Watchdog bans ads for cheap flights
Adverts by Malaysian Airlines for cheap flights from London to Malaysia have been banned by the Advertising Standards Authority following four complaints that they were misleading.
The ASA told Malaysian Airlines that not enough flights were available at the discounted prices for it to justify advertising fares from £305 to Kuala Lumpur and from £333 to Penang and Langkawi on its website.
The ASA said as the airline could not provide adequate evidence that at least 10% of flights were available or sold at the lowest prices it had been ordered not to repeat the ad.
It also ruled that Malaysian's claims in a newspaper advert that the fares were 'all inclusive' was misleading as there was not adequate evidence that taxes were included for all of the advertised flights. The airline has been ordered not to repeat the advert in its current form.
By Linsey McNeill
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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