No more rebooking, no-show fees for airlines

Friday, October 21, 2011

AIRLINE companies operating in the country are prohibited to charge rebooking, cancellation and no show fees or any penalties.

This came as Representative Rufus Rodriguez (2nd District, Cagayan de Oro) and Representative Maximo Rodriguez (Abante Mindanao partylist) passed a legislative measure providing for additional regulations in this practice of airline companies.

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House Bill (HB) 4404 seeks the prohibition of rebooking fee of more than P200, while cancellation and no show fees or any other penalties related to cancellation and rebooking of flights should not exceed to P300.

Rodriguez said there are certain things that happen outside the control of the travelers which cannot be denied.

He said people get sick or that important work or meeting comes up or worst accidents occur.

“All these things could make a traveler miss his/her flight and require for a rebooking. And when this happens, the airline companies are smiling because they reap the benefits of a person who misses his flight,” Rodriguez said.

Rodriguez cited some instances wherein some airlines consider the ticket forfeited but no refund is made.

Some airlines, he said, also allow cancellations or rebooking but passengers will have to pay service fees, rebooking or cancellation fees, which usually range from $50 to $200 for international flights.

The average cost for cancellation fee is $100 for international flights and around P1,000 for domestic flights, depending on the destination, plus the fare difference between the cancelled ticket and the new one.

Airlines also charge for a no-show fee of $100 for international flights and P600 for local flights, excluding a re-issuance fee of $25.

“All these have caused burden to travelers despite having valid reasons or emergencies,” Rodriguez said.

He said it has become a common practice for airline companies to offer discounted rates for various flights, both international and domestic.

While welcoming the offer of a one peso fare for flights of some airline companies, Rodriguez noted that the public get deceived because more often than not, there are only limited seats per flight for the promo.

Under HB 4404, airline companies are required to indicate in its advertisements for the promo fares exactly the number of seats allocated to inform the public. (Annabelle L. Ricalde)