KUALA LUMPUR – A senior citizen, one of nearly half a million AirAsia X Bhd (AAX) customers owed thousands of ringgit in unused tickets, said he was frustrated with the low-cost carrier over its “cumbersome” refund policy.
Heduvin @ Edwin Miranda, 76, claimed the company has made it difficult for him to recoup the RM6,400 in airfares he was unable to use due to the Covid-19 pandemic, despite the airline’s promises to gradually reimburse 450,000 of its customers.
Edwin said he recently received notice by AirAsia to come up with “proof of debt” in order to be refunded.
Among others, he said the process entails filling up “complicated” forms, and getting a statutory declaration from a commissioner of oaths, which was time-consuming and required him to fork out more money.
He also fears that the elaborate process is being done deliberately to delay the refunds.
“This is really absurd. AirAsia (X) said in the news that they will settle all their dues but when I requested a refund, they forced me to go through this tedious process of signing forms and getting it verified by a commissioner of oaths,” he told The Vibes when contacted recently.
“They asked me to download and fill up a form as though they had completely lost my records. Then I would have to bear the extra cost of going to a commissioner of oaths. What is this nonsense? They owe me money.”
Like Edwin, many other netizens have also aired their grievances with the carrier on Twitter.
It's been a year, since May, I am waiting for my refund. I used @makemytrip for the first time in my life to book a flight in @airasia but it is the worst experience ever. When I call their. Customer service number airasia says go to make my trip and vice versa. Worst services
— Harshang Patel (@iamHarshang) April 6, 2021
@AirAsiaFilipino @airasia Where is my refund? It’s been 52 weeks!!!
— Kevelyn S. Rodriguez (@MightyKevie) April 4, 2021
@AVA_airasia @airasia where is my refund? It’s already April! You are not answering my DM’s anymore! I don’t wanna talk to a robot! Please give me my refund!
— Jeramie B.S. (@bjeramie) April 11, 2021
@Flipkart Its over one year, I am still struggling to receive my refund after flight cancellation by AirAsia.
— Ashutosh (@Ashutosh_2014) April 11, 2021
Does anyone else facing the same problem or I am the only victim, because I did booking through Flipkart?
Edwin said his funds would be stored in his BIG member account, which is part of AirAsia’s customer loyalty scheme, but fare prices may increase in the future when borders open.
He said he bought two economy return tickets from Kuala Lumpur to Sydney, Australia in December 2019, several months before the pandemic hit Malaysia.
Due to the movement control order and travel restrictions, Edwin said he had been forced to cancel his plans.
“I will most likely have to top up more money for upcoming trips as tickets are likely to be sky-high. Here, the victims are all the guests (of AirAsia).”
Edwin, who lives in Taman Korporasi Police near Gombak, said the carrier currently owed him around RM6,400, an amount he says is “a lot” to him as a retiree.
Edwin was among customers who received a notification on AirAsia’s debt restructuring plan to creditors for proof of debt via email in mid-March.
Exercise to determine ‘total amount owed’
Asked to clarify the matter, an AAX spokesman pointed to the frequently asked questions (FAQ) section of the plan, which was published on its website on March 31.
According to the FAQ, the purpose of the exercise is to determine the complete amount owed to creditors as recorded in its books and records as at June 20, 2020.
“This is to ensure consistency and because there may be, among others, amounts claimed by creditors which have not been recorded by AAX Group.”
AAX also noted that the last day of submission for documents was April 7, 2021.
However, if customers have missed the submission date, AAX Group said it reserves the right to rely on its records to ascertain the amount of debt owed to the customers, who will still be included in the exercise.
On Edwin’s concern over raised fares for future travel, the spokesman could not provide any specific details on the prospect of price hikes.
“AirAsia X will always continue to provide the best value fares for our guests once we are able to return to the skies again. Details will be provided in due course,” the spokesman said.
On April 1, AirAsia Group CEO Tan Sri Tony Fernandes said 1.5 million people have been refunded since January 2020, and that the airline was committed to ensuring 450,000 would be refunded.
Fernandes also said another 2.9 million customers have accepted funds in the form of a credit shell, adding he appreciated the support for his airline.
The airline, he said, had helped 600 million people travel and created thousands of jobs.
“Covid-19 is not our fault, we are not bad people,” Tony said, as quoted by an online portal.
“It has obviously affected us badly like many other airlines but we are still trying to do our best to keep as many of our staff.”
‘In all fairness’
Former International Association of Consumer Law president Prof Emeritus Datuk Sothi Rachagan noted that the creditors mentioned by AirAsia did not only include the airline’s customers, but other aspects of its business, including contractors, vendors, and suppliers.
Sothi, who is also former dean of Universiti Malaya’s law faculty, indicated the situation was difficult for both the customers and the carrier given the circumstances.
However, Sothi said the airline could have made matters easier for the customers by simply informing them individually of the monies owed to them as per AAX’s records.
“So, if the customers refute the debt owed to them, only then should they go to a commissioner of oaths and fill in the necessary forms,” Sothi told The Vibes.
“That would be easier than having 450,000 go out and get this process done. A lot of people find this tedious and there are problems with people living in areas where doing things like this is difficult, not to mention those living overseas.”
Sothi also suggested that there was no bad faith on AAX’s part and he believed the carrier should be given credit where it is due.
“It is a lot for a chief executive of the company to come out and say ‘we owe so much, you are entitled to a refund, we will do our best to refund you, and please give us time’,” Sothi said.
“I think it is a very honourable thing, a very pro-consumer thing for him (Fernandes) to have said it. This is not what many other companies have come out and said.”
Nevertheless, Sothi said the fact remains that there are 450,000 people to whom money is owed.
“Many of these people have lost their jobs, and they know they will not be able to travel for a long time,”
“This does not mean that they’re being petty or unfair, it just means that they simply do not have money, especially if you say ‘everybody can fly’. These are not the rich, they may be among those who are unemployed.”
Sothi, who explained the legalities of the issue in an article in October last year, also said the government should intervene in the dispute as it involves nearly half a million customers.
“Why is the minister keeping quiet on this? The transport minister or the regulators can do something.” – The Vibes, April 13, 2021
