The contested price differences were not linked to the date of
purchase or to any other service feature that could explain varying
costs, said the Commission. It seemed to be exclusively linked to
the place of residence of the buyer, which is typically determined
by airlines from the postal address or credit card address of the
purchaser. In some cases the price differences were as high as
300%.
In December last year the Commission wrote to 18 airlines,
including Air France, British Airways, British Midlands, Lufthansa,
KLM and Virgin Atlantic, asking each whether it charged different
prices for exactly the same ticket depending on the customer's
country of residence and, if so, why. Budget airlines easyJet and
Ryanair were not among the 18.
The Commission has now received answers from 16 of the airlines.
While most companies indicate that they do not have any
restrictions in place, several carriers have admitted that there
may have been restrictions in the past, but that these restrictions
have now been eliminated. Test bookings show that indeed most of
the restrictions observed last year do not exist now, said the
Commission.
In rare cases some restrictions may still exist for certain
paper-based tickets, warned the Commission, but all electronic
tickets are now available throughout the EU without discrimination,
except in some cases for differences in handling fees. As a result,
price levels are now similar for all EU residents.
The Commission will continue to monitor the situation to ensure
that price discrimination on the basis of residence will not occur
again in the future.
