Several readers have wondered why I seem obsessed about hidden airline fees these days. “Aren’t there other issues to vent about?” they ask. “We hear you, Charlie,” they say.
Timing is everything. Right now for the first time in decades, the Department of Transportation (DOT) is rewriting the rules about how airlines sell airline tickets. This time getting the voice of the consumers heard Congress and at the DOT will actually result in change. The deadline for comments about this rulemaking is September 23.
Go to www.madashellabouthiddenfees.com and let DOT know you want airlines to tell you the total cost of travel. This is the time.
In Washington, complaining is a national pastime. Everyone seems to have something to complain about, but change rarely happens. That’s because to get change within our system, there has to be a perfect storm of sorts — the Senate and House have to be on the same sheet of music and have parallel bills submitted, or one of the executive departments has to be engaged in a “rulemaking” that will change federal regulations.
Right now, DOT is engaged in a notification of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) and Congress is in the conference committee stage of the FAA Reauthorization Bill. The stars are aligned for change as they have never been in the past decade.
Changing things in our government is like changing the direction of an aircraft carrier — it takes time. The FAA Reauthorization bill has been delayed for over three years and DOT rulemakings are rare. So, this is the time to strike.
We have to pick your fights. We need to focus on change that is possible.
That’s why the Consumer Travel Alliance (CTA), the Business Travel Coalition (BTC) and the American Society of Travel Agents (ASTA) have decided to make airline fee transparency a priority. We are all mad about airline fees in general, but we also recognize that neither DOT or Congress is about to get into telling the airlines how they should run their business.
However, it is the role of regulators to protect the public from unfair business practices. Withholding airline fees from more than half of the American public who chose to purchase their airline tickets through travel agents during the purchase process is just plain wrong. Waiting until the last minute to tell passengers how much airline fees will be when purchasing on airline websites is wrong, too.
That is what we are asking for — honesty in advertising and transparency in total airline costs.
And NOW is the time to keep a laser-like focus on getting regulations set in place that will force the airlines to tell all travelers what the total cost of travel will be upfront in the airline-ticket buying process so that we can compare prices.
The airlines have every right to make money and set fares as they see fit. But they have no right to try to hide those prices from their customers.
Charlie Leocha is the President of Travelers United. He has been working in Washington, DC, for the past 14 years with Congress, the Department of Transportation, and industry stakeholders on travel issues. He was the first consumer representative to the Advisory Committee for Aviation Consumer Protections appointed by the Secretary of Transportation from 2012 through 2018.
