The Consumer Protection Council (CPC) has threatened to take Aero Contractors Nigeria Limited to court, if the company fails to compensate the 39 passengers who were on board the airline’s flight AJ132 from Abuja to Lagos, last November, but were left stranded through the night at the Abuja airport and subjected to much discomfort.
The council said the cancellation of the flight without compensation such as refreshments, lunch, accommodation and transportation to and from the airport, amounted to a violation of the rights of the passengers and fell foul of the CPC Act, the Passengers Bill of Rights, (PBR) and international best practices.
Dupe Atoki, director-general of the CPC said yesterday in Lagos, that the council has given the airline 90 days, effective April 25, to take some measures to compensate the perssengers, failing which the council would take Aero Contractors to court.
She listed the reliefs as including N5,000 for snacks and drinks due them after one hour, meals and drinks due after two hours of delay; N1,000 for two free telephone calls, sms or email due to them; N10,000 for return transportation to and from hotel accommodation in Abuja; N25,000 for one night of hotel accommodation and 25 percent of passengers’ ticket value for the cancellation of the flight without notice.
Addressing the press yesterday in Lagos, she said CPC was determined to reduce flagrant abuse of consumers’ rights, and that a similar action recently on Cocacola and Nigeria Bottling Company had led to the invitation of seven foreign experts to enhance the quality of the products.
The airline is also expected within the same period to review and submit to the council, its disruption/crisis management manual, in line with the Passenger Bill of Rights, and also establish a customer service platform in each airport in Nigeria and their other locations, to facilitate on the spot resolution of consumer complaints.
Aero Conractors is to also develop and submit to the council within 30 days, a prototype statement which it will present to passengers in respect of payment of the relevant refund or compensation, at check, in respect of payment of relevant fund in the event of downgrade.
They are also to present to the council within 30 days, written assurances, in line with relevant section of the council’s Act, that it will refrain from a continuation of any conduct detrimental to the interest of consumers.
Atoki further said that the Airline should pay compensation to the affected passengers and report to the council within 30 days, the above listed reliefs that should have been provided to the passengers during the period of delay, and in line with PBR.
“The aviation industry is global in nature, hence operators are obliged to synchronise their operations with the global best practices of strict adherence to rules and regulations and respect for consumers,” Atoki said.
She further said that the action was in furtherance of the determination of the council to safeguard consumers’ interest in various sectors of the economy, adding that she was acting based on the Act Cap 25 LFN 2004, which among others, empowers them to provide speedy redress to consumers complaints, cause an offending company to protect, compensate and provide relief to injured consumers and encourage businesses to develop and enforce in their various fields, quality standards designed to safeguard the interest of consumers.
Explaining the genesis of the action, she said that the council gathered from media reports last November, that the passengers scheduled to leave Abuja airport to Lagos by 6.00pm on November 8, were left stranded overnight at the airport.
Consequently, the council wrote the airline in the same month, intimating them of the allegations and directed them to furnish the council with the report of the incident within seven days. She said that the airline however failed to respond until it was gingered by public notices in newspapers and on televisoion.
The council commenced investigations through a panel which it set up, with opportunities to the airline to respond.
However, “The panel, after three hearings, held between December and February 2014 substantiated the allegation of the violation of the CPC Act, the Passenger Bill of Rights (PBR) in consumer protection Regulations part 19 of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Regulations (NCAR) and other extant consumer protection enactments.
“The order of the Council has been served on Aero Contractors. It is worth noting that disobedience to the Order of the Council is punishable, upon conviction, with three years jail term or a fine.”
John Omachonu
