Israeli flag-carrier El Al has disclosed that it is facing potential legal action centred on claims that its ticketing system unfairly charged higher fares for multiple purchases.
El Al says the class action – which features a damage calculation of 147 million shekels ($40 million) – has been filed with a district court.
It states that the claim alleges that prior to purchase of a group of tickets – usually two or three, or more – the carrier’s system moved all the tickets to a higher price bracket.
The result, according to the claim, is that the combined ticket purchase could cost “hundreds of dollars” more than it would if the tickets were bought individually.
El Al says the claim also alleges that combined tickets were advertised at the “cheapest” fare, but lower fares could be found if the customer split the order.
It states that the class action focuses on a single claim of 105 shekels but covers all purchases, over a seven-year period, for which a split reservation would have resulted in lower fares. According to a calculation in the claim, the alleged total damage amounts to 147 million shekels.
El Al says it will “study” the claim and submit a response to the court.
