TRUTH IN PRICING LAW TO TAKE EFFECT

[morpheusofthesea]

Beginning July 1, 2024, the “Honest Pricing Law” or “Hidden Fees Statute,” SB 478, makes it illegal for businesses to advertise or list a price for a good or service that does not include all required fees or charges other than certain government taxes and shipping costs. 

The big three cruise company's will abide by this law on posted Date. MSC will begin June 26th. Maybe this will include hotel service charges as well ? Understand this already occurs for our European friends. We are just doing catch up ?

[RichYak]

Isn’t this just a California state law?

[KeepCalmBearOn]

Can't WAIT for SB 479, the “Honest Politician Law”!

 

SB 479, makes it illegal for politicians to make a promise they have no intention of keeping or to lie about or exaggerate an opponent’s policy proposals.

 

The law is “intended to specifically prohibit politicians from lying, misleading, misstating or otherwise engage in unseemly conduct.”

[perakcruiser]

Welcome to the first world, USA. 

[8420PR]

Will MSC (and other cruise lines) include gratuities in the published prices in America, like in Europe?   Or is this just the port fees?

[rikitikitavii]

52 minutes ago, 8420PR said:

Will MSC (and other cruise lines) include gratuities in the published prices in America, like in Europe?   Or is this just the port fees?

I believe that I read where the gratuity does not have to be included in the law, which is in fact a California law.  Hopefully the cruise lines will use the pricing nationwide (US), but if gratuities are not included, the law is pretty much useless!

[Mommapadraig]

10 hours ago, KeepCalmBearOn said:

Can't WAIT for SB 479, the “Honest Politician Law”!

 

SB 479, makes it illegal for politicians to make a promise they have no intention of keeping or to lie about or exaggerate an opponent’s policy proposals.

 

The law is “intended to specifically prohibit politicians from lying, misleading, misstating or otherwise engage in unseemly conduct.”

You know that will never happen! 

[perakcruiser]

2 hours ago, rikitikitavii said:

I believe that I read where the gratuity does not have to be included in the law, which is in fact a California law.  Hopefully the cruise lines will use the pricing nationwide (US), but if gratuities are not included, the law is pretty much useless!

In Europe the gratuities are included in the price because they cannot be removed. You have to pay them before boarding otherwise no boarding. As long as they are not mandatory in the US, MSC maybe will not include them to show lower prices. 

[Mark_T]

3 hours ago, perakcruiser said:

As long as they are not mandatory in the US, MSC maybe will not include them to show lower prices. 

I'm sure they will follow whatever the rest of the market does, as they are mostly driven by the price-comparison sites and other advertising.

 

As long as the competition offers fares without compulsory gratuities and advertises those prices I'd be surprised if they did anything different...

[nferr]

2 hours ago, Mark_T said:

I'm sure they will follow whatever the rest of the market does, as they are mostly driven by the price-comparison sites and other advertising.

 

As long as the competition offers fares without compulsory gratuities and advertises those prices I'd be surprised if they did anything different...

 Gratuities aren't compulsory, they're optional. You can choose to not pay them. At least for US bookings. But I guess they'll now have to add in port fees and taxes, which gives a more honest picture.

Edited June 8 by nferr

[alserrod]

It is enough to compare.

 

Let me explain.

 

I have searched in www.msccruceros.es 

They point always there are gratuities. And they have to point they are obligatory. 

But it is not the same saying 1500 EUR (+84 per gratuities) than 1584

 

So is it clear?.

Yeah

Easy to read?

No

 

 

Anyways.... enough to compare

 

MSC World Europa departing from Barcelona on August 2nd

 

MSC Cruises starts on 1759 $ for a cabin with Easy Plus Pack and wifi included

MSC Cruceros starts on 1679 € (1814$) for a cabin with Easy Pack

 

I do not know if tomorrow it will be conversely but today.... it is easy to decide

 

And I think nobody must book compulsory via the webpage of its country

 

 

 

 

 

[Mark_T]

12 hours ago, nferr said:

 Gratuities aren't compulsory, they're optional. You can choose to not pay them. At least for US bookings.

That is the point, unless that changes then I don't see any chance that they will include them directly in their advertised prices as they do in other markets.

[8420PR]

It seems it is different for different EU countries.   In Germany and UK all gratuities are obligatory on MSC and the advertised price (at each stage of the process) always shows the full price:

 

e.g. Germany:  €469 per person already includes €105 obligatory hotel service charge.

 

e.g. UK: £349 includes all service charges/gratuities.

 

 

Interesting to see that gratuities are not mandatory for bookings made in Spain - I had assumed it was Europe wide. 

 

My opinion:  If they were really optional they wouldn't be added by default, so I feel including them in the fare is more honest.  

[morpheusofthesea]

"The more things change, the more they stay the same."

