Vol. 544 No. 3
85 Mr. G. Mitchell asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment her plans regarding the regulation of air fares within the aviation industry, particularly in the area of misleading advertisements. [24854/01]
I have no function regarding the regulation of air fares within the aviation industry.
Under the Consumer Information Act 1978, which is enforced by the Director of Consumer Affairs, it is forbidden to publish any advertisement which is false or misleading. With specific reference to advertisements for air fares, consumers have the right to reliable, transparent information about air fares before they buy a ticket. In that connection, at the end of last year, and in response to an investigation by the Director of Consumer Affairs, I made an order under the 1978 Act concerning advertisements for air fares. The Consumer Information (Advertisement for Airfares) Order, 2000 – S.I. No. 468 of 2000 – which came into force on 1 March 2001, entitles air travellers to comprehensive information as regards the full cost and availability of the fare on offer. The Director of Consumer Affairs is responsible for enforcement of the order.
The advertising industry also has its own self-regulatory body, Advertising Standards Authority for Ireland. The ASAI has a code of practice of advertising standards, which provides that an advertisement must be legal, decent, honest and truthful, and should be prepared with a sense of responsibility to consumers and society. The ASAI complaints committee considers and deals with complaints from the public by reference to the code of practice.
Is the Minister of State in a position to indicate the number of complaints the ASAI has received? Will he confirm that the 1978 Act is in need of considerable amendment? Does he agree that the gimmicks promoted by airlines to encourage people to return to travelling by air are a cause of major concern to consumers? In some instances, people have been sold one way fares and obliged to pay twice the original amount in order to return home.
I do not have information about the number of complaints received by the ASAI in my possession, but will try to obtain it for the Deputy. I agree with him that this issue needed to be addressed, particularly in terms of the fact that people were not being informed with regard to the full cost of air travel. The order I introduced has dealt with that issue because the total price payable must include all the charges payable in addition to the price of the ticket, with the exception of any charge imposed in respect of a method of payment, for example, a credit card, which, if applicable, must be clearly stated separately. The order is very clear and I would be happy to provide the Deputy with a copy if he does not already possess one. It has only been in place for a number of months, but it was necessary to introduce it because there were people in the industry who were not providing air travellers with the complete picture.
As Deputy Deasy has been present for the entire afternoon awaiting a reply to Question No. 86, we will take it now.
