On the Beach is reportedly suing Ryanair for preventing it from booking cheap flights for its customers.

The online travel agent claims Ryanair is in breach of competition rules by blocking OTB credit cards and preventing its customers from managing their bookings online.

On the Beach claims the move by Ryanair is an abuse of its dominant position in the market, according to a report in the Financial Times.

It says the airline has made it harder and/or more expensive for On the Beach customers to use Ryanair than for customers who book direct with the airline.

The OTA is also claiming that Ryanair has made ‘false and disparaging’ claims about the company and that it refused to refund On the Beach for flights during the pandemic. Since the OTA was forced under the Package Travel Regulations to refund its customers, it says it was left £48.7m out of pocket.

In a legal filing, On The Beach is seeking damages from the airline.

Ryanair did not provide a comment to the FT, but it has previously stated that it won’t refund customers via OTAs, saying it will only refund customers direct.