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- A new law went into effect on May 12 that makes “junk fees” or “bait-and-switch pricing” illegal.
- Under the law, charges like hotel resort fees or vacation rental cleaning fees must be included in the upfront price the traveler sees before booking.
- Resort fees and cleaning fees aren’t banned, but they can no longer be charged by surprise once a traveler has already booked a stay.
The chance that a hotel room advertised for $350 will actually cost you $350 is more likely, thanks to a new U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) rule that states that fees have to be displayed upfront. The rule prohibits “junk fees” or “hidden fees,” including charges that grant perks that travelers either don’t want or already expect, like “premium” Wi-Fi or gym access. The rule went into effect on May 12.
A May 5 release from the FTC specifically states that if there is a mandatory resort fee, it must be included in the total price of the hotel, and if a vacation rental has a cleaning fee, it must be included in the total price. The release also states that “the Rule prohibits bait-and-switch pricing and other tactics used to hide total prices and mislead people about fees.”
In addition to making it clear to travelers what they will be expected to pay, the rule also applies to live event ticketing companies like Ticketmaster or Eventbrite. In this scenario, online ticket retailers that charge people a fee to purchase live-event tickets online must disclose that fee in the total ticket price.
The new rule does not get rid of resort or ticketing fees, but it does make companies disclose them upfront. You will still pay the same amount for a weekend at a resort or concert tickets, but you will know the total price from the beginning rather than finding out about added fees when you go to make your purchase.
What that new rule looks like for some major hotels, like MGM Grand in Las Vegas, is that the total advertised cost includes a line item that says “+$50.00 daily resort fee.” So rather than selecting a room for $350 online and then finding out when you go to pay that there is a $50 resort fee, the displayed rate will be $400 with a note that the cost includes the $50 resort fee.
“The Junk Fees rule is rooted in a simple but powerful principle: transparency,” Cathy Mansfield from the Case Western Reserve Law School told CNBC in December 2024, when the rule was first announced. “When consumers can see the full price up front—whether they’re booking a hotel, buying concert tickets or paying a service fee—they’re in a better position to make informed decisions and avoid being misled.”
If you book a hotel or short-term rental, or go to buy tickets, and find out that you’re being charged undisclosed fees, you can file a complaint with the FTC on the agency’s website at ftc.gov/media/71268. The penalty for companies that violate the new rule can exceed $50,000. Another option is to file your complaint with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau at consumerfinance.gov/complaint.
