NEW Government Guidelines = All Inclusive Prices
As of January 24th, 2012, All tour Packages that include Airfare
must include all non-optional fees such as taxes & fuel surcharges.
ETS meets all of the new Government Standards!
Be aware of any tour operator not in compliance.
Full Fare Advertising
· Enforces the full fare advertising rule as written
(i.e., ads which state a price must state the full price to be paid).
· Clarifies the rule’s applicability to ticket agents.
· Prohibits carriers and ticket agents from advertising fares that are not the full fare and impose stringent notice
requirements in connection with the advertisement of “each-way” fares available for purchase only on a
roundtrip basis.
· Prohibits opt-out provisions in ads for air transportation.
Baggage and Other Fees and Related Code-Share Issues
· Requires U.S. and foreign air carriers to disclose changes in bag fees/allowances on their homepage for three
months, to include information regarding the free baggage allowance.
· Requires carriers (U.S. and foreign) and ticket agents to include on e-ticket confirmations information about the
free baggage allowance and applicable fees for the first and second checked bag and carry-on but allows ticket
agents, unlike carriers, to do so through a hyperlink.
· Requires carriers (U.S. and foreign) and ticket agents to inform passengers on the first screen on which the
ticket agent or carrier offers a fare quotation for a specific itinerary selected by a consumer that additional
airline fees for baggage may apply and where consumers can go to see these baggage fees.
· Requires U.S. and foreign air carriers to disclose all fees for optional services to consumers through
a prominent link on their homepage.
· Requires that the same baggage allowances and fees apply throughout a passenger’s journey.
· Requires the marketing carrier to disclose on its website any difference between its optional services and fees
and those of the carrier operating the flight. Disclosure may be made through a hyperlink to the operating
carriers’ websites that detail the operating carriers’ fees for optional services, or to a page on its website that
lists the differences in policies among code-share partners.
Post-Purchase Price Increases
· Bans the practice of post-purchase price increases in air transportation or air tours unless the increase is due
to an increase in government-imposed taxes or fees and only if the passenger was provided full disclosure of
the potential for the increase and affirmatively agreed to the potential for such an increase prior to purchase.