The Consumer Protection Council (CPC) has found Aero Contractors Airline culpable of gross abuse of the rights of passengers of its November 8, 2013 Abuja – Lagos bound flight AJ132 and has ordered the airline to pay N41,000 each to the affected passengers within 30 days
The Director-General, CPC, Mrs. Dupe Atoki, who disclosed this while briefing editors in Lagos on Monday, said that, apart from the N41,000 compensation, Aero Contractors must also refund 25 per cent of the passengers’ ticket value for abandoning them at the airport overnight.
The compensation, according to her, is in lieu of the reliefs that should have been provided during the period of delay, in line with the Passengers’ Bill of Rights (PBR), a regulation enacted by the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) which is binding on all airlines operating in Nigeria.
She said, “Each of the passengers of the flight should be paid N5, 000 for snacks and drinks due to them after one hour as well as meals and drinks due after two hours of delay; The passengers are also entitled to N1, 000 for two free telephone calls, SMS or email; N10, 000 for return transportation to and from the airport; N25, 000 for hotel accommodation; and 25 per cent of their ticket value for the cancellation of the flight without notice.
“The Council also directed the airline to review and submit to it within ninety (90) days, its Disruption/Crises Management Manual in line with the PBR; establish a customer service platform in each airport in Nigeria and its other locations to facilitate on-the-spot resolution of consumer complaints and report to the Council within 180 days.”
Atoki added, “They are also to develop and submit to the Council within 30 days a prototype statement (which Aero Contractors will be presenting to passengers at check-in) in respect of payment of the relevant refund/compensation when flights are cancelled without notice and in the event of class downgrade.
“Aero Airlines was also directed to present to the Council within thirty (30) days written assurances in line with Section 10 of the Consumer Protection Council Act that it would refrain from a continuation of any conduct which is detrimental to the interests of consumers.”
Explaining the rationale for the order, the CPC boss pointed out that, in line with its mandate to protect and promote the interest of consumers, the Council carried out an investigation on the airline’s reported action of November 8, 2013, which left 39 passengers of its Flight AJ132 stranded overnight at the Nnamdi Azikwe International Airport in Abuja.
According to her, the Panel of Investigation, which considered responses from the affected passengers and the airline, “substantiated the allegation of violation of the Consumer Protection Council (CPC) Act, the Passenger Bill of Rights (PBR) in the Consumer Protection Regulations Part 19 of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Regulations (NCAR) and other extant consumer protection enactments.”
She disclosed that the Panel’s key findings included the fact that the flight was delayed for 15 hours without due care for the affected passengers, contrary to the provisions of the PBR and that the crisis management processes and procedure of Aero Contractors fell short of international best practices and certainly did not ameliorate the traumatic experiences of the affected passengers.
Other findings, according to her, are “that the mechanism or structure to inform consumers of their rights be put in place by Aero Contractors is inadequate as it presupposes that passengers must first ask for their rights before they are informed; that apart from the offer of complimentary tickets to affected passengers to any destination of their choice, which does not replace their entitlement under PBR, no apology was tendered.”
Atoki, also noted that there was inconclusive evidence on prevention of future occurrences and that Aero Contractors did not take adequate measures to provide redress for its passengers whose rights had been infringed upon, thereby contravening the CPC Act, the PBR and international best practice.
The CPC DG observed that the aviation industry was global in nature, noting that operators were obliged to synchronise their operations with the global best practices of strict adherence to rules and regulations and respect for consumer rights.
“The Council is empowered to implement and ensure compliance with all consumer protection regulations howsoever enacted. The Council takes consumer protection seriously and will ensure that all international and domestic airlines operating in the country comply fully with the provisions of the PBR. I, therefore, must assure Nigerian consumers of the Council’s commitment to making sure that consumers of aviation services get value for money,” she declared.
