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The Second Additional District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission in Bengaluru has ordered Air India to refund a passenger ₹44,029 after his flight from Bengaluru to London was cancelled amidst a COVID-19 lockdown. The airline had declared the passenger a ‘no-show’ meaning he did not turn up for the flight and offered him an alternate ticket on another flight before September 30, 2020.
Air India had deducted ₹44,029 as ‘Cancellation fee’ while refunding ₹1,35,143 ticket and charged ₹5,000 as ‘incidental charge’. The commission ordered both the canellation fee and incidental charge be refunded to the passenger.
Milin Jadishbhai Parekh had booked a flight ticket to London in January 2020 and he was scheduled to fly from Bengaluru in April the same year but due to the nationalwide lockdown imposed in lieu of the COVID-19 pandemic all international flights were cancelled.
The Air India flight booked by Parekh was also cancelled but the booking portal MakeMyTrip also did not come to his rescue. All efforts by Parekh to approach the airlines did not yield results either.
At last he lodged a complaint with the commission but he had to wait almost 2 years for justice ever since his complaint in March 2020.
With the Airlines not bothering to represent themselves in the case, an ex-parte order was passed by the Commission in which it ruled that the airlines could not declare the passenger a ‘no show’ and deduct cancellation charges since the reason for cancellation of flight was the lockdown imposed by pandemic which as well known.
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John Miller has been writing about science, gaming, and tech culture for over a decade. He’s a top-rated reviewer with extensive experience helping people find the best deals on tech and more.
