I’VE been scanning through lots of travel advertisements lately.
Unfortunately, it’s not due to any impending travel plans.
It’s more because I’m trying to see if airlines and travel agents have been keeping to the new ruling by the Advertising Standards Authority of Singapore (ASAS).
Effective Nov 1, all travel ads must include the true cost of travel, including add-ons like airport taxes and fuel surcharges.
The idea was that travellers would know at a glance how much their air ticket or holiday would cost.
And while most of these companies are keeping to the rules (‘One price all inclusive!’), the advertised prices still aren’t always what you end up paying.
Your first clue is the liberal use of the word "from", which prefaces the prices.
Online, tickets from Tiger Airways and Jetstar Asia have included taxes and surcharges in their one-way fares.
But these are still subject to availability, the date of booking and a host of terms and conditions.
For tour agencies, a few phone calls revealed that their prices were often based on the cheapest airline and hotel.
Their availability was also subject to several variables, such as the date of travel, the travel component and whether there were enough travellers to form a tour group.
Subsequent calls revealed a pattern that will be depressingly familiar to seasoned travellers.
One agency’s advertised price of $1,199 plus $350 in taxes turned out to be for the second person in a travelling pair; the first person pays $1,499.
Another ad on Nov 5 featured a "Taiwan Thrill" holiday at $738 plus $310 in taxes - but it was only available for tours before Nov 14.
And so the story goes.
ASAS Chairman, Associate Professor Eleanor Wong, said it is impractical to require advertisers to list every single option available to the consumer.
Prof Wong said: "It is up to an educated consumer base to punish advertisers who don’t give you the full information or who offer unacceptable options."
So has the ruling had any real effect?
Consumers Associate of Singapore (Case) executive director Seah Seng Choon stressed that the current situation, while imperfect, is still a step forward.
Previously, consumers could end up paying up to 50 per cent more than the advertised price, he said.
On the flip side, almost all of the 10 travel agencies I spoke to continued to express opposition to the ASAS ruling.
They ruled out the old argument that it is difficult to include all the taxes and surcharges, since they vary for each airline and are subject to change.
Some confided that if they included all of the possible additional costs, the price would become unattractive to customers.
Doesn’t sound all that promising for the consumer, does it?
Personally, I won’t be going anywhere near those ads the next time I travel.
I’ll just buy a plane ticket, grab a copy of Lonely Planet and go wherever the road takes me.