News

Archive for August, 2009

Continental to charge for additional baggage on international flights

Monday, August 31st, 2009

Major US airline, Continental, has announced this week that it would charge some economy class passengers travelling on international flights US$50 to check a second bag, joining several other carriers that impose the fee.

The airline said the fee would affect travellers flying between Europe and the US, including Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands; however the first bag will remain free.

The new fee will apply to tickets purchased after Thursday for travel on or after September 15.

Upper-tier members of the airlines frequent flyer programme or those in first or business class, full-fare economy ticketholders and passengers with Presidential Plus credit cards will not be required to pay the fee.  Military personnel and their families travelling on official orders will also be exempt from paying the second-bag fee.

Continental, the fourth largest airline in the US, said customers would receive a $5 discount if they check in and pay for bags on its website.

In the past week, a string of airlines have introduced a $50 charge for checking in a second bag, including American Airlines, Delta and US Airways.

Thanks to AP for the above quotes.  For more information on this article visit their website.

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New EU legislation to cracksdown on credit card charges

Monday, August 31st, 2009

Holidaymakers who return from holiday to discover that they have been overcharged for hotel or car hire could be able to claim back some or all of the cost of the purchase when new EU legislation comes into force this Autumn.

The changes would be applied to transactions where the final amount is not specified at the point of payment, and covers situations like car hire or hotel room payments where a deposit is required.

The new terms that come into effect from November 1 state that anyone who receives a credit card bill that ‘exceeds the amount the payer could reasonably have expected in all the circumstances’ has eight weeks in which seek a full refund from their provider. N

Potentially, a claim could be made where a car hirer returns a car without a full tank but later discovers that the credit card had been charged more than perceived as necessary for the additional fuel.

Cardholders could be forgiven for thinking this is too good to be true, as banks and credit card providers will be able to interpret the rules the rules in their own way, and must make a refund or justify a refusal within 10 days of the claim.

In the event of a claim being refused, the cardholder can take the matter to the Financial Ombudsman.

The body which regulates payment companies, the UK Payments Administration said: “We are going to have to see how it pans out. But the fact that an answer has to be reached in 10 days means it is quite a quick process, which is good for the consumer.

“Banks are going to be a bit nervous about it but they will have to justify any refusal. It will be interesting to see how they handle it.”

Thanks to The Times for the above quotes.  For more information on this article visit their website.

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Avis streamlines car rental model

Monday, August 31st, 2009

Travellers returning from their holidays with tans and souvenirs are also returning with stories of incredibly high car rental prices, Avis has announced a plan to streamline its operations as to cope with the downturn in the travel industry.

As overall travel volume declined by 9.4 percent in the six month period to June 30, car hire companies have also taken a hit by the global recession.

Avis have reported a drop of 6.8 percent over the six months, but performance was stronger, with a drop of only 2.9 percent, because of the holiday season.

The company has also predominately been affected by the worldwide downturn specifically of corporate travel, as business car rental is one of Avis’ key markets.

Despite the declines, the car hire industry has benefited from raising their prices which has led to greater profit margins, as most companies have been forced to charge higher and sell vehicles as credit has been difficult to obtain.

Avis have been fighting the downturn by reducing its fleet by 16%, which has led to an increase in utilisation by 5 percent.

The company has also set out a plan streamline the management of its fleet by cutting back the number of new vehicles purchased by 30 percent, and has reduced its £1.1 billion debt by closing poor performing outlets and slashing jobs.

Following a rather optimistic peak season, Avis plan to expand into Asia and boost its UK operations, however the company forecasts a weak winter season.

Thanks to The Times.  For more information on this article visit their website.

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Aer-Lingus and Ryanair in war of words

Monday, August 31st, 2009

A war of words between Aer Lingus and major shareholder in the struggling airline, Ryanair, has escalated with both sides accusing each other of damaging the struggling airline.

Aer Lingus, which last week reported a loss of £65 million, has accused Ryanair of ‘doing a lot of damage’ to its share price.

