Ferry charges

[wmw]

Can someone enlighten me as to why there is a charge to take a pet on a ferry crossing when they are not allowed out of the car? I have recently been in communication with SeaFrance and as yet have received no logical explanation! We have taken our Jack Russell to France several times and, on more than one occasion, our fares have been cheaper than his!! 

[Will]

It is probably because carriers have to be licensed under the pet passport scheme, which costs them, and also because there is a degree of extra administration work involved, especially on the France-UK leg. Animals have to be regularly checked during the voyage, and often a crew member is assigned to taking passengers to see their pets (alongside their other duties). At least one ferry company provides kennels on some ships. All of these things have to be paid for in some way.

Eurotunnel, where pets and passengers stay together, does not charge for pets UK-France but makes a (I think) £30 charge in the other direction.

The conspirancy theorists will no doubt say that it's a money-making cartel by the ferry companies to take advantage of gullible passengers.

[Fay]

Yes, Eurotunnel charges £30 for the France-UK trip, but nothing for the UK-France route. The check-in operation takes about 2 minutes (verify microchip number, check vet's treatment details on passport, ask for numberplate and write it on a sticky label for the windscreen) so actually you seem to be getting more 'value for money' from the ferry!

[PaulT]

[quote user="Fay"]Yes, Eurotunnel charges £30 for the France-UK trip, but nothing for the UK-France route. The check-in operation takes about 2 minutes (verify microchip number, check vet's treatment details on passport, ask for numberplate and write it on a sticky label for the windscreen) so actually you seem to be getting more 'value for money' from the ferry![/quote]

And, with Eurotunnel, you are the one that scans the pet with the scanner!

[YCCMB]

Sometimes..........and sometimes they do it for you!  However, I wonder how much it costs them to have a staff of between 1 and 4 people in the pet centre 24/7, and to have people who are willing to spend the time phoning and faxing vets all over France, and sometimes Spain and Italy, to get details of the exact time of treatments administered, or to clarify anomalies in passports, etc.,etc??? From my experience of seeing just how many people run into problems from not arriving with the correct documents or information, I can imagine that the cost to Eurotunnel of providing the service is probably only just offset by the charge made to passengers! In any case, however much you are charged, it's a tiny fraction of the price of leaving an animal in kennels or catteries for any length of time.

[Fay]

True, and so much nicer for both pet and owner! I wouldn't have my place if she couldn't come with me.

[johnys]

We take our 4 Old English Sheepdogs to France at least twice a year by ferry at a cost of £30 each, i have always been refused to go and check on the dogs during the voyage and to my knowledge no one else does, i scan the dogs, they only check the passport date and time of the treatment at the French vet, there is no seperate person doing the checks same person checks my passport, money for nothing but isnt that the way in the uk, my French vet says its a waste of time and money.

John

[johnys]

Betty just re read your post  i'm afraid they dont ring, fax or communicate in any way with vets throughout europe if the date and time of treatment isnt on the dogs passport you dont get on the ferry its as simple and as blunt as that ,the onus is on you to make sure everything is in order or get it done again and wait the required time which is between 24 and 48 hours before you are allowed to board

John

[Fay]

I really don't see the problem here.

When we are in France my cat doesn't go walkabout so - and one can never be 100% about anything - will not have been bitten, picked up a tick, eaten a wormy bird etc. However, I am happy to pay my bit towards an infrastructure that ensures that someone else's cat or dog or ferret which may have done so does not come into the UK in a contagious state.

Goes without saying that it's up to me to make sure my vet has filled in her passport correctly.

[Hotspur]

Oh but they do. Before passports came in, our vet made a single digit error writing the chip number down. They faxed both our vet and DEFRA to ensure we caught our shuttle.

This Christmas, a French owner in front of us had an old style Passport which did not include her dog's chip number. The staff arranged an appointment with a local vet to issue a new passport for the then rather distraught owner, who thought she would have to leave her precious Fifi (or whatever) behind.

[Fay]

Hi Hotspur, thank goodness there's one less thing to worry about with the new passports, in that the vet doesn't have to write down the lengthy chip number each time!

When Pye's second passport was issued I checked that all the info on the old one (inc chip number) had been accurately transcribed - another good reason for being allowed to hang on to the old one. When I got her first passport I did even check that the chip number was written correctly, because I was so nervous about things going wrong!

But each time we do the vet visit ready to come back from France to the UK I am very careful to check that vet writes the date and time correctly and stamps it.Date and time (and year, at this time of year) seem to be the bits that can go pear shaped.

I do also check that they are using the 'usual' drops (Profender and Frontline) as I know that only certain ones are Defra approved. Were they to produce something new I would query it.

Paranoid possibly, but, like you, I have seen frantic, weeping pet owners at the check-in and have no wish ever to be one of them!