UNFAIR CONTRACT TERMS IN ONLINE CONTRACTS: SPECIAL REFERENCE TO ONLINE BOOKING OF FLIGHT TICKETS

Abstract

E-businesses and online transaction have become a norm in today’s society. One of the industries that use e-businesses extensively is tourism business and buying online flight ticket is the most common feature of today’s way of travelling. In online booking of flight ticket transaction, the standard terms and standard form contracts are generally used to legalize the transactions and consumers have to agree to all the standard terms prior to payment and finalizing the transaction.

Unfair contract terms are terms which may unfairly exclude or limit liabilities in a contract and such terms are legal and binding if agreed and accepted by the contractual parties. It is observed that the application of unfair contract terms is not knowingly or conscientiously accepted by one or some contractual parties as they are normally inserted as standard terms in standard form contracts. It is perceived that with the current practices of standard terms and standard form contracts in online booking of flight tickets, consumers might be a prey of unfair contract terms.  This normally occurs when consumers or purchaser agreed to all terms of the airlines operators/companies without properly or vigilantly reading the whole agreements.

This paper analyse the principles, application and effect of unfair contract terms in online booking of flight tickets agreements. For the purpose of discussion in this paper, references are only made to online terms and contract used by airlines companies incorporated in Malaysia.