Alphonse Karr

[BirdTravels]

On 6/7/2024 at 9:03 PM, morpheusofthesea said:

Beginning July 1, 2024, the “Honest Pricing Law” or “Hidden Fees Statute,” SB 478, makes it illegal for businesses to advertise or list a price for a good or service that does not include all required fees or charges other than certain government taxes and shipping costs. 

The big three cruise company's will abide by this law on posted Date. MSC will begin June 26th. Maybe this will include hotel service charges as well ? Understand this already occurs for our European friends. We are just doing catch up ?

But,,, you see endless post here about “why can’t the just give me a bottom line price instead of all the charges”. The Government thinks the are doing you a favor, but it will only confuse people. And the cruise line will make it as confusing as possible. 

[morpheusofthesea]

1 hour ago, BirdTravels said:

But,,, you see endless post here about “why can’t the just give me a bottom line price instead of all the charges”. The Government thinks the are doing you a favor, but it will only confuse people. And the cruise line will make it as confusing as possible. 

See post #14

[Bgwest]

Are we saying that if CA enacts a piece of local legislation that the other 49 states are somehow obligated to comply?

[Susan in Maine]

2 hours ago, Bgwest said:

Are we saying that if CA enacts a piece of local legislation that the other 49 states are somehow obligated to comply?

 

No.

 

However, when a company does business largely thru a website, it would really be an issue trying to have one set of prices for CA, and another for the rest of the country. 

 

For example, does it apply when you book a cruise that sails from CA? Does it apply if you are a resident of CA? How about if you live somewhere else and book thru a TA who is in CA? If the customer service person is somewhere else, but you are in CA?

 

It would get really complicated really quickly, so it would be easier to comply across the board.

[KeepCalmBearOn]

8 hours ago, morpheusofthesea said:

"The more things change, the more they stay the same."

Alphonse Karr

 

What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.

 

Ecclesiastes 1:9

[PTC DAWG]

We’re from the government and we’re here to help.  LOL

[PTC DAWG]

3 hours ago, Bgwest said:

Are we saying that if CA enacts a piece of local legislation that the other 49 states are somehow obligated to comply?

I hope not..

[alserrod]

11 hours ago, 8420PR said:

It seems it is different for different EU countries.   In Germany and UK all gratuities are obligatory on MSC and the advertised price (at each stage of the process) always shows the full price:

 

e.g. Germany:  €469 per person already includes €105 obligatory hotel service charge.

 

e.g. UK: £349 includes all service charges/gratuities.

 

 

Interesting to see that gratuities are not mandatory for bookings made in Spain - I had assumed it was Europe wide. 

 

My opinion:  If they were really optional they wouldn't be added by default, so I feel including them in the fare is more honest.  

 

 

 

Hi, they are mandatory but they say 1000€ (+84€ gratuities instead of 1084€).

 

But it is "clear"

 

Some years ago they said 

 

800€ (*)

 

and somewhere on bottom

plus gratuities and port fees : +284

 

 

[morpheusofthesea]

49 minutes ago, alserrod said:

But it is "clear"

Yep, clear as mud.

[luckyinpa]

7 hours ago, Bgwest said:

Are we saying that if CA enacts a piece of local legislation that the other 49 states are somehow obligated to comply?

 

i seem to recall when i was much younger that cars built for CA were different emissions wise. but i dont know enough about it to remember the details nor care to research.  my bet is there are existing things that exist just because of CA. for example if they mandated a certain something be printed on labels of chocolate bars, im betting all 50 states would get the same language on their bars.

 

'today' i do see on virtually ever site i visit something on the bottom about DO NOT SELL my info and cookies or something. im pretty sure thats because of CA.

[Bgwest]

12 hours ago, Susan in Maine said:

 

No.

 

However, when a company does business largely thru a website, it would really be an issue trying to have one set of prices for CA, and another for the rest of the country. 

 

For example, does it apply when you book a cruise that sails from CA? Does it apply if you are a resident of CA? How about if you live somewhere else and book thru a TA who is in CA? If the customer service person is somewhere else, but you are in CA?

 

It would get really complicated really quickly, so it would be easier to comply across the board.

 

6 hours ago, luckyinpa said:

 

i seem to recall when i was much younger that cars built for CA were different emissions wise. but i dont know enough about it to remember the details nor care to research.  my bet is there are existing things that exist just because of CA. for example if they mandated a certain something be printed on labels of chocolate bars, im betting all 50 states would get the same language on their bars.

 

'today' i do see on virtually ever site i visit something on the bottom about DO NOT SELL my info and cookies or something. im pretty sure thats because of CA.

Isn’t this a lot like the tail wagging the dog?

 

The numbers I’m finding show only 11.7% of the US population lives in CA. Not a very big tail, now is it?