The EuropeanCommission'sConsumer Protection Cooperation Network (CPC) has sent warning letters to 20 airlines for the misleading practice of charging their passengers for carbon emission offsetting.
TheCPC'scomplaint focuses onairlines'claims that CO2 emissions caused by a flight canbe offsetby climate projects and the use of sustainable aviation fuels (SAF), where passengers pay an additional fee as a contribution towards the cost of the SAF.
The authorities are concerned that the practice can be considered misleading or omitting essential information about offsetting.
The EC and CPC identified several types of misleading practices used by the 20 airlines, including:
Creating the impression that the additional fee for climate projects and SAF will reduce or fully counterbalance the CO2 emissions from the flights; Using the termsustainable aviation fuels(SAF) without clearly justifying the environmental impact of such fuels; Using the termsgreen,sustainableorresponsiblein an absolute way or using other implicit green claims; Claiming that the airline is moving towards nett-zero emissions or any future environmental performance, with no verifiable commitments or targets; Offering consumers aCO2 calculatorfor emissions of a specific flight without providing sufficient scientific proof that the calculation is reliable and identifying which elementsare consideredin the calculation; Usingthese ambiguous calculations to compare flights regarding CO2 emissions.The airlinesare required torespond within 30 days with an outline of proposed measures to address the concerns regarding their environmental marketing claims to adhere to EC and CPC consumer law. Alternatively, airlines may submit scientific evidence that substantiates theirenvironmentalclaims that arebeing questioned.
If the airlines do not submit a response, CPC authorities can decide to take further enforcement actions, including sanctions, says the EC press release.
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