From ‘LID-ill or LEED-ill?’ to bargain canoes: 25 lessons from Lidl’s 25 years in Ireland
We used to sneer, but the German discounter came into its own after the economic crash
Pricewatch
Conor Pope's Pricewatch column
Would you want to be woken for an in-flight meal of rubbery pasta?
The world is split into those who prefer to be woken and those who’d rather slumber
A sleeping passenger goes hungry on an Aer Lingus flight across the Atlantic
“maybe they are hoping I will die before they have to respond”
After being scammed out of €1,850, finding a human to speak to in Revolut proved impossible
‘It feels like the system is built to exhaust people into giving up’
‘When do new rental rules take effect?’ ‘Can I be asked to move out now?’ Your tenant and landlord questions answered
We recently invited readers to submit queries on incoming rental changes. Here’s a selection of them, with our responses
‘I fell ill days before my €1,200 holiday. We got €130 back’
A couple could not go on their first mini break without their children in 20 years due to illness
An Aer Lingus passenger’s 26-hour trek home, and eventual refund
Being stuck at Newcastle airport in an uncomfortably hot aircraft was the least of Gerry’s worries
Airtricity account moves from arrears to credit to arrears to credit and back to arrears again
Pricewatch receives another story of smart metres going awry
‘I paid Three and Sky for broadband services but got neither’
Caoimhe’s landlord put the kibosh on her initial broadband installation plans
‘You can now carry your shopping if you spend €50-€60. That’s absolutely crazy’
Shrinkflation, the perception that real inflation is way ahead of official figures and unhealthy food being the most discounted are among readers’ complaints
Ireland’s grocery prices are still soaring. How can that be?
The cost-of-living crisis is still being felt painfully in the weekly shop, yet the consumer protection watchdog has found no evidence of price gouging
Sky Television ‘seems happy to take advantage’ of my trusting, elderly aunt
Pricewatch receives two similar stories connected to Sky Television involving older people
Where in the world is the freezer a school bought from Currys?
Delivery driver ‘called our school caretaker’ to arrange imminent delivery which never arrived
Is Currys in line for the worst customer care story of 2025?
Three rounds of repairs failed to fix a flashing and flickering laptop screen
Summer holiday checklist - 25 ways to ‘save not spend’ in the days ahead
A small amount of preparation and financial forward thinking will stand you well as you prepare for your getaway this year
‘I’ve paid Eir €3,000 more than I needed to, can I get a refund?’
The price of being switched to an out-of-contract rate when your deal term ends can be high
How one reader was scammed through an offer of a lavish birthday hamper
Scammers replicated website of cosmetics retailer Rituals and sent email offering free birthday gift
An Aer Lingus customer trying to get €530 she is owed by airline: ‘I feel like I’m losing my mind’
Transaction would not go through on the Aer Lingus website, so the customer did it over the phone instead
Is the Tesco self-scan being policed more ruthlessly?
Galway Tesco customer says she had 87 items in her shopping trolley unpacked and re-scanned by staff
‘I am really disappointed in how Aer Lingus treats customers when things go wrong’
Some things airlines can’t control, but how they handle situations is well within their control
‘Disrespectful’: Reader annoyed by Panda’s response to ‘unannounced’ bin plan change
Long-time Panda customer was on a pay-by-weight plan — until he discovered he’d been moved to a monthly charge without notice
An Ikea case study: A reader’s extractor hood stopped working. This is what he did next
Andy first contacted Ikea in January, but a resolution seemed further away than ever – until Pricewatch stepped in
Travel insurance and car hire for your holiday: An essential guide
Q&A: How to secure the best deals and avoid the sneaky tricks some companies try to pull
‘Wrong on so many levels’: are we paying too much for our drugs to be dispensed?
A reader wonders if pharmacies’ reluctance to dispense more than a month of a longer prescription at a time is down to maximising prescription fees
The Eircom shares debacle: ‘I spent €5,000. They are now worth less than €500′
An email from frustrated shareholder Daniel raises an interesting idea about what to do about ‘nuisance’ shares and the endless paper they continue to waste
Decking, doughnuts and jogging: 25 fads that have been big in Ireland
When’s the last time you went for a jog? Or slipped on your decking in your slanket while listening to your ghetto blaster?
‘I have no access to my pensions’: Overseas readers locked out of their AIB and BoI accounts
Two readers complain about being locked out of their Irish accounts from overseas. Sometimes the banks’ response can seem over the top - but not always
‘Collins Kildare’ is not the only Irish-sounding website selling suspect items
A number of readers had similar experiences with ‘Murray-Dublin’ and ‘Aidens Kildare’
Ryanair dismisses hundreds of reader baggage experiences as misinformed ‘hearsay’
We heard from hundreds of readers who insisted that what Ryanair had told us was false. Here are just some of those stories
No dress and no refund: A reader’s saga ordering clothes online from an ‘Irish’ firm that used stock images for staff photos
The Irish people behind Collins Kildare, at least according to its website, also appear to moonlight as stock photography models
GoCar charges almost €2,000 when rental car breaks down after 30 minutes
‘I could neither reverse nor go forward ... The following day, two sums of money, €287 and €1,650, were removed from my account’
Has Ryanair started penalising people with carry-on luggage?
The airline tell us we are ‘as usual, misinformed’ but three separate people have had the same experience
Cost of living: ‘You are going to see €5 lattes in Ireland by the end of the year’
Cost of living: our basket of goods has climbed by 33 per cent in three years
Paperless bills: Attaching a pdf to an email ‘should be mandatory’
The requirement to log into an online portal means many customers never check their bills
Crosswords & Puzzles
Crosswords & puzzles to keep you challenged and entertained
Common Ground
How does a post-Brexit world shape the identity and relationship of these islands
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