P&O Ferries hikes prices as Iran war puts holidays on brink
Leading ferry operator P&O Ferries is saddling holidaymakers with up to £50 surcharges as the Iran war threatens to derail Brits’ summer holidays.
P&O, which is owned by Dubai-based DP World, has said it will impose one-way surcharges of £27 per vehicle for its route between Hull and Rotterdam, meaning passengers will pay £54 more per round trip.
Vehicle surcharges of £7.50 will be dealt to those travelling between Dover and Calais or Northern Ireland and Scotland, while foot passengers will pay £2 more on these routes and £4 extra on a Hull-Rotterdam trip.
P&O said this move was taken to soften the blow of rising fuel costs caused by the Iran war and the blockade to the Strait of Hormuz.
The surcharges were imposed on March 9, and will apply to “all future bookings,” The Times has reported.
The ferry operator already charges a green energy levy of around £4 per vehicle.
Surcharges ‘bizzare’
P&O faced huge backlash after it sacked 800 workers in 2022, allegedly using a “legal loophole,” and threatened to pull £1bn of investment after ministers criticised the firm.
The boss of rival firm Brittany Ferries last month accused the travel industry of “profiteering” from the Iran war.
Chief executive Christophe Mathieu said airlines and ferry companies are taking advantage of the conflict to cancel journeys and put their prices up.
Matthieu told LBC News in April: “Of course, this fuel price is an item that is very important in the cost structure of any transport company.
“But the way of managing that normally is to hedge and we hedge in Brittany Ferries, therefore we are surprised.
“What I find bizarre is that at the moment there is no shortage and yet they’re already cancelling some flights, which is a bit bizarre.”
Iran war travel chaos
As many as two million seats have been lost due to the cancellation of 13,000 flights in May as a result of the conflict.
Airports in Istanbul, Turkey, and Munich, Germany, have seen the steepest drop-off in air traffic.
German airline Lufthansa has cut 20,000 short-haul flights, and Irish firm Aer Lingus has pulled hundreds of trips from its summer schedule.
IAG, the FTSE 100 owner of British Airways, has imposed fare surcharges in an attempt to recover £1.7bn of costs caused by the Iran war.
But this approach was criticised by London-listed airline and holiday package provider Jet2, who scrapped the surcharge provision in their contract to give assurance to customers.
Steve Heapy, chief executive of the Leeds-based airline, said last month: “Holidaymakers should have every right to book their hard-earned break in the sun, without worrying about being hit with additional costs.”