Key takeaways
- 6 of 32 booking flows: booking, transaction or transfer fee not shown next to the first price. A booking, transaction or transfer fee charged on every booking is shown beside the first price, not later in the flow.
- 3 of 34 booking flows: condition behind a price or discount only one step deeper. A condition that changes the price, such as an end date or a non-refundable rate, belongs where the price is shown, not one step deeper.
- No new screen needed: each of the 6 findings is a label, a line or the order of a step.
What we saw across 34 booking flows walked
Each finding with the screen it sits on, the rule it touches and how big a change usually is (S label or text, M layout or order, L new screen or route). Walked against the full Flowlane checklist for Australia (16 checks); shown here: every finding that came up in more than one flow. Each number counts only the flows in which that step could be checked.
Every rule chip opens its card on the rules page.
| What we saw | Flows | Rule (market rules) | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Booking, transaction or transfer fee not shown next to the first priceWhere it sits: Basket, booking summary, lower on the page | B · s 48A B · s 48AFrom 1 July 2027 Fees beside the priceFees paid with the price are shown beside the base price. Read the rule, with examples →A booking, transaction or transfer fee charged on every booking is shown beside the first price, not later in the flow. | SSmall | |
| Refusing cookies takes more effort than accepting themWhere it sits: Cookie banner on the first page | C · s 28B C · s 28BFrom 1 July 2027 No manipulation, no undue pressureNo design that manipulates or unreasonably distorts the decision. Read the rule, with examples →A cookie choice where refusing takes more effort than accepting can steer the customer; the choice is part of the decision environment. | MMedium | |
| Also seen in two or three flows | |||
| Condition behind a price or discount only one step deeperWhere it sits: Ticket page, rate or date selection | C · s 28B C · s 28BFrom 1 July 2027 No manipulation, no undue pressureNo design that manipulates or unreasonably distorts the decision. Read the rule, with examples →A condition that changes the price, such as an end date or a non-refundable rate, belongs where the price is shown, not one step deeper. | MMedium | |
| Paid extra or prepayment selected before the customer choosesWhere it sits: Ticket selection, payment step | C · s 28B C · s 28BFrom 1 July 2027 No manipulation, no undue pressureNo design that manipulates or unreasonably distorts the decision. Read the rule, with examples →A paid extra or a prepayment the customer did not choose can steer the decision. | SSmall | |
| Member rate in large type, guest rate small or struck throughWhere it sits: Room list, rate selection | C · s 28B C · s 28BFrom 1 July 2027 No manipulation, no undue pressureNo design that manipulates or unreasonably distorts the decision. Read the rule, with examples →The price a guest will pay has to be as clear as the member price. | MMedium | |
| Newsletter box ticked in advance at the contact stepWhere it sits: Contact details, checkout | D · Spam Act s 16 D · Spam Act s 16In force since 2004 Marketing messages need consentCommercial emails and texts need consent; a pre-ticked box is not express consent. Read the rule, with examples →Express consent to marketing messages needs an active choice; a pre-ticked box is not one. | SSmall | |
Three examples
Written as categories, no company identifiable.
Fees
In one booking flow, a ticket of about $77 became about $80 in the basket: a transaction fee of about $3, not shown next to the ticket price.
Member rates
In one booking flow, a room showed a member rate of about $147 in large type, with the rate without membership, about $167, small and struck through above it.
Marketing
In one booking flow, the box to receive the newsletter was already ticked under the contact fields, before any details were entered.
What the rules ask
The Act received Royal Assent on 6 July 2026 and its rules apply from 1 July 2027; until then these are patterns that will need a look. The Spam Act rules on marketing consent already apply. Shown here: the rules this report touches.
Fees and total price
A fee that applies to every transaction is shown beside the base price, at the same time, as prominently. Where the amount is not yet known, how it is calculated.
General prohibition
No practice that manipulates or unreasonably distorts a decision: pressure that is not real, defaults that steer, obstacles to a choice the customer is entitled to make.
Consent
Commercial emails and texts need consent; a pre-ticked box is not express consent.
Check your own flow in ten minutes
One question per finding. A "no" is worth a look; it is not a verdict.
Not observed in this benchmark
What a public walk cannot show. Not part of the benchmark; included in a Flowlane review of your own flow.
Changes and cancellations after booking
They sit behind a booking reference, which a guest walk-through does not create.
Included in a Flowlane review
We walk them with a test booking you provide.
Fees added at the payment screen
Many flows asked for name and email before the payment screen, where our walk-through stops.
Included in a Flowlane review
We walk to payment with a test card.
Member and loyalty rates after login
Rates and offers shown to logged-in members need an account, which a guest walk-through does not use.
Included in a Flowlane review
We walk it with a test account you provide.
Method and anonymity
Same walk, same checklist, same rule mapping for every sector.
Public flows, walked as a guest
Each flow was walked in a desktop browser set to the market's language, time zone and storefront, from the entry page to the last screen before payment or personal data. Cookie banners were read before the first click and spot-checked from the market; banners shown only to visitors from other countries were left out. Nothing was bought, no account was created, no personal data was submitted.
One screenshot per observation
An observation counts only with a screenshot, the URL, the step number, the date and the exact wording on the screen. Uncertain observations are not counted.
Rule, not verdict
Each pattern is matched to the provision it touches. It marks a screen worth a look, not a legal finding: whether a rule applies depends on facts a public walk cannot see.
Anonymous by design
No company is named, quoted or identifiable. Examples are written as categories. The sample is drawn from the sector, not from clients, and no participant was told.
20-minute walkthrough
Your own flow against 34 walked flows, in 20 minutes.
- 20 minutes
- Reviewed before the call
- No system access
- The two steps worth a look first, with the screen they sit on
- The rule each one touches, under the Australian rules
- Where your flow sits against the sector benchmark, for you only