Florida Attorney General Investigates Fuel Surcharges

In a move I'm surprised took so long, the Florida Attorney General's office has announced they are investigating whether the fuel surcharges imposed on existing bookings for sailings after February 1 violate the 1997 settlement with the cruise lines regarding fees and taxes.

The 1997 state settlement arose from accusations of misleading advertising on "port charges" that included additional fees to cover the cost of fuel, fresh water and wages. Travelers complained that they didn't realize the fees were not included in the advertised cruise price.

Several cruise lines, including Carnival and Royal Caribbean, agreed not to put extra charges on their bills unless they were for taxes or government fees.

The Florida Attorney General's office is reviewing these fees after receiving more than 150 complaints by consumers who feel the surcharge, made after they'd already made their bookings, were not adequately disclosed as required by the settlement.

While there's no question that the cruise lines are feeling the bite from increased fuel charges, the issues is the retroactive nature of this surcharge on existing bookings. Alone among the "major" cruise lines, NCL only imposed the surcharge on new bookings made after they announced the surcharge, a move I applauded at the time and continue to feel was the most fair way to address the issue.

I'll continue to watch this issue and report on any developments. In reality, this will probably be something we'll still be talking about a couple years from now.