So, I always believed it was essentially obligatory to show my boarding pass at an airport. Sure, when I bought some cheap booze outside the EU I knew I was doing this to get a discount, but it now appears that in the UK we have been swindled!

With a Telegraph enquiry finding that (myself included) 90% of shoppers did not know why they were being asked for a boarding pass and then a further 85% saying afterwards that they would not show their pass again in future I have to confess that I will now be in that group.

Despite this, there is a consumer opportunity at hand here! If airport shops start doing the right thing and introduce dual pricing so that those travelling long haul and outside the EU can get their 20% off then surely we will be able to start thinking about showing our boarding passes again rather than paying the high street rate (or perhaps even more in some cases) while companies get their 20% back.

Why haven’t they done this sooner? Perhaps it is the admin work… despite the fact that they can clearly work out that they need to get their money back through their accounts. Perhaps the fact that it was a consumer loophole that not many had cottoned onto was the real reason and if that was the case then surely brands such as WHSmith need to start grovelling now and stop abusing their position as the last bearers of water, soft drinks and food before we sit down for our flights…