It’s finally happening: the end of resort fees as we know it.
one in historical announcement On Tuesday, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) will now ban “junk fees,” a broad term for hidden and misrepresented prices in the hotel, short-term rental and live-event ticketing industries. For travelers, this includes all hotel booking websites and vacation rental platforms like Airbnb or Vrbo.
Under the rule, companies will have to disclose the total prices in advance. For example, an online travel agency’s search results should include the highest total of all mandatory fees or charges people pay. With this move, consumers searching for hotels or vacation rentals should no longer be surprised by inflated advertised prices by “resort,” “city,” or “service” fees.
By requiring upfront disclosure of the total price, including fees, the FTC says it will make comparison shopping easier, “resulting in savings for consumers and leveling the playing field.”
“People have the right to know upfront what they’re being asked to pay — without having to worry about being hit with mystery fees later that they didn’t budget for,” said FTC Chair Lena M. and which they cannot avoid.” Khan said in a statement. “The FTC’s rule will eliminate junk fees around live event tickets, hotels and vacation rentals, saving Americans billions of dollars and millions of hours of wasted time.
The “junk fee” FTC investigation was first launched in 2022 with two rounds of public input and more than 70,000 comments. This feedback was considered before the final decision was announced today. It is expected that it will become effective in 120 days. However, it is not yet clear how the FTC will enforce these mandates.
The announcement comes as the Department of Transportation works to accomplish a similar feat airline fees and protecting passenger rights.
