They are small, pesky and crop up everywhere. Though some of them may be hidden, the bulk of arbitrary fees and charges are right under your nose. Find out how they are devouring your hard-earned wealth

    You're a hard worker and, more importantly, a diligent saver. Yet, your monthly budget seems to be strained. The problem is the holes in your wallet, from tiny invisible ones to humongous ones, that have been created by pesky fees and charges. Whether they've sneaked up on you or have been stated upfront in bold letters, these seem to be cropping up everywhere. 
    Buy a car, pay exorbitant handling charges; dine at a restaurant, shell out a sizeable service charge; take a road trip, pay a toll tax after every 100-250 km. Every sphere of your life seems to have been overrun by some or the other capricious charge. 
    Every company, seller or dealer has come up with an innovative name for a novel fee, but a fee or charge by any other name is going to leave you poorer than you had accounted for. Nowhere is this more apparent than in school fees. As every parent will bemoan, a child's education will cost you at least 50% more than the advertised tuition fee. There is a sports facility fee, annual day fee, heritage festival fee, library charge, building development fee, laboratory fee…the list keeps getting longer each year. Most people have become resigned to it, if not entirely inured. 
    However, it's the prevalence of such arbitrary fees in other areas that has begun to pinch people. We've complained about it and a heated discussion and debate ensues every time someone comes up with a new charge, but, unfortunately, on the ground, there's no concrete action. Even before the dust has had time to settle, there's a new charge that has been tacked on to yet another service. 
    "The onus is on the consumers. You need to read the fine print carefully before you avail of a service. However, if you find that you've been charged for something that hadn't been disclosed to you beforehand, you have the right to question it," says consumer activist Jehnagir Gai. 
    For most customers it's a grin-and-pay situation, since few have the time or the patience to follow up, especially if they are dealing with a small amount. But, remember, even minor charges can add up to big costs. So, scrutinise all your bills and statements to know which holes you need to, and can, plug. 
Cars 
Whether you're buying a new car or getting your old one serviced, be prepared to pay more than you had intended to. 
Logistics and handling charge 
One of the biggest grey areas, the dealer can include anything under this heading. It could be warehouse charges, the fuel that has been put in the car the cost of the number plate the pollution control check and the insurance cost while the vehicle was in transit. Logistics fee is 2-5% of a car's value, and, unfortunately, all dealers now levy this charge, though you could try to bargain for it to be lowered. "The ex-showroom price is the cost of the car at the dealer's, so why should you have to pay for a transit fee or warehouse charge? If you consider that a dealer is levying 3,000-5,000 as handling fee on a car worth 4 lakh, then dealers are minting thousands of crores every year. Where is this money going?" asks Adil Jal Darukhanawala, editor-in-chief of Zigwheels. 
Free servicing is not really free 
If you're a new car owner, be prepared that your free servicing will come for a price. You may find that you're paying for tyre rotation or body polishing, even if you hadn't asked for it. However, the major money-spinner is the overhauling that needs to be done at 40,000 km. The service centre will begin pestering you when your odometer starts inching upwards of 37,000 km. As a conscientious owner, you'll agree to it. However, the service centre will insist on the same overhauling after you cross the 40,000 mark. So, you may end up paying twice for the same thing. 
Travel Given the skyrocketing fares and arbitrary ancillary fees, the travel sector is rife with charges that can double your travel budget. 
Split pricing 
Most experienced travellers already know that airlines advertise a low base fare and that the additional taxes and surcharges add up to a sizeable amount. This pricing strategy now seems to have seeped into hotels too. Most hotels lure customers with a low room rate, but tack on various charges to the final bill that is presented to the traveller when he's vacating the hotel. "If the charges had not been disclosed to you while booking the hotel, you can refuse to pay them," advises Nikhil Ganju, country head, TripAdvisor India. However, he agrees that it can lead to a sticky situation. In fact, impatient not to miss their flights or trains, travellers grudgingly pay up. 
Arbitrary airline charges 
Domestic airlines often come under the scanner of the regulator if their fares skyrocket, which is why they keep a tight rein over their prices. However, they have carte blanche when it comes to fixing ancillary fees, so they keep hiking them arbitrarily (see Travel fee traps). Two of the latest are the seat preference charge, which ranges from 50-750, as well as the fee that you pay when you redeem frequent flyer miles. 
    "The airlines don't hide their fees. They just inform you about them at the last minute, when you don't want to go through the entire ticket 
booking process again. I had to recently pay a Web convenience fee of 200 while booking a GoAir ticket on their website. The fee was tacked on just before I had to make the credit card payment," says Gai. Adds Ganju: "I was booking a flight from Singapore to Bali and opted for Air Asia since it was cheaper than Singapore Airlines. However, the final fare for Air Asia was S$450, which included a checked-in baggage fee and an airport check-in fee. Also, for an overweight baggage of 10 kg, I had to pay S$180 extra, which wasn't mentioned in the ticket." 
Cancellation or rescheduling charge 
Most travel portals, hotels and airlines will clearly state their cancellation policy and charges. This is another charge that has been recently hiked by 750-950 by airlines. If you've booked your flight or hotel through an online travel agent, you may have to pay the cancellation fee twiceto the hotel/airline and a service charge to the OTA. If you need to reschedule your reservation, you will be told that you need to cancel the original booking, and, of course, pay the hefty cancellation charge. Only then will you be allowed to make a fresh booking. 
Entertainment 
It's a free-for-all market when you shop or dine out, more for sellers than buyers. Every retailer seems to tack on any charge that he wants to. 
Service charge 
This charge imposed by a restaurant doubles as a variable pay, which is non-taxable, and is given to staffers over and above their contracted salaries. But most restaurants pass on only about 50% of the service charge to the staff and the rest is kept to by the establishment compensate for crockery breakage and damage to property. 
Online convenience charge 
When you book a movie ticket online, you have to pay a convenience charge of 10-150, depending on the cost of the ticket. What's convenient about wasting printer's ink and still having to stand in a queue to get physical tickets at a counter? Worse, the charge is levied on each ticket, so even if it's a one-time transaction, you pay a sizeable sum. 
Parking at malls 
Parking charges vary from 10-200 for an hour. Builders justify it as the cost of maintaining the parking space as well as paying the salary of the staff. Does the maintenance vary so much among malls, especially since in most cities the parking space is not part of the FSI and is not included while assessing the property tax? Some malls have tucked away the entry to the parking area in a small corner and insist on valet service, which comes for a premium. 
Charity charge 
'Would you like to donate for charity?' It's a question most shoppers have heard at the billing counter. While it is good to be generous, be wary of establishments that do not put the contribution on the bill. "There's no accountability for this money. The merchant could be collecting 5 lakh a month from customers, but only giving 50,000 as charitable contribution," says Gai.