儒琴英语词组选自欧美报刊文章以及英语原文小说。坚持学习英语今日词组,有助于阅读和理解当今欧美主流媒体的新闻时事报道和英语文学作品。
儒琴英语词组(English Phrase of the Day)
junk fee
英文解释
There is nothing wrong with a firm charging reasonable add-on fees for additional products or services. In the interests of customization, firms should be free to charge more to add mushrooms to your pizza or to upgrade you to a hotel room with an ocean view. However, in recent years we’ve seen a proliferation of “junk fees” – a category of fees that serve a different purpose. They can be defined as fees designed either to confuse or deceive consumers or to take advantage of lock-in or other forms of situational market power. ( From whitehouse.gov)
中文解释
junk fee 字面意思是“垃圾费用”,或“杂七杂八的费用” , 这里主要是指企业的”乱收费“,“违规收费”,一些企业,譬如航空公司,交通,银行,酒店等,设定的一些名目繁多的服务费,附加费以及隐形收费。
这些 junk fees 主要包括以下几个方面:
1 表面低价,隐藏实际价格
2 消费者在购买后得知的意外费用
3 强制性收费
4 欺诈性收费
原文举例
Biden calls for passage of a bill to stop ‘junk fees’ in travel and entertainment
After a series of high-profile airline debacles this winter, President Biden dedicated quite a bit of airtime in his State of the Union address to the Junk Fees Prevention Act, a push to limit hidden fees and surcharges in a number of industries.
The proposed legislation would curtail companies from overcharging on things like extra resort fees at hotels, service fees at concerts and sporting events, and added costs charged by airlines so that family members can sit together.
“For example, we’re making airlines show you the full ticket price upfront and refund your money if your flight is canceled or delayed,” Biden said.
“Baggage fees are bad enough — they can’t just treat your child like a piece of luggage,” Biden said. “Americans are tired of being played for suckers.” (NPR News / February 7, 202311:50 PM ET)
拜登呼吁通过一项法案,禁止旅游和娱乐领域违规收费
在今年冬天发生了一系列备受瞩目的航空公司事故后,拜登在国情咨文演讲中花了不少时间谈及了《企业违规收费预防法案》(Junk Fees Prevention Act),该法案旨在限制多个行业的隐性费用和附加费。
拟议中的立法将限制企业收取一些附加费,如酒店额外的度假费用、音乐会和体育赛事的服务费,以及航空公司为了让家庭成员坐在一起而收取的额外费用等方面收取过高的费用。
拜登说:“例如,我们要求航空公司提前向你显示机票的全价,如果你的航班取消或延误,航空公司会退还你的钱。”
拜登说:“行李费已经够糟糕的了,他们不能把你的孩子当成一件行李。”“美国人已经厌倦了被人耍。”