The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has initiated proceedings against Webjet Marketing Pty Ltd in the Federal Court. The travel agency is accused of making false and misleading representations about flight prices and bookings through its app and website. Webjet, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Webjet Group Limited (ASX: WJL), offers a range of travel-related products and services, including flights, hotels, car rentals, and travel insurance.

The ACCC alleges that Webjet breached the Australian Consumer Law by making statements about the minimum price of airfares which omitted compulsory fees charged by the company. These statements included 'flights from $x', where the quoted price excluded Webjet’s compulsory 'Webjet servicing fee' and 'booking price guarantee' fee, which ranged from $34.90 to $54.90 per booking. These misleading statements were allegedly made over various periods of up to five years, between November 2018 and November 2023.

In addition to the misleading price representations, Webjet is also accused of breaching consumer law by displaying a confirmation page online and sending a confirmation email after payment for a completed flight booking. However, in respect of 382 bookings, it had not booked the flight with the airline. In these cases, Webjet allegedly sought additional payment from the consumers to complete the booking, or offered the consumer a refund for the flight, despite having earlier confirmed the booking. The ACCC alleges that Webjet made these misleading representations in respect of 382 bookings over more than five years, between at least 1 November 2018 and 25 June 2024.

ACCC Chair Gina Cass-Gottlieb commented on the case, stating, “We know how much Australian consumers value air travel to stay connected for work, leisure or to visit family. During this time of cost pressures, many consumers are carefully considering travel arrangements and seeking to save money. A statement about the lowest price must be a true minimum price, not a price subject to further fees and charges before a booking can be made.”

Ms Cass-Gottlieb further expressed concern about the alleged conduct by Webjet, saying, “We are very concerned about this alleged conduct by Webjet, which represented to consumers that their flight booking had been confirmed and left some consumers in the position of having to pay more to later complete the booking.”

The ACCC is seeking penalties, declarations, injunctions, consumer redress, costs, and other orders against Webjet. The case highlights the ACCC's current focus on consumer and competition issues in the aviation sector and the digital economy. “The ACCC is currently prioritising consumer and competition issues in the aviation sector as well as conduct in the digital economy. We remind all businesses, whether they are online retailers or bricks and mortar stores, that they need to comply with the Australian Consumer Law by not misleading consumers and displaying prices clearly, including hidden fees and surcharges,” said Ms Cass-Gottlieb.