A car hire company has agreed to abolish a “ridiculous” ferries levy for customers using their vehicles to visit rural parts of Scotland.
Green Motion UK had been adding an extra surcharge of £125 – plus £20 for every day of the entire hire – when their cars travelled on a ferry.
Anyone using the Mallaig to Armadale, Corran Ferry, Cromarty to Nigg, the Small Isles and Skye to the Outer Hebrides crossings would all have incurred a minimum £145 fee. If the hire was for a fortnight there would have been a total additional surcharge of £405.
The fees came to light after a Badenoch B&B owner contacted Kate Forbes MSP on behalf of two Swiss tourists.
Maik Christen and Therese Rellstab cancelled a trip to the Outer Hebrides because of the astronomical extra costs in excess of £400.
The MSP for Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch said: “I am absolutely delighted that Green Motion UK have changed their unfair policy on charging more for island-bound drivers.
“This outcome demonstrates that the battle for equity in the Highlands is winnable.”
She added: “The reality is that it can often be difficult to rely on public transport in the more rural parts of Scotland, meaning that hiring a car to get around is often a popular choice for holiday-makers as well as visiting business folk.
“I was pretty speechless when I learned that Green Motion UK had been applying a minimum additional levy of £145 for visitors using Scottish ferry crossings. To my knowledge no other car hire company was doing this.
“At a time when the Scottish Government is rolling out RET and helping to boost tourist numbers to remote rural areas, the last thing I want is car hire firms putting visitors off from coming to some of the world’s most scenic destinations.”
Green Motion UK had not responded to requests for a comment last night.
