[FDOS_UK]

I understand that the Data Commissioner is having a look at the practice of scanning personal data from boarding cards.

What (if anything) will arise from their actions is unclear.

[railwayman1]

earlier this summer i thought that this practice was at last going to stop and Boots at stansted did change but shortly after this they stopped trading at stansted. not sure if this is temporary due to the on-going upgrade that the retail units are undergoing but WHS still seems to be checking BP’s. Just this weekend when returning through Dublin airport i went to get a newspaper and found that only the self service machines were in operation and none manning the till. i waited at the till to see if any staff would come over to serve me but to no avail. i therefore turned and left the newspaper back and left. i dont think WHS or others that insist on scanning BP’s before allowaing a purchase at airports will change until they are threatened with a law suit. i know some forum members will probably say that if we dont agree with their terms then they dont have to provide the service. theat may be the case on the high street where alternative options are available, however i would argue that at airport departure lounges where passengers are effectively captive then there should be a responsibility on the service provider not force the surrender of personal data against their wishes. i may be wrong but dont the aiports ( im thinking specifically Heathrow for one) get government funding to assist in the development of their premises which in a way means by us the tax payer. therefore we should have some rights when it comes to whether companies like WHS should be granted trading licences when they behave like this.

[747foreverforus]

I made purchases at both Boots and WHSmith last Wednesday at T5, no request to show BP at Boots, however when buying my paper at WHSmith the request was made via self service till, I then had to wait for an associate to come to the till point and enter a code, it’s surely not beyond the wit of anyone st WH Smith to rectify this?

[AsiaPacific]

Agree regards WH Smith comments and self service. I just see it as laziness and another example of arrogance on behalf of their management … un-acceptable in 2015 .

[MrMichael]

I do not think the machines at WHSmith still demanding a boarding card is laziness at all, it is kept operational for reasons of increasing profit by not paying VAT on items scanned with a boarding pass outside the EU. They pocket the 20%….thank you very much.

[JohnHarper]

IIRC the WHSmith machines are unable to read a mobile boarding pass so one way or another they need to have some sort of upgrade. They should in reality give people the choice to decline to scan if they wish.

[canucklad]

Friday lunchtime at EDI, and my mate goes off to buy some papers from the WH Smith.
Long queues for the check-outs , so my pal uses the self-service option and yep, me and my other mates had to put up with his moaning.
He couldn’t buy his papers, blah, blah, blah, bloody BP, blah, blah blah.

At one point EDI had an honesty box for paper purchases!!

[ImissConcorde]

I feel price rises coming on.

http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2015/dec/31/review-launched-airport-shops-found-not-pass-on-vat-savings

[SimonS1]

All designed to ensure a bit of popularity for Gideon at a time when the govt have issues looming.

My guess is it will all be swept under the carpet via one of those never ending reviews.

[canucklad]

After reading the article, two things immediately spring to mind. As he’s the chancellor why isn’t he pursuing the kept tax( his and ours) that was not passed on to us as savings. And secondly what balderdash the retailer’s spout out….what on earth does or has anybody taken advantage of a double difference price guarantee….

In my last post I talked about my mate’s travails at EDI buying his Daily Record….Why would the scanner ask for his BP. Surely it’s clever enough to know papers are VAT exempt. Or would that gives the game away !

Oh and spookily, just as I’m writing this, the subject is being spoken about on the radio. The government spokesman says they’re doing nothing illegal,just not keeping to the spirit of the rule change to pass on the savings….

[MarcusGB]

On Radio 4’s Today program this morning, it was stated, “There is NO legal obligation to show a boarding pass unless buying alcohol or Tobacco , and travelling outside of the EU!”

These stores are not passing on the VAT reduction, as they should, and The Government are starting an enquiry on this specific matter.

Meanwhile, i certainly shall just simply state, “There is no legal obligation for me to show a Boarding Pass, unless you take off the VAT!”

I think we should all make a stand on this fiddle and nonsense, when buying a newspaper alone. Even the WH smith machines want a boarding pass, and i am not doing this, simple.

[mkcol74]

While I laud your stand @MarcusGB (& others) there is a possibility that a retailer would then decline to sell you the item, given they have no obligation to sell you anything to you at all. A horrid Catch-22 :-/

[DavidGordon10]

mkcol – I just walk away, and simply never give in to this scam. I make sure I never get to the airport missing something I really need. The lies that retailers have told, and the racket they are running, should just not be tolerated.

I first rebelled many years ago when I was asked for a boarding pass when buying a bar of soap on my way to Prague. The retailers should be deeply ashamed of themselves for asking young staff members to tell blatant lies about boarding passes.

[MartinJ]

Surely it is tax fraud to charge VAT but not pass it on to the Government? Looks like what we need is not an enquiry but legal proceedings.

[SimonS1]

Sorry to say some people on here have a poor grasp of what is happening.

No-one is charging VAT and not passing it on. And there is no “kept tax” for the Chancellor to pursue. Ultimately there is nothing here that has anything to do with the government, we live in a free market economy which is why Gideon talks a good game but knows he can’t do anything.

The case of the newspaper is irrelevant as there is no VAT on papers and the retailers aren’t benefitting. By all means use a manned till and refuse to show your BP on principle but it makes no difference practically.

What the retailers are doing may be sharp practice but it isn’t illegal. Whilst morally the savings should be passed on there is no requirement for that to happen. It’s no different to airlines cutting the ‘carrier surcharges’ (formerly known as fuel surcharges) as the price of oil falls and hedges run off.

The easiest solution is just to vote with your feet and do your shopping elsewhere.

[Author]

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