One4all and all for one extra hefty fee per voucher

A PriceWatch reader from Cabinteely contacted us after he came across what he describes as "ridiculously high" fees associated with gift vouchers he had planned to purchase from An Post.

Mark Dodd went into his local post office to purchase three One4All gift vouchers, two for €50 each, and one for €40. "The person behind the counter advised me that this would cost €145.50: the cost of the vouchers plus €5.50 in charges. This surprised me somewhat as nowhere in any promotional material from the Gift Voucher Shop have I seen reference to additional charges on their vouchers." He was in for a bigger surprise when he asked how the charges were broken down. "I was told that it was €2.50 for the first €50 voucher, which is ridiculously high in my opinion, and 50 cent for each additional voucher of this denomination. There was also a second €2.50 charge for the €40 voucher because it was for a different amount," he writes.

"Never have I heard of such a ludicrous pricing policy for vouchers, both in terms of having a different charge when you purchase more than one voucher of a given denomination and for insisting on the full charge when purchasing a voucher for a different amount at the same time. I was so annoyed by this that I left the post office without buying the vouchers and I hope that other customers do the same," he says.

We contacted An Post, which runs the service, seeking an explanation of these charges.

This is not the first time readers have complained about the charges associated with An Post's gift vouchers and last time we were in touch with them we were promised that the payment system was to be revamped.

The good news is that the system has indeed been improved and our reader was misinformed and overcharged when he went to purchase the vouchers. The price he should have been quoted was €2 for the first €50 voucher plus 50 cent for each additional voucher regardless of the denomination.

"It seems to have been a mistake," an An Post spokesman said. "It is not the case that he would have had to pay €2.50 for the €40 voucher. If that is how much he was charged then it was a mistake and we are sorry," he said.

The spokesman also said our reader could have purchased one €140 voucher and would have only incurred a single charge of €2 although then he would not have been able to give the vouchers to more than one person.

Disgusted that direct debits are de rigeur

Frank Byrne is another reader who has been annoyed by NTL's decision to levy a €2 tariff on people who choose not to pay their bills through direct debit. "As someone who pays bills the second they arrive, perhaps I could get an explanation of why NTL wants to impose a ludicrous levy to thank me for being such a good customer," he asks.

"I am given to understand that NTL wishes to minimise cash transactions and ensure a healthy revenue flow.

"That's fine and dandy but as we live in a society where cash is still legal tender, surely I should not be browbeaten and bullied into a method of payment that does not suit me."

He points out that it is not about the fee amount but about the the principle and expresses the hope that sanity will prevail and the company will rescind their pre-Christmas decision. "In the meantime," he writes, "I am researching the competition".

Bristling at high cost of shaving gel

Malachy O'Connor was prompted to get in touch after reading our recent review of shaving gels including a good but very expensive product from L'Occitane. The gel has a price tag of €19.95 for 150ml in Dublin but according to O'Connor it sells in all L'Occitane shops in Paris for just €11.

Going nuts about economies of scale

David McCarthy sent us an e-mail after spotting some nuts pricing in his local Tesco. While in the supermarket recently he decided to buy his occasional snack of cashew nuts. While Tesco usually sell these in 150g packs with a price tag of €1.99, when he went looking for them there were none in stock so he went for a 300g pack. "You'd be forgiven for thinking a larger pack would be cheaper - but no, it was €4.79! An extra 81 cent! Someone ought to teach those geezers economies of scale," he writes.