Spirit Airlines is fined $50,000 for advertising fares falsely

Department of Transportation fined Spirit Airlines $50,000 on Nov. 21 for deceptive advertising.

Spirit promoted $9 fares on its Twitter feed. When consumers clicked on the link, they were taken to Spirit’s website, where the company mentioned that the fare excludes additional fees, but it didn’t disclose those fees until consumers clicked on a second link.

DOT rules state that airlines’ advertisements must disclose all of the surcharges and fees that are included in a consumer’s total fare.

Starting Jan. 24, 2012, airlines also must disclose all government taxes and fees in their advertised fares.