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Thomson takes stand on fuel supplements
Thomson has decided to stop adding a fuel supplement on to its prices.
It says it is taking the lead in the hope that the whole industry will be forced to follow.
In September it wrote to the Office of Fair Trading requesting that all UK tour operators should be required to absorb the cost of fuel supplements before the launch of final edition brochures in December 2006.
Although it has received an email acknowledging receipt of the letter, the company says the OFT has not yet acted on its request.
Managing director Peter Rothwell said: “Travel companies now have no justification whatsoever for charging a fuel supplement – let alone one that is as high as when the price of fuel was at its peak. Despite this, companies are continuing to hit their customers with this additional charge.
“They are simply baiting customers with artificially low prices, then stinging them with unavoidable supplements.
“Just this week, we’ve seen Thomas Cook reducing their baggage allowance by five kilos to just 15 kilos, and then automatically adding £10 to the holiday cost for customers to ‘buy’ the five kilos back. This is outrageous. We refuse to be dragged any further down this route.
“I’m dismayed that the OFT are still sitting on this issue. As the market leader we had to take a stand on fuel supplements. The OFT should see the benefit to consumers for this to be enforced industry-wide.”
by Bev Fearis
Bev
Editor in chief Bev Fearis has been a travel journalist for 25 years. She started her career at Travel Weekly, where she became deputy news editor, before joining Business Traveller as deputy editor and launching the magazine’s website. She has also written travel features, news and expert comment for the Guardian, Observer, Times, Telegraph, Boundless and other consumer titles and was named one of the top 50 UK travel journalists by the Press Gazette.
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