The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) says airline passengers are entitled to refreshments, airtime and, in some cases, accommodation when flights are delayed or cancelled.
Gatekeepers News reports that speaking on Tuesday’s edition of a breakfast programme, FCCPC Director Michael Ijagwu said passengers have rights that airlines are expected to uphold during disruptions.
“If your flight is delayed, you are supposed to be given refreshments. After some more hours of delay, you are supposed to be given airtime,” Ijagwu said.
“From what we understand from the books and the law, you are supposed to be given airtime because you could be seen to be at least in distress. So you will be required to be assisted to that extent.”
He added that passengers may also be entitled to transportation and accommodation in cases of abrupt flight cancellations.
“When it gets to cancelling the flight abruptly, and you had kept consumers all through that time, it’s required even outside of the law,” he said.
“Even if you were in other climes, you could tell that in such a situation, just like you mentioned, transport will be provided because the airport is quite far from the town or city.
“Apart from that, accommodation could be provided in certain instances. So, given the exact situation, we could just put this side by side with the exact situation as it would have occurred to be able to determine what should have been given and what has been denied.”
Ijagwu’s comments come amid persistent delays, suspensions and cancellations by airline operators across the country.
In recent days, photos and videos of stranded passengers at airports have circulated online as airlines battle scarcity and rising costs of Jet A1 fuel.
At the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja on Monday, several airlines reportedly rescheduled flights repeatedly, leaving passengers stranded without transportation or overnight accommodation.
Last week, Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development Festus Keyamo hinted at a possible increase in airfares to help domestic airlines remain operational and avert a shutdown.
The Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON) had earlier warned of a possible shutdown over the soaring cost of aviation fuel.
According to the group, the price of Jet A1 rose from ₦900 per litre as of February 28 to ₦3,300 per litre, representing an increase of over 300 per cent within weeks.
In a letter to the Executive Secretary of the Major Energies Marketers Association of Nigeria (MEMAN), Clement Isong, airline operators said they had been absorbing the rising costs out of “patriotism and in the spirit of service to the nation,” but warned the burden had become unsustainable.
“Airline revenues are insufficient to cover the cost of fuel alone,” the letter read in part.
