20 airlines in EU probe into potential 'greenwashing'

(BRUSSELS) - The EU Commission and a network of European consumer authorities began action against 20 airlines Tuesday for misleading consumers about the sustainability of their activities.

The letters sent by the EU executive identify several types of potentially misleading green claims.

The focus of the consumer authorities' network (the European Consumer Protection Cooperation network (CPC)) was on claims made by the airlines that the CO2 emissions caused by a flight could be offset by climate projects or through the use of sustainable fuels, to which the consumers could contribute by paying additional fees.

The authorities' concern is that the identified practices can be considered as misleading actions/omissions, prohibited under Articles 5, 6 and 7 of the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive.

For their part, the airlines are yet to clarify whether the claims can be substantiated based on sound scientific evidence. They now have 30 days to bring their practices in line with EU consumer law.

The types of potentially misleading practices by 20 airlines include:

• creating the incorrect impression that paying an additional fee to finance climate projects with less environmental impact or to support the use of alternative aviation fuels can reduce or fully counterbalance the CO2 emissions;
• using the term "sustainable aviation fuels" (SAF) without clearly justifying the environmental impact of such fuels;
• using the terms "green", "sustainable" or "responsible" in an absolute way or use other implicit green claims;
• claiming that the airline is moving towards net-zero greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) or any future environmental performance, without clear and verifiable commitments, targets and an independent monitoring system;
• presenting consumers with a "calculator" for the CO2 emissions of a specific flight, without providing sufficient scientific proof on whether such calculation is reliable and without the information on the elements used for such calculation;
• presenting consumers with a comparison of flights regarding their CO2 emissions, without providing sufficient and accurate information on the elements the comparison is based on.

The companies now need to provide a response within 30 days, outlining proposed measures to address the concerns arising from their environmental marketing claims under EU consumer law.

Once replies are received, the Commission will organise meetings with the CPC network and the airlines to discuss solutions. If the airlines involved do not take the necessary steps to solve concerns raised in the letter, CPC authorities can decide to take further enforcement actions, including sanctions.

Consumer Protection Cooperation (CPC)

Unfair Commercial Practices Directive.

More information on the consumer enforcement actions