European Commission says on-line air ticket transactions still a “risky business”

The European Union said an investigation conducted by it has found that buying airline tickets online is still a risky affair and that atleast a third of the consumers were "ripped off or misled and confused."

It has warned that if the offending airlines and other ticket sellers failed to improve their sales and marketing practices by 1 May 2009, the European Commission "will have no choice but to intervene."

The Union surveyed 386 sites in 13 EU countries last year and found that 137 of these sites were misleading consumers or using unfair practices. It however acknowledged that over the last seven months, about half of the Web sites that were in violation had "cleaned up their act."

It said that the findings emerged as part of a "sweep,"  carried out simultaneously in different countries, to investigate breaches in consumer law.

The biggest problem it found was misleading pricing, which characterised 58% of the sites under investigation. Irregularities related to contract terms, such as pre-checked boxes for optional services, were found in 49%, and non-availability of advertised offers was a problem in 15% of the sites.

The 137 Web sites under investigation represent about 80 companies, including some "large brand names," it said.