SOUNDING OFF:We had a huge response from readers to the item on the ongoing, and inexplicable, discrepancies that exist between the euro and sterling price in many retailers which operate in both the Republic and the UK. Here are just some of them.
Downhill deal
"I stumbled upon another example of hefty overcharging with Crystal Ski. Using their www.crystalski.co.uk site for a week in Austria at the end of February, the cost for three people departing from Belfast came to £1,485. Booking the same holiday (from Belfast) on their www.crystalski.ie website cost €2,206." Niall
Politics and patriotism
"I have decided to utterly ignore the advice of Irish politicians who appeal to a misguided sense of patriotism to allow retailers to profiteer off Irish customers, and have bought several items from UK stores online. In my opinion, retailers here will not learn the lesson easily, and the government is not going to give the Competition Authority teeth anytime soon." Anurag Garg
Pizza sliced
"Adverts are currently airing on Irish domestic TV channels for Domino's Pizza's '888 Deal', wherein three pizzas can be bought for the bargain basement price of €8 each. Alas, the Domino's bosses didn't bank on us seeing the UK advert on British satellite channels, where the same deal is known as the '555 Deal' (three pizzas for £5.55 each). Now, shouldn't Irish residents – based on today's conversion rate – be getting this deal for €5.49 per pizza?" Damian
Overpriced underwear
"I was shopping for underwear in Liffey Valley last Saturday. In M&S, a pack of boxers were €23, but they were £15 in the North when I was there over the New Year. But it was Next that took the biscuit – €30 for a pack, but it said £15 under the label. I was so mad I decided to take my business elsewhere and that is what we should all be doing right now." James Russell
TV or not TV
"I wanted to buy a 32" Samsung LCD, so I checked the price in Currys in Blanchardstown. It was priced at €799. However, I had checked Curry's website before going to the store and it was £549. The shop assistant agreed that it was a massive difference, but couldn't explain why there was such a disparity. So anyway, the following weekend, we drove to Newry and bought the TV. With the exchange rate almost at parity, we saved more than €220, minus the petrol." Martin Hughes
Not so Dandy
"Last Saturday I purchased a copy of the Dandy magazine for my son in Easons. The price as advertised in sterling was £1.99. At the point of purchase, I was charged €3.23. No euro price was on the magazine when I picked it up, and with a long queue behind me and an agitated nine-year-old in tow, I paid the asking price, but not before questioning the huge price discrepancy. The till operators said they thought it was 'disgraceful' and have been 'getting stick about it for months'." Brian
Genuine service
"I got my BMW serviced in the North last week after I was quoted a price of 'at least €500' for the same service at two BMW dealerships in Dublin. The price that I paid for the service on my credit card statement was €280. The service is exactly the same, recorded on the same central system, as it is a European-wide service database. On that day, I got there early to avail of the express service for business users – and was greeted with a friendly smile. I handed over the key and sat in their comfortable customer waiting area, had a latte and scone, used their wireless broadband to catch up on some e-mails, watched a bit of TV on their 46" LCD – though I didn't manage to have a game on the Playstation (I was working – honest!). I was kindly and politely offered another coffee a while later – before I knew it, two hours had passed and was given my key back. Got into my serviced car, and was delighted as they even did a mini valet too! I'm going up there again soon as I need four new tyres." Conor
