Brittany Ferries - Problems With Recumbents

[richardgarth]

I am doing a round trip with friends this summer. Brittany Ferries Plymouth to Roscoff, cycle to Santander and Brittany Ferries back to Plymouth. I will be on a recumbent trike but everyone else will be on gravel bikes.
Everyone else is being charged about £25 to take bikes in the ferry but I am being charged £200. They would only book it as a motorbike! They did this last time I used the ferry and the crew could not understand why, as my trike was stored with all the road bikes.
I have emailed customer services (as suggested by the booking staff) but have had no response after two and a half months despite chasing them up.
I think it is an unreasonable charge for a bike I could pick up and carry onboard, and that they will handle like all the other cycles. It takes up no more space as it interleaves with the other bikes. They also seem to have very poor customer service.
Has anyone else experienced problems with them?

[Navrig]

How do they know it is different from a usual bike? If you tell them at booking then don't. Just book a bike and turn up.

[tatanab]

This has been raised before, a search of this forum might reveal previous occasions. Their booking system assumes it is a huge VW powered monster that takes the space of a car. Since they do not use the term "pedal cycle" but only "bike", then book under bike. I have taken my upright trike on Brittany Ferries (not that route) many times, probably at least 40 times, with no issues at all. The same applies to many of my upright tricycling club mates, not just me.

[simonineaston]

Everyone else is being charged about £25 to take bikes in the ferry but I am being charged £200.

Ouch... BF have always "known what to charge", cannily marketing their service as "your holiday starts here", but now their attitude that cyclists were effectively just foot passengers and so just make-weights seems to be a thing of the past. Without wishing to annoy all and sundry I recall with moist eye, the times I used to waft down to Plymouth in the super-economical diesel Citrōen, Moulton lying in its expansive boot, park up in the empty ground adjacent to the ferry port offices, bumble onto the boat and do the cross for about twenty quid return and enjoy the silver service dinner and feel like I was somewhere proper posh... OK a night on the floor in one of the lounges didn't quite fit that exact bill, but bo-oh-boy, it was good vfm!

[richardgarth]

Thanks for your comments.
I have just received an apologetic reply from BF. There have agreed that recumbent trikes should not be charged as motor vehicles and refunded the difference. They also gave me a voucher for my previously overcharged crossings.
My mistake was being too honest when booking. I should have just said it was an ordinary bike rather than following their booking instructions. So, if anyone is booking a recumbent trike in the future just book it online as a bike.

[Jdsk]

Thanks for adding the solution.

Have a great trip.

Jonathan

[Grldtnr]

If you don't fit the standard with 'Brittany Ferries' you do get poor service.
I agree , a recumbent trike isn't any different to a standard bike in terms of convenience aboard.
I have had trouble booking with them before ,regards taking pedal cycles ,but that was during the 'Panic' demic, all cycles or foot passengers were not allowed.
Upshot is I won't cause BF , if I can help it, I also travel occasionally to Jersey via the Condor ferries ,which is part of it , booking problems there too.
Thankfully a new operator starts that route soon , cheaper too!