Airline fees gone wild?
I'm sure everyone's heard about an airline overseas that is thinking about charging for access to the rest-room in-flight. Crazy huh? Well, hopefully, airlines here in the US aren't that stupid. Some airlines are actually scaling back some fees, but that trend is not the norm. Most of the fees imposed last year are probably here to stay. That makes comparing airfare across different airlines almost impossible.
We've seen luggage fees, ticket assignment fees, fuel surcharge fees and soft drink fees. What's next? Spirit Airlines is now starting to charge a 'ticketing fee'. They don't call it that of course....it called a 'passenger usage fee' and will cost you $4.90 each way. The fee is imposed on any ticket that is NOT purchased at one of Spirit's ticket counters at an airport. Yes...this means that even if you book on-line, you are charged the fee. Calling the 800 number will also result in the fee.
Spirit is not new to imposing these crazy fees. Last year they tried to impose a $2.50 'natural occurrence interruption fee' and an $8.50 'international service recovery fee'. Those fees were supposed to help offset 'storm related costs' and other 'international taxes and fees' Spirit pays some foreign governments it services. The DOT (Department of Transportation) stepped in for those fees and fined Spirit $40,000 and forced them to stop charging customers those fees. The fees did not fall within the DOT guidelines regarding airfare, so Spirit tried to find another way. The $4.90 'passenger usage fee' falls within the DOT guidelines...so it looks like it's here to stay.
Too bad the extra $4.90 each way won't buy you better customer service from Spirit. The bad news is that they still have some great prices, which leaves some people no choice but to fly them.
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