Air Fare Ad Rules May Change

By Ted Jackovics, Tampa Tribune, Fla.

Mar. 14–TAMPA — The U.S. Department of Transportation is considering whether to amend air fare advertising rules it implemented more than two decades ago, a move that critics say would complicate how consumers compare air fares and possibly invite deception.

The issue revolves around how airlines should be allowed to advertise the price of a ticket. Among the questions is whether carriers could separate charges they impose, such as fuel surcharges, from the fares they advertise.

“Recently I was told a particular fare was $275, but when it was charged to my credit card, it suddenly the next week became $352,” Elizabeth H. Groot of San Jose, Calif., wrote in a recent comment on a DOT Internet site about the proposed changes.

“I strongly urge that the rules retain the obligation to advertise the full fare,” she wrote. “To do otherwise is to lie to the passengers.

The DOT’s options range from maintaining, to modifying, to eliminating current fare advertising rules. The DOT has not determined when it will announce the outcome of its review, which it first announced in December, said Bill Mosley, a spokesman for the federal agency.

The airline industry is divided about what to do, with differences between the discount airlines and the so-called legacy carriers.

Southwest Airlines believes the DOT’s full-price advertising policy should remain in place, with a modification to allow airlines to combine taxes to simplify the list of fees.

United Airlines said it strongly favored the repeal of the rules with ad hoc enforcement to address any unfair or deceptive advertising by air carriers or ticket agents.

But for others, there’s no question the existing rules should remain.

Hugo Burge, vice chairman of Cheapflights.com, an Internet travel booking agency, advocates transparent pricing, a key ingredient of many Internet sites that customarily show the final price of a ticket. In addition to an airline’s base fare, other charges include a federal ticket tax, a federal flight segment tax on each leg of connecting flights, a federal security charge and airport facility charges.

“The topic has been flying under the radar, which will be a disappointing step if changes come to fruition,” Burge said.

Mosley said that although the 60-day period for public comment elapsed last month, the department was still adding public comments to its Web site even as it reviewed the responses. (Go to dms.dot.gov and click the ‘Simple Search’ key, inserting Docket No. 23194.) “We will consider comments filed after the deadline, to the extent practicable,” Mosley said.

Comments on the Web site include more than 500 submissions by people who did not indicate an airline industry tie and seem to favor maintaining or strengthening advertising rules.

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