Aer Lingus chairman, Colm Barrington, said on Irish radio that Ryanair had adversely affected the company’s share price as it launched two takeover bids.  He also said that job and pay cuts were imminent to help the airline survive.

Europe’s largest low cost carrier hit back at the claims, insisting that the Aer Lingus board was alone to blame for the poorly performing share price.

“The person who has damaged Aer Lingus is Colm Barrington, who as chairman eight months ago recommended rejection of Ryanair’s offer of €1.40 per share, only to preside over a share price collapse to less than 50 cents in August,” a Ryanair spokesman said.

“Mr. Barrington promised shareholders in December that Aer Lingus ‘is and will continue to be profitable’ only to announce substantial losses for 2008, and increased losses in 2009. Without Ryanair’s 30pc shareholding, we believe Aer Lingus’s shares would have collapsed even further.”

Aer Lingus claims it would not be surprised by yet another takeover bid from Ryanair.

Thanks to the Telegraph for the above quotes.  For more information visit their website.

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Jet2.com to open new base at East Midlands

Monday, August 31st, 2009

Jet2’s plan to open a new base at East Midlands Airport is likely to create about 250 new jobs from spring next year.

The company will initially base one aircraft at the airport, which will make nine flights per week to seven destinations including Turkey and Egypt.

In what was described as a major coup for the airport, the proposed new base means that an additional 130,000 passengers will travel through the new base.

Jet2 will launch the services from the base with a Boeing 757, and plan further investments as growth increases over the next three years.

Eighty of the planned 250 new jobs will be based at the airport whilst the remainder will be spread across the region.

East Midlands airport’s managing director said: “We have been talking to Jet2 for some time about a base here.

“They have got some great destinations and are a good brand.

“This news is a positive indicator for the future and puts East Midlands Airport in a strong position as we continue to extend and develop our route network.”

Thanks to BBC News.  For more information on this article visit their website at bbcnews.com

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Plenty of rental cars still available in Madrid, Barcelona

Friday, August 28th, 2009

Despite widespread media coverage of car hire shortages affecting Spain, Madrid and Barcelona are still revealing strong numbers of bookings.

Although there has been a 10% drop in tourists to the Iberian Peninsula and car hire shortages in popular resort areas, the two major cities and Alicante have reported strong forecasts for the immediate future.

The financial crisis and lack of consumer spending power has resulted in a stronger position for internet search and compare sites to find their best car hire options.

As June saw supply fall short of demand across the country, with many customers left stranded without car hire, the following months paint a brighter picture for Spanish car hire companies.  The prior months had seen the tourist industry cut back on resources and car hire firms adjusting their capacity to cope with the anticipated decline in holidaymakers.

Travellers, however, are being much more careful when choosing their car hire, with many opting to use comparative sites to select their rental vehicle.

Car hire in Barcelona and Madrid are currently still available despite the number of tourists, as local operators expect positive results by the end of the summer tourist season.

With thanks to www.pr-inside.com for the above information. For more details please refer to their website.

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Ryanair scraps services from Robin Hood Airport

Friday, August 28th, 2009

Ryanair plan to cut services to and from Robin Hood airport this winter due to increased taxes.

The move to cull flights comes as the airline announced a new base at Leeds Bradford airport offering services to 14 destinations.

Earlier this month Ryanair announced that nine out of 10 services to and from Manchester will be ceased following a dispute over airport charges.  The one route remaining at the airport will be Dublin to Manchester.

Other services that have been scrapped include Dublin to Doncaster, as well as dozens of services from London Stansted and Dublin, due to an increase in taxes imposed by the British and Irish governments.

Air Passenger Duty on short haul flights will increase by 10 percent from November 1 this year as tax on medium and long haul flights double.

“Unfortunately, increased travel taxes are affecting our ability to offer the lowest fares,” said a Ryanair spokesman.

He added that passengers who are affected by the alterations would receive a full refund.

Despite the cut back in services, Ryanair have announced plans of a new base at Leeds Bradford in March 2010, offering mainland services to Ibiza, Malaga and Malta, which will also create about 1,000 jobs.

