THE Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC) is planning to implement starting fourth quarter of this year banning air carriers' practice of overbooking during peak seasons.
DOTC spokesman Michael Arthur Sagcal said Tuesday that the DOTC has been in close coordination with the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) to improve certain provisions of the Air Passenger Bill of Rights (APBR), such as stopping the airlines from their practice of overbooking during peak seasons, and capping overbooking during non-peak seasons to 10 percent.
The move came after an incident in December last year when many passengers supposedly booked at Cebu Pacific failed to spend their holiday break in the provinces.
“While overbooking is an internationally-accepted practice, there should be a limit so as to protect the interests of passengers. We see no reason to allow overbooking of domestic flights during peak seasons because there is a foreseeable surge in the demand for seats, so most flights are full anyway,” Sagcal said.
Aside from banning overbooking, other proposed improvements, which are currently under review and consultation by the CAB, include: shortening the period before a delay becomes compensable from three hours to two hours; fixing a minimum compensation for any passenger who is denied boarding due to overbooking; and tightening up rules on flight delays and cancellations.
CAB Executive Director Carmelo Arcilla said the proposed improvements will help compel airlines to reduce flight delays and to adhere faithfully to their approved schedules.
He also said that the lack of a minimum compensation in cases where boarding is denied has oftentimes led to a stalemate in negotiations between airlines and their passengers when complaints are filed with his agency.
The DOTC and the CAB are targeting to implement these improvements by the fourth quarter of this year, ideally before the peak periods of the All Saints’ Day weekend and the Christmas season, Sagcal said.
CAB slapped Gokongwei-owned Cebu Pacific with a fine of P52 million over the cancellation and delayed flights during the Christmas rush last December. (SDR/Sunnex)