AirAsia fined for website pricing
AirAsia has been fined AU$200,000 (US$211,000) by an Australian court for publishing airfares not inclusive of tax and other mandatory charges on its website.
The ruling by the Federal Court in Melbourne found that the low-cost carrier had displayed only base fares for AirAsia X flights for a 10-month period on its global airasia.com website, contravening Australia’s single pricing law.
AirAsia X’s CEO, Azran Osman-Rani said that the airline had not intended to mislead the public.
“The court judgement reflects that… no consumer was misled or had suffered any economic loss as a result of this inadvertence, and that AirAsia had been cooperative throughout.
“The fine of AU$200,000 imposed as compared to the range of AU$520,000-650,000 sought by the ACCC (Australian Competition and Consumer Commission) reflects the court’s acknowledgement of the lack of any intention to mislead on the part of AirAsia.”
He added that AirAsia X is “fully committed towards displaying all-in fares” on its website.