After growing impatient with a lack of action in the airline industry, The Business Travel Coalition has formally asked the US Department of Transportation to look airlines’ fuel surcharge practices.
Despite a drop in oil prices by half since last summer, very few carriers have reduced or scrapped fuel charges, BTC chairman Kevin Mitchell wrote, in a letter addressed to the DOT’s Assistant General Counsel.
"The Business Travel Coalition urges the US Department of Transportation to launch a thorough and in-depth investigation with respect to the airline industry’s continued assessment of often-sizeable fuel surcharges on many itineraries in violation of DOT’s clear ‘Additional Guidance on Airfare/Air Tour Price Advertisements’ of February 21, 2012," Mitchell said.
"We believe that the continued, widespread imposition of these substantial, add-on fuel surcharges in the face of plummeting jet fuel prices cannot be justified," he added.
BTC wants the DOT to issue a directive requiring airlines to prove advertised fuel surcharges are in fact a true reflection of the fuel cost per passenger.
BTC has called for full transparency, itemized on a route-by-route basis.
To argue its case, Mitchell cited a news report showing a New York to London flight with a $458 fuel surcharge – which was over 10% more than the actual advertised base fare for the flight.
