MAVCOM RECORDS FEWER COMPLAINTS

Mishandled baggage, slow processing of refunds and online booking issues made up 48.2pc of all grievances

THE Malaysian Aviation Commission (Mavcom) has seen a drop in the number of complaints recorded in the first half (H1) of this year.

Mavcom’s Consumer Report for the Jan 1 to June 30 this year period showed that the number fell 5.6 per cent year-on-year to 810, from 858 before.

Issues involving baggage, processing of refunds and online bookings were the most complained about, which accounted for 48.2 per cent of the total number of complaints received, said the commission report. Meanwhile, grievances involving airports were mainly concerning facilities, security and customer service.

Mavcom said of 810 complaints received, 798 were against airlines and 12 against airports.

It said it resolved and closed 99.3 per cent of grievances receives, of which Malaysia Airlines was the highest contributor to the total number of complaints received, with 413 complaints lodged against the airline.

This was followed closely by AirAsia and Malindo Air with 183 and 103 complaints, respectively.

Mavcom received 646 complaints where document submissions were incomplete, which resulted in complaints that could not be fairly evaluated.

It also received 120 complaints where Mavcom’s assessments discovered that the airline or airport concerned had fulfilled their obligations under the Malaysian Aviation Consumer Protection Code 2016 (MACPC) and therefore no further was taken.

Additionally, 68 complaints were either more than one year from the date of incident, beyond the MACPC scope, subsequently withdrawn, or not related to the aviation industry.

Mavcom executive chairman Dr Nungsari Ahmad Radhi said the reduction in consumers’ complaints indicated a progress that reflected on the service received by the consumers from aviation service providers.

“While the Consumer Report is an area that we review and analyse to obtain a perspective on the level of service to consumers by airlines and airport operators, our ongoing efforts such as the amendment of the MACPC and implementation of the Airports Quality of Service Framework also contributed to a better experience for consumers,” he said.

The report also featured the commission’s other ongoing initiatives to heighten consumer rights, including amendments to MACPC, which was implemented on June 1 this year.

Amendments entail full disclosure of airfare at the point of advertisement and payment where hidden charges are eliminated and the necessity for refunds to consumers by airlines to be made within 30 days.

The commission also extended the development of its Airports QoS Framework to three other airports namely the Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport, Langkawi International Airport and Kota Kinabalu International Airport, which began during the fourth quarter of last year.

Mavcom is expected to implement the evaluation by the first quarter of next year.