Order 2011-3-25 

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY

WASHINGTON, D.C.

Issued by the Department of Transportation

On the Eighteenth day of March, 2011

Cayman Airways, Ltd. Docket OST 2011-0003

Served March 18, 2011

Violations of 49 U.S.C. § 41712 and 

14 CFR 399.84 

CONSENT ORDER

This consent order concerns Internet advertisements by Cayman Airways, Ltd., (Cayman) 

that violate the advertising requirements specified in 14 CFR Part 399, as well as 49 

U.S.C. § 41712, which prohibits unfair and deceptive practices. It directs Cayman to 

cease and desist from future violations of Part 399 and section 41712, and assesses the 

carrier a compromise civil penalty of $40,000. 

Applicable Law

As a foreign air carrier, Cayman is subject to the advertising requirements of Part 399 of 

the Department’s rules. Pursuant to 14 CFR 399.84, advertising specifying airfares must 

state the full price to be paid by the consumer. Under long-standing enforcement case 

precedent, the Department has allowed taxes and fees collected by carriers and ticket 

agents, such as passenger facility charges and departure taxes, to be stated separately 

from base fares in advertisements, so long as such taxes and fees are levied by a 

government entity, are not ad valorem in nature, i.e., not assessed as a percentage of the 

fare price, are collected on a per-passenger basis, and their existence and amounts are 

clearly indicated at the first point in the advertisements where a fare is presented so that 

consumers can immediately determine the full fare to be paid. Thus, for example, fare 

advertisements that 1) fail entirely to identify the existence and amount of separate 
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additional taxes and fees at the first point at which a fare is displayed, 2) include only 

general statements regarding the existence of such taxes and fees, or 3) separately state 

carrier-imposed surcharges do not comply with section 399.84 or the Department’s 

enforcement case precedent. Violations of section 399.84 constitute unfair and deceptive 

practices in violation of 49 U.S.C. § 41712.1 

In print advertisements, an asterisk or other symbol placed proximate to the advertised 

fare may refer the reader to the bottom of the advertisement where the nature and amount 

of the fees that may be stated separately are shown. In Internet advertising displays, 

taxes and fees that properly may be stated separately from the advertised fare may be 

disclosed through a prominent link placed adjacent to the stated fare that notes that taxes 

and fees are extra and directly takes the viewer to the bottom of the screen, or to a place 

on a separate screen, where the nature and amount of taxes and fees are prominently and 

immediately displayed.2

 

Facts and Conclusions

For a period of time in late 2010, Cayman advertised on its website numerous sale fares 

between the Cayman Islands and points in the United States with accompanying 

asterisks, but failed to disclose that taxes and fees were extra in any of the acceptable 

ways described above. Each advertisement stated a fare that the Department’s Office of 

Aviation Enforcement and Proceedings (Enforcement Office) determined did not include 

additional taxes and fees. While Cayman stated below each fare that “taxes & conditions 

apply,” this summary statement did not provide any information about the nature or 

amount of additional taxes and fees. Furthermore, while the advertisements included 

hyperlinks, the links did not take viewers directly to a separate screen or directly to a 

pop-up where the nature and amount of excludable taxes and fees were displayed. 

Instead, the hyperlink took consumers to a second page containing a more detailed 

description of the sale, where viewers had to scroll past the first screen to the fine print at

the bottom of the page in order to learn of the nature and exact amounts of taxes and fees, 

including a carrier-imposed surcharge of $5.00 or $13.00 on some routes. As outlined 

above, using only general statements regarding the existence of additional taxes and fees 

and separately listing carrier-imposed fees contravenes 14 CFR 399.84 and 49 U.S.C. § 

41712. 

 1 See, e.g., Air Jamaica, Ltd., Violations of 49 U.S.C. § 41712 and 14 CFR 399.84, Order 2008-12-25 

(December 30, 2008). 

