Dublin Airport’s Shocking Parking Overcharge Scandal: Are You Eligible for a Refund?

Ever wonder how a “flash sale” could flash right past fairness? Dublin Airport just found out the hard way — and now, 4,500 customers are cashing in on a refund of up to €350,000 after being overcharged for parking during not one, but two promotional sales earlier this year. Yep, you read that right. It turns out a flat €10 per day rate unintentionally bulldozed lower off-peak prices, leaving many travelers paying more than they bargained for. The Competition and Consumer Protection Commission didn’t just shrug it off either; they stepped in after consumers raised their voices, triggering a full internal review and a fat goodwill refund — plus a sweet 20% discount on future bookings. Makes you think—how often do we overlook the fine print during flashy promotions? Let’s dive into the details and see what lessons can be learned here. LEARN MORE

Dublin Airport is to refund 4,500 customers, who were overcharged for parking during ‘a flash sale’ earlier this year.

It is expected, the amount to be refunded could be as much as €350,000.

The issue came to light after a series of complaints were made by customers to the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC).

Dublin Airport admitted that during the two promotional campaigns – a ‘Holiday Blue Flash Sale’ in March and a ‘Long Term Car Parking Promotion’ in May – a pricing error occurred.

According to the airport, a flat €10 per day rate was applied across all eligible dates, which unintentionally overrode lower off-peak prices.

This resulted in around 4,500 customers being overcharged by a total of €25,000, with individual amounts ranging from €1 to €64.

Dublin Airport said that 90% of customers impacted were overcharged by less than €12, with an average overpayment of roughly €5.90.

It added that once the situation was flagged by the CCPC a full internal review was launched.

Affected customers will be refunded the total cost of their booking and not just the overcharged amount (totalling approximately €350,000) and offered a 20% discount on future car-park bookings as “a goodwill gesture”.

Dublin Airport chief executive Kenny Jacobs apologised for the overcharging and said the airport has “put new checks in place to make sure this doesn’t happen again”.

The CCPC said refunds will be issued directly to consumers within the next five to ten days.

Some of the consumer complaints received by the CCPC included a consumer who reported that the day before the sale, on 9 March, the price for 10 days’ parking was €83.

However, this rose to €110 for the same dates and duration in the sale. The consumer further informed the CCPC that when the sale ended, the price reverted to €83.

Another consumer told the CCPC they booked parking for a five-day stay during the sale at a cost of €60, and the price for the same parking was €56 after the sale ended.

“We welcome the swift action taken by daa following contact from the CCPC alerting it to potential breaches of consumer protection laws,” CCPC Chair Brian McHugh said.

“The CCPC was able to take this action thanks to consumers who took the time to report concerns about misleading sales pricing. All calls to the CCPC helpline are screened for potential breaches of consumer protection law and drive our enforcement and compliance activities,” Mr McHugh said.

“The flash sales coincided with the addition of a new competitor in the airport car park market. Active competition among businesses is vital to drive choice, better service and innovation.

“However, any promotions need to be grounded in real benefits to consumers,” he added.

Pic: Michael Chester