If the refund of overseas air tickets is delayed for a long time, who should be responsible for the loss of consumers?
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Since the beginning of this year, many international flights have been cancelled due to the impact of the epidemic.
In this context, OTA platforms, airlines, and agents have suffered losses of varying degrees. Everyone shouted "difficult", which also led to the problem of difficult refunds for consumers.
Some foreign airlines have changed from direct refunds to refunds of vouchers, and some foreign airlines simply dragged on and did not solve the problem, which caused the already criticized issue of ticket refunds and changes to encounter new problems again.
"Due to the epidemic, the two overseas air tickets I bought have become invalid. Since applying for a refund in March, they have been rejected many times. Previously, the customer service of the travel platform said that it would wait for the airline's custody to end in late August for processing, but it is now October I still contacted the customer service and said that the ticket could not be refunded.” Recently, Shanghai consumer Mr. Yang complained to reporters that the platform has been delaying and not handling the issue on the grounds that overseas airlines have no solution.
The reporter learned during the interview that there are not a few consumers who suffer from the same difficulty in refunding overseas airline tickets like Mr. Yang.
So, who should be responsible for the loss of consumers for the long-term delay in refunds for overseas airline tickets?
A reporter from the Workers’ Daily conducted an investigation and interview recently.
A flight bought a few months ago was cancelled and no refund has been made so far
On October 12, Ms. Zhou, a consumer from Yinzhou, Zhejiang, reported to reporters that she was studying in the UK and bought a transit ticket from Qunar.com on March 16th to take off on March 28 through Russia. The fare was 27755 yuan. .
Affected by the epidemic, Aeroflot issued a notice stating that the flight's transit time in Russia may be extended from the original two hours to 24 hours. Ms. Zhou cancelled the order in advance because of the risk of detention.
Ms. Zhou said, "According to the regulations of the platform, this ticket can be refunded in full." As a result, the ticket fee of more than 27,000 yuan has not been refunded until now.
The screenshot of the ticket booking provided by Ms. Zhou to reporters shows that her refund application was submitted successfully at 15:55 on March 22, indicating that the platform has been accepted and has applied for a refund to the airline.
Up to now, the refund time has been delayed more than 10 times. The reply Ms. Zhou has obtained from several negotiations with the platform is "Aeroflot has not refunded the money, so the platform cannot refund you the money."
Coincidentally, Ms. Yi, a Shanghai consumer, bought a ticket from Moscow to Shanghai on the Fliggy platform on May 1. As the flight was cancelled due to the epidemic, she was able to apply for a refund on the platform on April 16.
Upon inquiry, Fliggy platform refused to refund on the grounds that airlines could only refund voucher but not cash, and then promised to refund in October.
Until October 20, Ms. Yi's refund of this ticket has not yet received a clear response time.
What are the responsibilities of platforms, airlines, and agents?
The reporter searched the complaint of Sina Black Cat and found that many OTA (online travel agency) platforms have recently received multiple complaints about ticket refunds, including late refunds, high refund handling fees, and vouchers. Alternative cash refunds and other situations.
Among them, the ticket refund applications for these complaint cases were concentrated in March and April, and mainly high-priced overseas airline tickets.
Qi Qi, an associate professor at Guangzhou Civil Aviation Vocational and Technical College, told reporters that under the influence of repeated epidemics abroad, many international flights were forced to be cancelled. The demand for a large number of ticket refunds broke out in a short period of time. The airline’s institutional arrangements and supplementary regulations have not kept up. There are great variables in the refund of air tickets for overseas routes.
"The epidemic is a force majeure factor, and the purchase of air tickets is a prepayment model. Airlines need costs to maintain cash flow, so it is inevitable that they will find ways to delay the refund."
In response to Ms. Zhou’s question, the staff of Qunar replied to the reporter that the platform had repeatedly called the airline to confirm Ms. Zhou’s refund processing method and the specific time when the refund arrived.
The staff member said: "The replies of airlines to platforms and customers may be different, because there is a little difference in the information provided before and after, and the corresponding handling regulations are different, and the refund rules of various airlines have been changing during the epidemic. "
It is also noted on Ms. Zhou’s refund application page that due to the global epidemic situation, airline refund policies are frequently changed, and the following policy updates may be delayed. All refund amounts and methods will be based on your choice in accordance with the airline’s final review results Prevail.
Qi Qi believes that under normal circumstances, because the OTA platform has a large amount of user resources and has a certain bargaining power in the ticket market, it can assist in providing fast refund services. The outbreak of the epidemic has broken this balance.
"Rules and regulations are based on normalized handling. The epidemic is an abnormal occurrence. It makes consumers have very limited options, and the platform also loses bargaining chips, leaving consumers and airlines playing games."
According to industry insiders, since the beginning of this year, major platforms have successively adopted financial operations, and platforms or agents have advanced funds to refund passengers.
In fact, the normal procedure needs to wait until the airline refunds to the platform before returning it to consumers.
"Foreign epidemics have made it difficult for these overseas airlines to guarantee their refund credit, and platform advance payments cannot be sustained. According to the network e-ticket agreement, disputes between users and airlines due to transportation services are actually not related to the platform."
Experts call on relevant departments to intervene in time
Consumers affected by the repeatedly changing ticket refund rules have hoped to get the ticket back through contacting platforms, calling airlines, media exposure, online voices, complaints, etc., but the delays and waits have made consumers suffer the entire chain. Terminal.
"Airlines do not provide shipping services, and consumers should undoubtedly refund the cost of air tickets." Chen Yinjiang, deputy secretary general of the Consumer Protection Law Research Association of the Chinese Law Society, believes that due to the epidemic, platforms, airlines and consumers will all have certain losses .
But consumers are the most vulnerable, and their legitimate rights and interests must be protected.
Chen Yinjiang said that foreign airlines operating in the country should also abide by domestic laws and regulations.
If the overseas airlines delay in refunding their fees, the relevant competent authorities should intervene in a timely manner, investigate and deal with them in accordance with the law, and urge them to safeguard the rights and interests of consumers.
As for whether the platform is liable, Chen Yinjiang believes that according to the e-commerce law, the consumer rights protection law and other laws, the platform generally needs to bear the responsibility in three situations: first, the platform knows or should know that the operator on the platform sells Goods or services do not meet the requirements for personal and property safety protection, and no necessary measures have been taken; second, the platform has not fulfilled its qualification review obligations for businesses that provide goods or services related to the life and health of consumers, or has not fulfilled its safety protection obligations, and is responsible for consumption. The third reason is that the platform cannot provide effective information such as the identity and contact information of the operators on the platform.
"On the issue of ticket refunds, although the law does not specify what responsibilities the platform needs to bear, the platform still has the obligation to assist and cooperate with consumers in defending their rights in accordance with the law."
In Qi Qi's view, consumers should keep all kinds of certificates and bills in the communication process, and they should also express positive demands for timely refunds.
"Consumers can use their own choices to vote on business entities, and actively avoid companies that perform poorly in the later consumption process."
Liu Xiaoyan Yang Zhaokui