OFT to investigate airline card charges

Posted 10/09/2011

Airlines are to be investigated following claims from consumer groups that they are deliberatly hiding card charges from customers booking flights onlne.

The Office of Fair Trading warned airlines in June, following a super-complaint from the consumer group Which?, that unless they included debit card fees in their advertised fares it would take action against them.

Several carriers have since amended their websites to make card charges clear from the outset, but the OFT yesterday launched a formal investigation after consumer groups warned that several carriers were still only adding card charges at the end of the booking process, making it hard for customers to compare fares.

Card fees are believed to have cost UK air passengers an estimated £300m last year, with some airlines charging as much as £6 to £8 per passenger.

The airlines under investigation have not been named, but the OFT said several were involved and, according to the Financial Times, Flybe and Lufthansa and its subsidiary bmi are amongst those complying with the watchdog's investigation.

The OFT stressed that it was not assuming that any airlines were guilty of wrong-doing.

"If we do find airlines are breaking consumer protection laws, we could seek a High Court Injunction to force them to change their practices," said a spokeswoman. "We announced in June that, as customers have to pay for online bookings with a card, airlines must include debit card charges at the outset and we warned then that if they didn't we would be minded to take action.

"We have now launched a formal investigation."

Earlier this week, the consumers' association Which? pressed the government to ban surcharges for those booking flights using a debit card.

The OFT recommended the move and the Treasury said it was considering the recommendation.


By Linsey McNeill
 

Originally published 10 Sep 2011 at: http://rss.feedsportal.com/c/398/f/5923/s/18236bd3/l/0L0Stravelmole0N0Cstories0C114930A50Bphp0Dmpnlog0F1/story01.htm