Will Airfare Transparency Be a Thing of the Past?

There is a bill moving through Congress that could change the way airfares are displayed.

In 2011, the full-fare advertising rule changed how airlines published their fares. The rule forbade airlines from displaying just the base fare for a flight and required them to include all of the mandatory taxes and fees in the purchase price.

Ever since that happened, airline lobbying groups have been working to overturn the policy and, now, that time may have arrived.

The House of Representatives is scheduled to vote on the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018 this week and the bill has bipartisan support, tackling a number of important issues within the air travel industry such as air safety standards for pets, however, it also could have a negative impact on consumers.

Several associations see problems with the bill that they are hoping will be resolved before it comes to a vote.

The American Society of Travel Agents (ASTA) sent a letter to Congress suggesting the elimination of certain sections that would put undue pressure on travel agents and harm consumers.

In ASTA’s recommendations, Eben Peck, executive vice president, advocacy, detailed some of the association’s concerns about airfare transparency.

“Repealing the DOT’s full-price rule would undermine a key consumer protection principle ASTA holds dear–that consumers should know the full cost of air travel before purchasing a ticket,” Peck noted.

“An overwhelming number of respondents supported requiring airlines to advertise the full price of an airline ticket and not hide airline surcharges and government taxes in hyperlinks or fine print (as they would be able to do if Section 405 is enacted), including 79 percent of all respondents and 82 percent of those who identified as Republicans,” he continued.

In addition to transparent airfares, there is also concern over another section of the bill that would impose new customer service standards on ticket agents with $100 million or more in annual revenue.

Peck points out that there doesn’t seem to be much need for this type of legislation.

“The rationale for these provisions is unclear to us, given that the number of customer service complaints filed with DOT against airlines dwarfs the number filed against travel agents–1,397 to 40 according to the Department of Transportation’s March 2018 air travel consumer report.”

According to a report in Roll Call, the house is scheduled to vote this week on the bill. But before it can be enacted, the Senate must take up the legislation as well.

ASTA will hold its annual Legislative Day on May 8 with throngs of travel advisors on Capitol Hill. There will be hundreds of meetings and this is sure to be a hot topic at that time.

The program includes an overview of ASTA’s legislative priorities, training on lobbying, scheduled meetings, networking and tips for following up with your elected officials.

In addition to airfare disclosures, ASTA will be talking to legislators regarding the Travel Agent Retail Fairness Act, which would remove travel agents from a U.S. Department of Labor “blacklist,” and legislation that supports travel agents and independent contractors.