KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysian Aviation Commission (MAVCOM) has received a total of 1,251 complaints throughout the first half of 2022 (1H2022), an increase of almost eight times compared with 157 complaints lodged in the same period last year.
In a statement today, MAVCOM said according to its bi-annual Consumer Report for 1H2022, 99.1 per cent (1,240) of the total complaints were received on airlines while 0.9 per cent (11) complaints were related to airports.
It said AirAsia received the highest number of complaints from January to June 2022, comprising 42.1 per cent (527) of total complaints followed by Malaysia Airlines with 40.7 per cent (509) and Batik Air with 7.9 per cent (99).
The commission said for every million passengers carried, Malaysia Airlines recorded the highest number of registered complaints with 199, followed by Batik Air (167) and AirAsia (95).
It said flight rescheduling and cancellations, as well as online booking, collectively contributed to 46.1 per cent (577) of total complaints filed.
Executive chairman Datuk Seri Saripuddin Kasim said global air travel saw a strong recovery in 1H2022, particularly as more and more international borders reopened and travellers took the opportunity to travel abroad in addition to improved domestic travel.
He said passenger traffic increased from an average of 2.9 million between January to April 2022 to an average of 4.79 million between May and June 2022.
"Indeed, Malaysia’s aviation service providers should prepare by taking heed of the complaints breakdown observed in the Consumer Report as guidance to further improve service levels as well as address the root cause of prevailing issues.
"As a proactive measure by MAVCOM, we have also been actively engaging aviation service providers to ensure that these issues are being addressed,” he said.
About a quarter of the complaints received in 1H2022 saw airlines reversing their initial decisions by providing resolutions that were more equitable or satisfactory to consumers.
Overall, 87.9 per cent (1,100) of the total complaints have been resolved and closed.
Additionally, MAVCOM said it also received 1,317 non-actionable complaints, comprising 1,160 complaints with incomplete documentation and 59 complaints where the airline or airport concerned had fulfilled the obligations under the Malaysian Aviation Consumer Protection Code (MACPC).
The other 35 complaints were withdrawn by consumers, 31 complaints were beyond the scope of the MACPC, 29 complaints pertained to bookings made through travel agents as well as three complaints were lodged more than a year from the incident date. - Mavcom
