Fight over full-fare rules takes bizarre turn

New rules meant to avoid sticker shock will compensate customers who are bumped, notify passengers of delays and give customers 24 hours to cancel without penalty. NBC's Tom Costello reports.

keepmyfareslow.org

By Rob Lovitt, msnbc.com contributor

Think the fight over the new rule from the Department of Transportation (DOT) requiring airlines to include all taxes and fees in their posted fares is over?

Think again. Even though the new rule took effect Thursday, it seems the battle is as intense as ever. Consider:

On Tuesday, Spirit Airlines, which is currently contesting the rule in court, launched a website called KeepMyFaresLow.org with the headline: Warning: New government regulations require us to HIDE taxes in your fares.

That brought a swift denunciation from Kevin Mitchell, chairman of the Business Travel Coalition, an advocacy group for corporate travel buyers. ?With this ill-considered attack on DOT, Spirit Airlines has reached a new low and no doubt secured the poster-child crown for 2012 for misleading consumers.?

Not so, countered Spirit CEO Ben Baldanza. ?Our view is that fares should be transparent and clear and that you should know what you?re paying your airline and what you?re paying in taxes,? he told msnbc.com.

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And then raising the specter of even higher taxes in these tax-averse times, he suggested the move toward full-fare advertising was ?an insidious way to then raise taxes on consumers? across the board. ?

?If the government is successful with this, it?s coming to everything you buy ? for cars, in restaurants, at big-box stores,? he said.

That ominous warning aside, the bottom line is that the new rule went into effect on Thursday. Airlines are, indeed, ?required to post fares that include all taxes and mandatory government fees. However, they can also post information that shows the breakdown between the airline?s and the government?s respective portions.

?Nothing in our rule will prohibit a carrier from informing consumers that the fare includes a specified amount of taxes and government fees, as long as the stated fare includes those taxes and fees,? said DOT spokesman Bill Mosley. ?The carrier can then break out taxes and fees if it wishes.?

Big changes hit the nation's airlines today, with new rules going into effect including how they advertise ticket prices. More from Travel and Leisure editor Mark Orwoll.

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Rob Lovitt is a longtime travel writer who still believes the journey is as important as the destination. Follow him at Twitter.

Source: http://overheadbin.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/01/25/10236937-fight-over-full-fare-rules-takes-bizarre-turn

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