The European Commission(EC) has publicly reprimanded 9 airlines for continuously misleading passengers on their websites.

The majority of problems regard deceptive pricing methods which disguise hidden extras including the failure to alert customers to fuel surcharges.

The commission’s blacklist which includes Turkish Airlines, Emirates, Aeroflot and Olympic, amongst others, have been scolded for using misleading adverts and unfair practices uncovered in a report that checked airline websites in 15 EU countries plus Norway.

The checks were carried out using a 14 point list which asked if extras such as fees, charges and taxes were included in the price and if there was a possibility of opting in or out.

Another group including Air France/KLM and British Airways are in talks with the commission over improving the accuracy of their website content.

The vast majority of airlines were either already complying or have agreed to immediately comply with the EC rules. The guilty 9 were described by the EU’s consumer protection commissioner, Meglena Kuneva, as showing “a signal that they do not care about their customers.”

The EC has given the offenders until July to raise their standards or face the consequences of the national regulators.