KUALA LUMPUR, 25 August 2020: The Malaysian Aviation Commission published its eighth Consumer Report, Monday, for six months ending 30 June showing it processed more than 2,000 requests for fare refunds.
In the bi-annual report, the commission noted that 384 complaints were filed, of which 381 were against airlines, while three were against airports.
This translated to a 52.6% reduction from 810 complaints lodged during the corresponding period in 2019. MAVCOM highlighted that 90.9% of the 384 complaints were successfully resolved and closed.
However, the commission also received 2,340 requests for refunds about Covid-19 from consumers, in which 2,146 filed for refunds and 194 were linked to a change of flight dates, substantially higher than last year.
The report also indicated that 57.8% of complaints received during the six months resulted in airlines reversing their initial judgements and deciding in favour of the consumer.
Malaysia Airlines recorded the highest number of complaints per million passengers during the half-year period. The airline received 44 complaints per million passengers carried. The second and third highest offenders were Malindo Air (32) and AirAsia X (24).
For airlines, processing of refunds, mishandled baggage, and flight cancellations were the top three complaint categories, making up 51.4%. For airports, complaints mainly concerned airport facilities and airport security.
MAVCOM executive chairman Datuk Seri Saripuddin Haji Kasim commented: “Although aviation services are progressively resuming operations, demand for air travel remains far from what it was pre-pandemic. While the commission does not foresee a full recovery in the near term, we will continue to uphold our mandate of protecting the rights of aviation consumers nationwide.”
The Consumer Report is available on MAVCOM’s website at www.mavcom.my.
