
Beware of charges for sat navs — which can add £72 — by bringing your own or using a free map app on your phone.
If you're taking the kids, bring a car seat, as hiring them from a car rental company can cost from £7 per day.
AVOID OVERWEIGHT BAG FEES
IF your suitcase is too heavy but you need all you have packed, don't wait to get hit with overweight baggage fees at the airport.
Some airlines let you add on extra kilos to hold luggage up until hours before your flight — which is far cheaper than charges at the kiosk.
You pay overweight fees separately for flights there and back.
For example, easyJet allows passengers to add additional weight in increments of up to £15 per 3kg to their hold luggage up to two hours before their flight, even after they've checked in.
At the airport, you will have to pay £12 for every kilogram overweight.
So if your suitcase is 3kg over, you will end up paying £72 at the airport for both trips, but if you paid online, it would cost you a maximum of £30 — saving you £42.
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REMEMBER TOURIST TAX
DON'T be caught out by tourist tax, which many countries now charge.
This is normally added to hotel bills.
Countries that charge visitors the fee include Spain, Greece, Italy, France and Thailand.
How much you will pay varies on where you are holidaying.
For example, if travelling to Greece for a week over the summer, you'll pay €8 (£6.94) extra per night, which works out at almost £50.
These cover the cost of amenities such as pools, gyms and wi-fi.
Which? warns they could add hundreds of pounds to the cost of a stay.
Factor them into your budget so you don't get a surprise bill you may not be able to afford.
RISE OF THE JOB SCAMMER
LLOYDS has warned of a huge rise in job scams that could see you lose thousands of pounds.
The banking giant has reported a 237 per cent increase in incidents where criminals pretended to be recruiters to trick victims into handing over money, since the start of the year.
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Those targeted have lost an average of £1,420, but seven per cent of victims have lost over £5,000 in the past six months.
And 53 per cent of all victims were aged 18 to 34.
Fraudsters contact victims on WhatsApp posing as recruiters, or post fake job listings on social media sites.
They will offer commissions and high pay for easy tasks you can often do from home, such as liking TikTok videos or reviewing hotels online.
Victims are then told to pay upfront fees, for training or DBS checks, for example.
Scams will ramp up when crooks ask you pay for upgrades so you can earn more money, or a payment that needs to be made in order to get a commission.
Some victims are even manipulated into forwarding money on to other accounts, unwittingly becoming a money mule.
Liz Ziegler from Lloyds said these scams are 'evolving rapidly' and victims are left 'financially and emotionally drained'.
If a job ad lists easy roles for high pay, it could be too good to be true.
No legitimate company would ask for payments when you apply for a job.
Avoid 'opportunities' where you are added to unknown apps or group chats.
LUCY ANDREWS
LITES OUT AT SANTANDER
SANTANDER is pulling the plug on its 123 Lite current account, leaving hundreds of thousands of customers in the lurch.
The account, which stopped accepting new applicants in 2022, has been a lifeline for bill payers, offering up to £15 monthly cashback for a £2 fee.
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But from August 21, customers will be switched automatically to Santander's Everyday Current Account, which has no fee but lacks cashback perks.
A Santander spokesperson said the decision was part of a wider effort to simplify the bank's product range.
If you want cashback perks, Santander's Edge account could be an option.
It offers one per cent cashback on certain household bills and debit card spending at supermarkets, petrol stations and on travel, capped at £10 per month with a £3 monthly fee.
For a higher cashback limit the Santander Edge Up account costs £5 and allows you to earn up to £15 per month on both bills and debit card spending.
To keep these accounts active, Edge customers must deposit at least £500 per month, while Edge Up users need to pay in £1,500 a month.
But from September 9, both accounts will no longer offer cashback on supermarket, fuel, and travel spending.
If you are chasing higher rewards, American Express's fee-free Cashback Everyday Credit Card gives five per cent cashback on purchases for the first five months (up to £125).
JAMES FLANDERS