Expedia.co.uk Reveals UK's Attitudes to Taxes and Charges

LONDON, March 18, 2011 - Reports in the media suggest that Which? is planning to lodge a
super-complaint with the Office of Fair Trading, asking it to investigate the
level of fees imposed by some companies when customers pay for flights with
credit or debit cards. Expedia.co.uk does not apply its own credit card fees
or automatically add charges for additional services to the price at the end
of the booking process.

In the wake of this debate, Expedia has undertaken research to better
understand consumer attitudes to fees and travel booking charges.

The survey commissioned by Expedia and run by independent research
company, ResearchNow questioned over 700 regular UK travellers. It was
supported by in-depth interviews conducted by independent consultancy, The
Value Engineers.

Low cost airlines have changed the way consumers think about flight
booking fees. Over 95% of travellers expect low cost airlines to charge
additional fees on top of the headline price. Consumers are resigned to the
fact that booking travel will involve paying extra fees and charges.

A significant source of discontent is flight booking web sites
(www.expedia.ie/Flights) that show an initially attractive price, but
then add significant additional charges in the final stages of the booking
process. Around one in four consumers felt so strongly about this that they
would abandon their booking to find an alternative deal out of principle on
seeing such fees, even if the flight they had found met all their other
needs.

While 32% of people considered it highly unacceptable to charge credit
card fees, 53% stated that charging fees for debit card payments was a
completely unacceptable practice. During research interviews with TheValue
Engineers, respondents reported seeing wildly different levels of fees being
charged for both credit and debit card payments on different web sites.

Other additional fees that irked customers were:

- 59% think check in fees at the airport are highly unacceptable

- 53% think online check in fees are highly unacceptable

- 44% think fees for checking in bags to the hold are highly
unacceptable

- 21% think fees for online seat selection are highly unacceptable

Surprisingly, when asked about other potential fees that airlines might
charge in the future, 84% stated that they would find it unacceptable to be
charged to use the on-board toilet- meaning 16% might consider paying for the
privilege!

Andrew Warner of Expedia, says, "The level of regulatory fees and taxes
incorporated into flight prices in the UK has increased dramatically -
particularly with the introduction of increased Air Passenger Duty levies.
This has placed a higher cost burden on the British traveller. They are
looking for travel retailers to be open and fair when it comes to additional
charges on their web sites.

"The consumer protection, offered by credit cards, means travellers are
less reluctant to pay a small fee for using a credit card than a debit card.
However the fact that some companies do not reveal credit cardfees until the
end of the booking process, if at all, can makeit harder for travellers to
judge the best deal. Expedia.co.uk does not apply its own credit card fees or
automatically add charges for additional services to the price at the end of
the booking process."

In order to better enable travellers to make informed choices between
airlines and flight deals, Expedia.co.uk is now highlighting those airlines
who do not levy their own credit card fees upfront in flight search results.

Expedia, Inc. (EXPE) is the world's leading online travel company. If you
are looking for a Hotel in London, (
www.expedia.co.uk/London-Hotels.d178279.Travel-Guide-Hotels) Rome or
Vienna you'll find it all on Expedia Hotels. (www.expedia.co.uk/Hotels
)

For further press information, please contact the Expedia press office team +44(0)870-990-5427, expediapressoffice at golinharris.com