All eyes on the price

The ACCC has named and shamed three travel agents whose advertisements misled the
public. It is a sign the commission is keeping tabs on our industry, as Justin Wastnage writes

Despite being the “least liked”
airline in the world, Ryanair
has also grown to become
Europe’s second largest. Its
customers are irked, a recent poll
by Tripadvisor found, either by
landing at airports far from the
cities they purport to serve or by a
miscellany of hidden charges.
After many court battles with
Europe’s competition watchdogs,
all European airlines now have to
include in advertised fares any non-
optional fee, such as government
taxes, airport charges, wheelchair
levies, insurance surcharges or
airport security charges.

Here, the Australian Competition
and Consumer Commission (ACCC)
has kept a watchful eye on travel
advertising for some time. In May it
published guidelines specifically
targeting the travel trade, after
changes to the Trade Practices Act
meant the total cost of a holiday,
rather than its components, must
be used wherever possible.
Agents know this question is like
asking the length of a piece of string,
as holidays are made to customers’
requirements. So it came as a shock
when the commission singled out
three agents for legally-enforceable
action over their advertising.

Backpacker agents Wicked
Travel, Peter Pan’s Adventure
Travel and Adventure Travel
Bugs each advertised Whitsundays
and Fraser Island tours for $299,
when that price did not include
mandatory charges such as
insurance, national park fees and
Great Barrier Reef environmental
charges that typically took the
minimum cost up to about $450,
the ACCC says.
The watchdog was spurred into
action by mass-market, price-led
packages. In its guidelines it cites a
10-day Get Hot in Hawaii package
offered by a retailer at the end of

last year for $799. On top of this,
the customer would have to pay an
airfare with taxes and charges,
taking a realistic total to $3099. The
package advert would “raise
concerns” under the new regime,
the ACCC says.
Despite airfares varying widely
to Honolulu, travel agents will be
expected to advertise a total
price, albeit with a ‘subject to
change’ caveat allowed. In reality,
few cases will be as clear cut as
the budget tropical Queensland
tours, but by firing a few warning
shots, the ACCC is letting us
know it is watching. n