AHI International Corporation d/b/a AHI Travel and Alumni Holidays

Order 2008-3-5
OST-2008-0031 - Consent Orders

Issued and Served March 6, 2008

Consent Order

This consent order concerns advertisements by AHI International Corporation d/b/a AHI Travel and Alumni Holidays that violate the Department's advertising requirements specified in section 399.84 of the Department's regulations and constitute unfair and deceptive trade practices and unfair methods of competition in violation of 49 U.S.C. § 41712. This order directs AHI Travel to cease and desist from future violations and assesses the company compromise civil penalties of $45,000.

The airfares and air tours promoted in AHI Travel's brochures, mailers and e-mails, and on its web site did not comply with Department requirements. More specifically, the listed prices for the complete air, land and cruise packages failed to include fuel and security surcharges imposed by carriers and other transportation suppliers, which must be included in the advertised price, despite statements that would likely lead a reader to believe otherwise. In this regard, there is a notice on the page where the land portion of the trip is first revealed that "all service charges when applicable" and "US. government taxes and fees" are included in the overall air plus land package price. This, however, turns out not to be the case. For example, the site includes a "Cruise the Passage of Peter the Great" page, which advertises "12 Days from $2,540 (Land Only)." Below that first descriptive paragraph, the text states under "Included Features:" "Transportation. Round-trip scheduled jet service to Moscow with a return from St. Petersburg aboard Lufthansa or a similar carrier." When however, the reader clicks upon the subtitle "For Program Terms and Conditions, click here, " the reader learns that AHI Travel's air tour prices do not include "any increases in U.S. and Canadian air and airport taxes and security or fuel surcharges imposed by air carriers or other transportation suppliers; ...."

Not including fuel surcharges, port charges, security charges imposed by carriers, or other surcharges collected by AHI Travel in the advertised price of an air tour package when it is first listed violates the Department's regulations and enforcement case precedent. In addition to violating the requirements of section 399.84 and related Department precedent and enforcement policies, such practices constitute an unfair and deceptive trade practice in violation of 49 U.S.C. § 41712.

By: Rosalind Knapp

http://www.ahitravel.com/