FTC Bans Hidden Fees, Making Hotels And Event Tickets Cheaper

December 18, 2024

In a major victory for American consumers, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has finalized a bipartisan rule that bans hidden fees for live event tickets, hotels, and vacation rentals.

This regulation ensures that service fees, resort fees, and other charges commonly added at checkout are included in advertised prices. The change means customers will know the total cost upfront, eliminating the frustration and financial surprises often associated with hidden fees.

The FTC has finalized a rule to ban hidden fees

The rule marks the culmination of a 2022 FTC initiative aimed at addressing unnecessary, unavoidable, and deceptive charges that inflate costs while providing little or no value. Over the past three years, the FTC has aggressively tackled these junk fees, securing hundreds of millions of dollars in refunds for Americans.

Now, with this new rule in place, the agency estimates it will save Americans more than $11 billion over the next decade and over 53 million hours of wasted time.

“We all know the experience of encountering a hidden fee at the very last stage of checkout — these junk fees sneak onto your bill and companies end up making you pay more because they can,” said President Joe Biden in a statement. “Those fees add up, taking real money out of the pockets of Americans.”

FTC Chair Lina Khan also celebrated the rule, emphasizing the importance of transparency.

“People deserve to know up front what they’re being asked to pay—without the endless worry that they’ll later be saddled with mysterious fees that they haven’t budgeted for and can’t avoid,” Khan stated.

The FTC’s latest move is expected to pave the way for more sweeping protections in the future, including in areas such as housing, underscoring the agency’s commitment to defending consumers and ensuring a fair economy for all.