goAUPAIR
During the last year, operating costs have risen across every industry. The Au Pair industry has been hit especially hard with the rising costs of airfare and health insurance. As a result of the rising costs, some agencies are suspected of raising their prices in 2010. Rather than raising prices, goAUPAIR is reallocating and reducing the airfare surcharge amount for its Host Families.
Why an airfare surcharge?
Before we can discuss what has changed with the airfare surcharge, there needs to be a clear understanding of why there is an airfare surcharge. goAUPAIR strives to provide fair and honest pricing to all host families. Therefore, we use an airfare surcharge as a way to ensure a Host Family pays for their unique Au Pair for their family. It doesn’t make sense to charge a family living near New York’s JFK Airport who is getting an Au Pair from Germany the same amount as a family living in Jackson Hole, Wyoming (a recently re-opened area for goAUPAIR) who is getting an Au Pair from South Africa.
The unique combinations of an Au Pair’s departure country and the Host Family’s U.S. location can cause considerable variations in flight costs. Instead of charging every family the same airfare surcharge fee to cover the variables, we charge every family one low amount (built into program fees) and add an airfare surcharge specific to the Au Pair’s departure country and the Host Family’s location.
What factors determine the airfare surcharge?
Many factors play a role in the airfare surcharge for each Host Family. One of the most important factors that determine the airfare surcharge is the U.S. city of the Host Family; including the region in the U.S., the size of airport and the cost to fly to that airport. Another determinant of the airfare surcharge is the country and airport from which the Au Pair will be departing. For example, an airfare surcharge for an Au Pair from Asia could differ greatly from an Au Pair from South America.
It is important to note there are two types of airfare surcharges. One type considers the U.S. location of the family and the Au Pair’s home country. The second type only looks at the Au Pair’s home country. A handful of distant and less transited countries fall into this second type and will not be affected by the airfare surcharge reallocation.
Why the airfare surcharge reallocation?
Prior to the airfare surcharge reallocation, there was an airfare surcharge for families living near major ports of entry for the U.S. (i.e. New York’s JFK and California’s LAX). goAUPAIR decided there is no longer a need for an airfare surcharge for some of the major ports of entry because an Au Pair can arrive directly to the airports (in the city in which the Host Family resides) without having to take a connecting flight. In contrast, an Au Pair going to a Host Family located in Jackson Hole, Wyoming would have to take a flight to a port of entry, then a connecting flight to Jackson Hole, WY.
Results of the reallocation
goAUPAIR now has 10 airports from which there is no additional airfare surcharge regardless of the Au Pair’s departure country. The airports with no airfare surcharge include Los Angeles (LAX), San Diego (SAN), San Francisco (SFO), Dulles (IAD), Atlanta (ATL), Chicago (ORD), Boston (BOS), Newark (EWR), John F. Kennedy (JFK), and Salt Lake City (SLC). These 10 airports plus some additional routes, translates into 46 routes with no additional airfare surcharge.
Quick Stats – Before and after the reallocation
• Before - the majority of our travel routes had a $300 domestic airfare surcharge.
• After - we will have 46 zero dollar travel routes
• Before - there were no travel routes less than $200
• After - the most common surcharge amount is $100
• Before - over 80 percent of our travel routes were $350 or less
• After - over 80 percent of our travel routes will be $0 to $200
goAUPAIR understands that sometimes airfare surcharges can be confusing to our customers and we will gladly explain the surcharges in further detail. Please contact our corporate office by phone 888.AUPAIR.1 (888.287.2471)
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