Debit card surcharges ‘must go’

5 September 2011 Last updated at 19:10 ET

Millions of pounds in surcharges are paid each year by airline passengers

A consumer group has stepped up pressure on the government to ban surcharges on online debit card travel purchases.

The consumers’ association Which? said that only an amendment to current legislation was needed to outlaw the practice.

In June, the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) proposed a change in the law to abolish such charges.

The government said it was working on a response to the recommendation.

Clear charges

Travel companies were ordered by the OFT to make their card surcharges clearer to passengers, who typically had to click through four to six pages of an online booking before the charge was added to the price.

The regulator said that travellers spent £300m on card surcharges in the airline industry alone in 2010.

Despite a recommendation to abolish surcharges on debit cards, two airlines – Lufthansa and Swiss – are planning to charge a £4.50 fee on all card payment bookings from 2 November. Some other airlines already charge more than this for debit card transactions.

As consultation ends on the OFT’s recommendations, Which? said that an amendment to the Payment Services Regulations by the Treasury could outlaw these debit card surcharges.

“With most airlines yet to drop these card surcharges and some introducing new fees, it is time for the government to put a stop to this,” said Richard Lloyd from the consumer group.

“A minor change to the law is all it would take to ban the charges on debit cards that only find out about at the end of a lengthy online booking process.”

A Treasury spokesman said: “The government is committed to working with the OFT to stop retailers, including airlines, imposing hidden surcharges on customers who pay by card.

“We are considering the OFT’s recommendations and will respond in due course.”

The OFT has promised an update by the end of the week on whether it would take any action against travel companies hiding their online booking card surcharges.

“We made it very clear that passenger travel companies have been put on notice to change misleading debit and credit card surcharging practices or face enforcement action under consumer protection laws,” a spokeswoman said.

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