BA Fined £270m

BA will have to pay out for fines totaling about £270m to the UK Office of Fair Trading and US Department of Justice, after admitting they had colluded with Virgin and other airlines to set fuel surcharges flights. Virgin will escape any penalty, having won leniency by tipping off the authorities about price-fixing. The DoJ said that passengers who flew between the UK and the US in the middle part of the decade "paid more for their tickets as a result of the illegal cartel". But BA chief executive Willie Walsh said that passengers were not overcharged. BA is not out in the clear just yet, as neither the Department of Justice, nor the Office of Fair Trading have ruled out the possibility of criminal proceedings against individuals. British Airways closed down just 11.50p - 2.9% at £3.86 yesterday, as BA had already set aside 350 million the ruling came as no surprise.

BA could potentially face damages claim from millions of passengers and if you search on 'BA' in Google, paid search adverts have popped up, offering services for people wanting to sue BA for cartel compensation.