Airline passenger news and views

Following the calls by several European consumer bodies, the UK government has confirmed it will impose legislation to regulate payment surcharges when booking with an airline.

This is aimed at stopping those misleading headlines we see advertised on billboards and newspapers, advertising flights at prices that are never real. EasyJet has come forward and announced it will include administration fees on their headline prices a year before the measure will be imposed by the government.

Until here, everything is fine, but the problem comes when we learn that the administration fee - to cover the cost of Air Passenger Duty, the European Emissions Trading Scheme and a European Union Compensation Levy - has increased from the former £8 to £9.

The airline is also continuing to charge an extra £4.95 or 2.5% for those who pay by credit card, resulting in a fee of at least £13.95 for those who use plastic.

So, what do we prefer? That airlines continue to introduce sneaky charges at the end of the booking process, or that they tell us straight, meaning this that surcharges will be higher?

Strangely, consumer associations like Which? seems to prefer the second option and they are pleased with EasyJet's decision.

Richard Lloyd, Which? executive director, said: "While the law will come into force at the end of 2012, we want companies to be upfront and fair over card charges today."

EasyJet announces on their website: "These changes have been made in order to address the concerns raised by consumer bodies and regulators across the European Union whilst retaining a simple, transparent and consistent booking process for all passengers regardless of nationality."

It's fair to mention that EasyJet charges per booking rather than per individual passenger - believe it or not, there are other airlines that charge per person when it comes to administration fees.