Over the last year 140 routes have been cut from Britain to mainland Europe due to rising costs and declining passenger numbers.

Many routes are also being cut back in frequency.

Thanks to The Telegraph for the above quotes.  For more information on this article visit their website.

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Less Labor Day travel predicted in the US

Friday, August 28th, 2009

Fewer people are likely to travel this Labor Day weekend in the US compared to last year, as cheaper petrol and an abundance of getaway promotions will still make it a busy weekend a airports and on the roads.

US auto club AAA estimates that 39.1 million people will travel at least 50 miles between Thursday September 3 and Monday September 7 as part of a survey of 1,350 people.  It works out to be six million less than last year, but a greater number of travellers who took to the roads between 2004 and 2007.

“With Labor Day falling almost a full week later in 2009, many children will have returned to school,” the auto club said in its report.

However, “this year’s Labor Day holiday travel is expected to show that the pull of the last long weekend of summer is stronger than the poor employment picture and the potential overlap with the school year. In fact, it just may be that many Americans are starting to feel a little more economically secure overall, leaving them freer to travel.”

US petrol prices have also fallen compared to last year, with a gallon of unleaded at $1.05 cheaper than what it was last year, according to AAA.

Thanks to AP for the above quotes.  For more information on this article visit their website.

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Third runway advertisement ‘misleading’

Friday, August 28th, 2009

An advertisement that claims a third runway at London’s Heathrow Airport would not make the airport noisier or dirtier has been ruled as misleading by the Advertising Standards Authoritity (ASA).

The ASA also deemed the advertisement as misleading to claim that the runway would not go ahead ”unless local air quality meets stringent EU standards on concentrations of nitrogen dioxide (NO2)”.

The commercial had been published in regional newspapers by pro Heathrow expansion group Future Heathrow, and was published before the Government’s decision earlier this year to approve the runway.

The ASA reported than an unnamed MP had challenged the claims made by the ad.

The authority said airport operator BAA responded to the complaint on behalf of Future Heathrow, claiming that it was a ”statement of fact and that readers would be right to confidently understand that a third runway would definitely not create more noise or air pollution than Heathrow at present”.

The ASA said today that it found both claims to be misleading.

The authority also noted that both Future Heathrow and BAA believed that noise limits would not be breached, but the claim was impossible to prove until the construction of a third runway took place.

“We concluded that the claim ‘a third runway won’t make Heathrow any noisier or dirtier’ was likely to mislead.”

The ASA said the advert must not appear again in its current form.

Thanks to The Telegraph for the above quotes.  For more information on this article visit their website.

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Paris sees decline in tourist numbers

Friday, August 28th, 2009

Paris is hoping to boost tourist numbers by allowing more shops to open on Sundays, in order to boost tourism revenues that have been affected by the financial downturn.

The city registered a 11.1 percent drop in foreign tourist numbers in the first half of this year compared to the same time last year, according to figures released on Wednesday.

The largest number of foreigners to visit Paris, Americans, has dived over the past year due to the US economic troubles and the high value of the euro, but has picked up again in the second quarter of this year.

Director of the Paris Tourism Office, Paul Roll said the city is “counting on the Americans” in order to maintain tourist revenues and to compensate for the drop in foreign tourists.

He added that America’s economy was hit hard and early by the financial crisis but is expected to emerge quicker, while other economies were later to experience the slump.

The problems with the British economy have also affected cross-Channel travel, as the number of British visitors fell by 23.4 percent in the first half of this year.

Asian tourist numbers also dropped with Japanese visitors falling by 25 percent and Chinese by 17.3 percent.

Overall, the number of travellers to the French capital fell by 7.5 percent to 15.9 million in the first 6 months of this year, the tourism office said, but couldn’t provide figures on overall tourism revenues.

Roll also said that he hopes a new law to allow an increase in the number of shops to open on Sundays could help bring more tourists to France over a full weekend.  Currently shops are closed in France on Sundays.

The tourism authority forecasts a decline of about six percent of tourists visiting Paris in 2009, including French visitors.

Thanks to AP.  For more information on this article visit their website.

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