english 
deutsch 
italiano
Consumer's Telegramm European Edition
If you wish to be informed monthly about European consumer news, just subscribe our free newsletter.Consumer's Telegram December 2007
Insert of n. 77 - Editorial office: Centro Europeo Consumatori (European Consumer Centre, Bolzano - Italy)Internet
Hidden Costs on Foreign Websites
A few hundred consumers have already contacted the European Consumer Centre Bolzano because they had fallen into the trap of hidden costs on internet services. Especially German websites often offer services that have to be paid, however, they do not say this clearly and they omit to inform the consumers about their right of rescission.Websites of this kind offer services like intelligence tests, life expectancy calculations, route planning, research of names and relatives, help with homework as well as quiz games and music downloads.
When consumers register themselves on such websites, they cannot easily find the information about the costs and their right of rescission, because they are hidden under the register form and only appear on the screen if the content of the page is dragged at the top. Very often, consumers are also attracted with a prize game.
When a consumer is registered, he is usually not asked for his credit card number, as it would be clear by then that there is something to pay. The bill is sent by post or e-mail, very often when the period of rescission is over, and it has to be paid by bank transfer.
How can you protect yourself? Before registering on a page, you should always read the general terms and conditions of the service. Be careful, when you are asked for personal data, it could be an online service to pay. Check carefully if there is no hidden hint to costs. If you are not sure, you should better close the homepage.
Nothing is for free! If you remember this principle, you will have no bad surprise.
Air Travel I
Online Tickets- EU checks Websites
A survey started by the European Commission checked systematically over 400 websites that offered online tickets in 15 Member States and Norway and brought interesting but also alarming results.The check especially concerned violations against the articles of the EU regulation about misleading advertising (84/450/ECC) and the one about abusive clauses (93/13/ECC). It was controlled if the price of the ticket was clear and included all the taxes, booking and credit card charges and similar costs and if all conditions of the offer like the limited availability of cheap tickets were clearly mentioned and if the general contract conditions were easy to find, comprehensible and fair.
More than half of the pages showed irregularities. 9 of 11 pages examined in Italy were not o.k. The companies were asked to explain their position or to change their way of practising business. If they do not respect the advices, they risk legal consequences like fines or the closure of their homepages.
Air Travel II
Swedish Consumer Ombudsmann sues Low-Cost Airline
The Swedish institution for consumer questions (Konsumentenombudsmannen) has sued the Irish low-cost airline Ryan air, because they had paid too low compensation for a flight cancellation.The concrete case concerns a Swedish couple whose flight from Brussels to Stockholm was cancelled. The airline offered a flight two days later and reimbursed the price of the tickets. However, no further compensation was offered, neither for meals nor for the hotel.
According to a EU-regulation of 2004 (262/2004/EL) the airline has to offer an alternative flight in the case of a cancellation. Passengers who are concerned can choose if to accept the alternative or if they want to have their money back. Moreover, certain compensations for meals, telephone calls, faxes and e-mails, sometimes also for hotel rooms, must be offered.
In addition to this, the airlines have to pay in any case a compensation of 250 to 600 Euros, depending on the distance, if the cancelling is not due to unpredictable circumstances. Of course, there is a continuous quarrel about the interpretation of this term.
The decision of the European Supreme Court in Luxembourg has not been taken yet.
 |
|
| software by endo7 |    |
ECC
via Brennero 3
I - 39100 Bolzano
tel.: ++39 0471 980939
fax: ++39 0471 980239