The Office of Fair Trading has brought in new rules that will stop travel companies from charging hidden fees on cards when customers make bookings. There are many sites that require consumers to go through and complete a large number of pages before they get to the screen that shown them how much is going to be added to the price by way of a surcharge.
This is something that is typical with rail companies, airlines and ferry companies. However, things are set to change because the Office of Fair Trading has demanded that these travel companies make the charges clear right away before the consumer has to go to the trouble of completing five or six pages before they find out what they will actually be paying for their fare. The OFT is also eager to bring about new laws that will stop any additional charges being made altogether.
In 2010 travellers are said to have spent a staggering £300 million on card surcharges in the airline sector alone. The OFT has said that travel companies will have to comply with the new regulations and failure to do so will result in action being taken under consumer protection laws. The OFT has said that the surcharge practices that are being used are underhand and misleading.
An official from the OFT said: “We will take enforcement action against any businesses that do not respond to today’s announcement and instead continue to use misleading surcharging practices.”
Peter Vicary-Smith, chief executive of Which?, added: “We want to see the measures recommended by the OFT put in place as quickly as possible and finally put an end to the practice of card surcharging. Businesses can start to be upfront and fair over card charges today – there’s no point waiting until the OFT forces action.”
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Tags: Card, Travel Companies
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