This study examines how surcharge presentation affects consumer responses in the context of online travel agency (OTA) airline ticket booking. In OTA booking environments, consumers often compare flight options based on the initially presented pri...
This study examines how surcharge presentation affects consumer responses in the context of online travel agency (OTA) airline ticket booking. In OTA booking environments, consumers often compare flight options based on the initially presented price. However, additional charges such as baggage fees, ticketing fees, or seat selection fees may appear later in the booking process. Therefore, consumers may evaluate the same final price differently depending on when and how the surcharge is presented.
Based on partitioned pricing and drip pricing literature, this study focuses on two features of surcharge presentation: early presentation and predictability. Price fairness and price opacity are used as mediating variables, while system trust and purchase intention are used as outcome variables. A 2×2 between-subjects experimental design was conducted with 160 Chinese adult respondents who had OTA airline ticket search or booking experience. The survey was conducted through Wenjuanxing, a Chinese online survey platform.
The results show that early surcharge presentation and surcharge predictability increase perceived price fairness and reduce perceived price opacity. They also have positive effects on system trust and purchase intention. In addition, price fairness has a positive effect on both system trust and purchase intention. Price opacity mainly plays a mediating role in the relationship between surcharge presentation and system trust. Overall, the findings show that the effect of surcharge presentation is transmitted not only directly, but also through consumers’ perceptions of price fairness and price opacity.
This study extends partitioned pricing and drip pricing research to the OTA airline ticket booking context. The findings suggest that OTA platforms should present surcharge information early, clearly, and predictably in order to reduce price opacity and improve consumer trust and purchase intention.