Martin Lewis has issued a stark warning to British Airways passengers about a 'questionable practice' that could see them overpaying for travel visas. The Money Saving Expert (MSE) founder highlighted that the airline's embedded 'check your visa' tool directs customers to a third-party service called Sherpa, which charges significantly higher fees than official government websites.
How much extra are passengers paying?
An MSE investigation found that a US ESTA via Sherpa costs £51.43, compared to just £30.07 on the official US government site. For a Canadian eTA, Sherpa charges £16.06 against the official £3.75. The Australian eVisitor, which is free via the government, costs £16.52 through Sherpa. A New Zealand eTA jumps from £50.94 to £82.02.
BA's response
British Airways defended the practice, stating it makes clear that Sherpa is a third-party provider and that customers can apply directly via official channels. However, MSE notes that the cheaper official links are 'buried lower down' on BA's site, making the extra fees 'too easy to miss and misunderstand'.
Other airlines like Thomas Cook and Virgin Atlantic also use Sherpa, while Saga directs customers to CIBTvisas, which adds £43.50 for a US ESTA. Martin Lewis urges travellers to always check official government sites for visas and warns that refunds from third-party services are difficult to obtain.
