LAGOS – The Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) may at any moment from now sanction no fewer than five airlines, including foreign carriers, over the violation of consumer rights and the Part 19 of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Regulations (NCARs).
Violations, according to Mr. Michael Achimugu, the Director, Public Affairs and Consumer Protection, NCAA, included non-payment of refunds within the stipulated time frame, non-responsiveness to the NCAA’s directives, missing luggage, manhandled luggage, short-landed baggage, delayed and canceled flights, amongst others.
NCAA, through Achimugu, had last month, had vowed to implement to the letter the Part 19 of the NCARs in a bid to guide against passengers’ delayed luggage and other violations by airlines.
In compliance with the NCARs, the regulatory agency is imposing fines of $170 and N10, 000 on foreign and local airlines, respectively for delayed passengers’ luggage as a first measure.
Also, the regulatory agency said that such delayed luggage must be delivered to the affected passenger on international routes within 21 days, while for local flights, it must be delivered within seven days.
Achimugu had assured that the regulatory agency would implement the sanctions to the letter, regretting that for a very long time, most of the air travellers were unaware of their rights, which made the airlines continue to violate their rights.
He had said: “The little things about the regulations that the passengers need to know, for instance, if you arrive at an airport and your luggage didn’t arrive with you, most passengers do not know that they have a right to demand compensation from the airlines.
“If it is a domestic flight, you can walk to the airline’s counter to demand for your N10,000 for not bringing your bag with you. For international flights, it is $170 dollars. A lot of passengers do not know this thing, but today, we are bringing an end to that circle of ignorance. We are bringing the regulations to Nigerians in an exciting manner.”
A source close to the NCAA, confided in our correspondent on Tuesday that two international and three domestic operators were caught for various infractions, but declined to name them.
Achimugu said that although airlines were not always responsible for flight disruptions, NCAA regulations stipulated actions that airlines must take during such disruptions, stressing that failure to comply attracts various degrees of sanctions.
There have been numerous disruptions to flights especially in this yuletide season with most of the domestic operators delaying or cancelling their flights.
He said: “We all know that this is harmattan season, so there is poor visibility. Flights must get cancelled. This is force majeure and the airlines do not owe passengers anything in those instances.
“The enforcement we are initiating today is on cases where the airline is deemed to have been at fault. More will come.”
He emphasised that the Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of the defaulting airlines would be summoned within the week for a meeting with the NCAA management on the regulatory breaches.
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