Bill grants better air traffic passenger rights
THE Makabayan bloc has filed House Bill 6738, or the Magna Carta of Air Passengers rights. House Deputy Minority leader and ACT Teachers Party-list Rep. France Castro said the bill if enacted will replace the obsolete and ineffective Department of Transportation and Communications (Dotc)—department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Joint Administrative Order 01-2012, providing for the Bill of Rights of Air Passengers and Airline Obligations.
The measure will also be useful in cases to be filed against negligent or incompetent aeronautical government agencies or a government-owned and -controlled corporation.
“We need a law that would truly protect airline passengers and also serve as a deterrent to sloppy and inefficient work practice in the airline industry that caused the shutdown of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport last New Year’s Day,” said Castro.
The bloc said despite increasing profits from a growing air industry business, airline companies have wantonly disregarded passengers’ rights, confident that Filipino airline passengers do not generally demand for remedies against abuse due to the expensive and tedious legal processes that normally favor the rich and the powerful and not the victims.
In 2012, the Makabayan bloc said the government issued DOTC-DTI Joint Administrative Order 01-2012, providing for the Bill of Rights of Air Passengers and Airline Obligations, supposedly to address problems involving the airline industry.
“However, airline passengers continue to experience the same long queues, delays, overbooking, cancellation, diversion of flights and other unnecessary inconveniences,” the bloc said.
“Worse, legal recourse for passengers against airline companies have proved difficult and costly, practically rendering ineffective their right under the Warsaw Convention, the Montreal Convention, and other international law norms that provide remedies for violation of air passengers’ rights.
The bill asks Congress to enact a law that will provide for the Magna Carta of Air Passengers rights and for stiffer penal sanctions against airline companies with the aim of helping provide for a long-term solution to the problems plaguing airline passengers for a long time.
The bill said advertisements of fares shall be clear, truthful, and not misleading and shall capacitate the passenger to make an informed purchase or availment of the airline ticket such that the passenger fully understands the consequences of purchasing such ticket.
The measure also provides for the right to receive the full value of the service purchase, right to mandatory fare discount, right to refund, right to cancel flight, right to rebook a flight, right to be processed for check-in, right to board an aircraft for the purpose of flight, right to equal protection, right to be respected, right to baggage and property security, right to safety, right for redress and compensation, right of a passenger for delayed and cancel flights.
It also provides for rights of passengers denied boarding, loss, damage, and delayed baggage, compensation for death and bodily injuries.
The bill said in case the air carrier violates the rights of air passengers, the former shall pay the latter damages amounting to at least P50,000, exclusive of other damages or injury the air passenger has suffered.
The measure said Civil Aviation Authority, Civil Aeronautics Board and airport operators shall assure availability of check-in counters, assignment of technical personnel in airports, liability of airport operators/authorities and complaint desks.
Any violation of this proposal shall be penalized in accordance with the pertinent provisions of Civil Aeronautics Act, Consumer Act of the Philippines, Republic 9442, Bilang Pambansa 344 and Republic Act 9994.