Transparency in transit

Two recent court rulings in Europe practically caused oxygen masks to appear before air travellers, such was the shock they caused.

- Jane Clifton

One said airlines should not be allowed to charge for or unduly restrict cabin baggage. Another found a leading accommodation booking company should not, even contractually, be able to stop others offering customers better deals.

Both represent a “buckle-up” announcement for turbulence ahead. Though the court rulings are as yet just shots across the travel industry's bow, they show perceived predatory pricing coming under scrutiny from both a human rights perspective and a pro-competition ethos.

In a German case that could now have wider ramifications, the European Court of Justice ruled last September that an accommodation listings site cannot restrain its listers from giving their own customers a better deal. In the gun was Netherlands-based Booking. com. Room providers pay commission to the firm, whose website reaches a vast audience, but their beef is having to reserve their best deals exclusively for it. They are contractually forbidden to offer a better deal through any other listing - even their own websites and advertising.