2 For example, a carrier or ticket agent could advertise a flight in the following manner: “$260 + Taxes and 

Fees” with the phrase “Taxes and Fees” set off as a hyperlink that takes the viewer directly to the bottom of 

the screen or to the place on a separate screen, where the nature and amount of taxes and fees are 

prominently and immediately displayed. See Department notices entitled “Disclosure of Air Fare 

Variations: Web vs. Other Sources, Surcharges that May be Listed Separately in Advertisements,” dated 

November 4, 2004; “Disclosure of Additional Fees, Charges, and Restrictions on Air Fares in 

Advertisements, Including ‘Free’ Airfares,” dated September 4, 2003; and “Prohibition on Deceptive 

Practices in the Marketing of Airfares to the Public Using the Internet,” dated January 18, 2001, available 

at: http:airconsumer.ost.dot.gov/rules/guidance.htm.
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 Mitigation

In mitigation, Cayman reaffirms its commitment to providing complete and accurate 

information about its airfares to consumers and points out that it had revised its 

advertisements prior to receiving any notice from the Enforcement Office to do so. 

Cayman points out that the Enforcement Office has not claimed that Cayman failed to 

disclose the amount and nature of additional taxes and fees, only that the disclosure was, 

in the opinion of the Enforcement Office, not proximate and prominent to the advertised 

base fare. Consumers interested in determining the exact amount and nature of additional 

taxes and fees were able to do so by following the applicable hyperlink to the terms and 

conditions. Further, Cayman states that the additional taxes and fees applicable to its 

flights are comparable to those charged by other carriers in its markets. Cayman reports 

that it has no record of receiving any consumer complaints about the additional taxes and 

fees that are the subject of this consent order, and it has implemented a training and 

review procedure to ensure that future advertisements clearly state these charges. Cayman 

asserts that for a carrier of its size with limited, seasonal operations to and from the 

United States, its commitment to customer satisfaction, including during the booking 

process, is exemplary.

Decision

The Department views compliance with the Federal aviation statutes and regulations very 

seriously. The Enforcement Office has carefully considered the information provided by 

Cayman and continues to believe that enforcement action is warranted. The Enforcement 

Office and Cayman have reached a settlement of this matter in order to avoid litigation.

Without admitting or denying the violations described above, Cayman consents to the 

issuance of this order to cease and desist from future violations of 49 U.S.C. § 41712 and 

14 CFR 399.84, and to the assessment of $40,000 in compromise of potential civil 

penalties otherwise due and payable pursuant to 49 U.S.C. § 46301.

This compromise assessment is appropriate considering the nature and extent of the 

violations described herein and serves the public interest. It represents a strong deterrent 

against future noncompliance with the Department’s advertising requirements by 

Cayman and other sellers of air transportation. 

This order is issued under the authority in 49 CFR 1.57a and 14 CFR 385.15.

ACCORDINGLY,

1. Based on the above information, we approve this settlement and the provisions of this 

order as being in the public interest;
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2. We find that Cayman Airways, Ltd., violated 14 CFR 399.84 by advertising fares that 

failed to state the entire price to be paid;

3. We find that by engaging in the conduct described in paragraph 2 above, Cayman 

Airways, Ltd., engaged in unfair and deceptive trade practices and unfair methods of 

competition in violation of 49 U.S.C. § 41712;

4. We order Cayman Airways, Ltd., and all other entities owned or controlled by, or 

under common ownership and control with Cayman Airways, Ltd., their successors, 

affiliates, and assigns, to cease and desist from further similar violations of 49 U.S.C. 

§ 41712 and 14 CFR 399.84. Failure to comply with this cease and desist provision 

shall subject Cayman Airways, Ltd., and their successors and assignees to further 

enforcement action;

5. We assess Cayman Airways, Ltd., $40,000 in compromise of civil penalties that 

might otherwise be assessed for the violations described above. Of this total penalty 

amount, $20,000 shall be due and payable within 30 days of the date of issuance of 

this order. The remaining $20,000 shall become due and payable immediately if 

Cayman Airways, Ltd., violates this order’s cease and desist provisions within one 

year following the date of issuance of this order, or fails to comply with the order’s 

payment provisions; and

6. We order Cayman Airways, Ltd., to remit the payment ordered in paragraph 5 above,

by wire transfer through the Federal Reserve Communications System, commonly 

known as "Fed Wire," to the account of the U.S. Treasury in accordance with the

instructions contained in the attachment to this order. Failure to pay the penalty as 

ordered shall subject Cayman Airways, Ltd., to the assessment of interest, penalty, 

and collection charges under the Debt Collection Act, and to possible additional 

enforcement action for failure to comply with this order.

This order will become a final order of the Department 10 days after its service date 

unless a timely petition for review is filed or the Department takes review on its own 

motion.

BY:

ROSALIND A. KNAPP

Deputy General Counsel

(SEAL)

An electronic version of this document is available at 

www.regulations.gov