March 28, 2024, New Delhi: Approximately 10,000 complaints related to manipulative practices also known as “dark patterns” have been lodged with the Ministry of Consumer Affairs via the National Consumers Helpline over the last year. Some of these complaints suggest that airlines and online travel portals employ dark patterns to mislead customers into making unintended purchases during flight bookings. Such tactics have drawn sharp criticism from consumers on platforms like LocalCircles. Senior officials in the consumer affairs ministry are reported to have commented that in the current online environment, there seems to be a systemic practice of manipulating and misleading consumers. The ministry late last year convened a meeting of the airlines on the subject of airline seat charges post the LocalCircles 2023 survey in September highlighted the issue and questioned airlines about unfair trade practices and misleading claims of “free” web check in. The Ministry also requested the Ministry of Civil Aviation to look into the matter. However, not much had changed thereafter and a LocalCircles survey on the subject in December 2023 saw consumers reporting travel sector dark patterns like drip pricing or hidden charges, nagging, false urgency, interface interference, basket sneaking, bait and switch and forced action.

Given that complaints from consumers on the subject of airline seat charges continued to mount since the Government questioning of airlines in October last year, LocalCircles conducted a follow-on survey to quantify the magnitude of the issue and if anything had changed since then. One of the key issues that continues to get highlighted is the fact that on most airlines a family of 4 cannot sit together unless they pay seat allocation charges. The situation becomes extremely tricky if the passengers are young children or senior citizens who need special care and attention. The latest survey received over 41,000 responses from consumers located in 339 districts of India. 62% respondents were men while 38% respondents were women. 43% respondents were from tier 1 locations, 26% were from tier 2 locations while 31% were from tier 3, 4 and rural districts.

44% of those consumers who booked flights in the last 12 months say the airline was charging extra fee for allotment of each seat on the plane

The limited seat choice despite making the booking early can be frustrating. The survey asked fliers “When you booked a flight ticket in the last 12 months, did you get an option to secure a free seat (no charges) when booking?” The question received 14,142 responses with 54% stating “yes, a few seats were allotted during the booking without charges”; 44% stated “no, every seat allotment was on chargeable basis”; and 2% of respondents did not give a clear reply. In essence, 44% of those consumers who booked flights in the last 12 months say the airline was charging extra fee for allotment of each seat on the plane.

There has been a marginal improvement in the last 12 months in the ability of consumers to get a free seat when booking their flight as it has dipped from 51% of respondents who had to pay extra fee for allotment in 2023, which is currently 44%. However, the percentage of those who had to pay extra in 2022 was 35%, lower than in 2024.

65% of respondents who booked a flight in the last 12 months say they paid extra fee for reserving a seat once or more

As many consumers travel by air frequently, the survey asked “When you booked a flight ticket in the last 12 months, what percentage of the time did you end up paying to reserve a seat?” Out of 13,804 who responded to the query 65% who booked flights in the last 12 months say they paid extra fee for reserving a seat once or more: 28% of them said they had to pay every single time. The data shows that 28% of the respondents paid extra all the time (100%); 14% of respondents paid 75% of times they booked; 17% had to pay extra 50% of times; 6% paid extra fee 25% of the times in the last 12 months; while 9% of respondents did not give a clear reply as someone else made the booking, don’t remember or booked via counter/ travel agent. However, 26% of respondents stated that they “never paid for a seat and took whatever was assigned at the airport.

The percentage of consumers who booked flights in the last 12 months and paid to reserve a seat rose from 47% in 2023 to 65% in 2024. The percentage of consumers who admitted to having paid extra for reserving a seat currently is close to the levels in 2022 when 66% of those surveyed had admitted to having done so.

66% of consumers who booked air travel and were surveyed say they found it impossible to get seats together (when travelling with family/ others) without a seat fee on Indigo

Experience of fliers varies from one airline to another and it is not always the same even when travelling by the same airline every time. The survey asked “What are all the domestic airlines where you have found that it is impossible to get seats together for a family/ multiple travelers without paying a seat fee in the last 12 months. Some among the 14,102 who responded to this query selected more than one option. Among the airlines listed, 66% indicated that they found it impossible to get seats together for a family/ multiple travelers when travelling by Indigo; 21% of respondents indicated Spicejet; 19% indicated Air India; 16% indicated Vistara; and 10% indicated Akasa. Only 10% of respondents stated that they “have always been able to get seats together in the last 12 months without paying a seat fee”, while 16% of the respondents did not give a clear indication. To sum up, 66% of consumers who booked air travel and were surveyed say they found it impossible to get seats together (when travelling with family/ others) without a seat fee on Indigo. Here it must be noted that, Indigo also has approximately 60% of the flight capacity in the country.

In summary, 44% of those consumers who booked flights in the last 12 months say the airline was charging extra fee for allotment of each seat on the plane. There has been a marginal improvement in the last 12 months in the ability of consumers to get a free seat when booking their flight as it has dipped from 51% of respondents who had to pay extra fee for allotment in 2023. However, the percentage of those who had to pay extra in 2022 was 35%, lower than in 2024. Further, 65% of respondents who booked a flight in the last 12 months say they paid an extra fee for reserving a seat once or more. The percentage of consumers who booked flights in the last 12 months and paid to reserve a seat has risen from 47% in 2023 to 65% in 2024, just marginally lower than 66% in 2022. The survey also brings to fore that maximum percentage of fliers or 66% of consumers surveyed say they found it impossible to get seats together (when travelling with family/ others) without a seat fee on Indigo, 21% of respondents indicated difficulty with Spicejet; 19% indicated Air India; 16% indicated Vistara; and 10% indicated Akasa.

The need of the hour here is for airlines like Indigo to rationalize their paid seats percentage and make it something that is more acceptable to the consumers, especially not force families to pay such charges for sitting together. In addition, all airlines and travel websites when displaying fares must disclose the kind of extra charges the consumer is likely to experience during the fare booking process. If the airlines fail to do this, the Ministry of Civil Aviation must issue guidelines that limit percentage of paid seats on a flight. It is also expected here that the CCPA or the Ministry of Consumer Affairs will ensure that unfair trade practices and dark patterns are not being followed by airlines and travel websites. Per consumers, dark patterns are currently common on most airline and travel portals.

LocalCircles will escalate the findings of this study to the multiple stakeholders listed in the report for their review and action.

65 Percent Passengers Paid Extra To Reserve A Seat On The Plane In The Past Year: Survey - Forbes IndiaMar 29, 2024A recent survey by LocalCircles provides insights into the 'dark patterns' employed by airlines and consumers' woes in paying extra to reserve flight seatshttps://www.forbesindia.com/article/news/65-percent-passengers-paid-extra-to-reserve-a-seat-on-the-plane-in-the-past-year-survey/92327/1articleForbes

44% who booked flights could never get a seat assigned without a feeMar 29, 2024Consumer complaints soar over airlines' use of "dark patterns" to mislead flyers into paying extra for seat selection during flight bookingshttps://www.business-standard.com/finance/personal-finance/44-who-booked-flights-could-never-get-a-seat-assigned-without-a-fee-survey-124032900048_1.htmlarticleBS

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