Airlines Owe Nearly ₱1 Billion in Ticket Refunds

The Philippines Travel Agencies Association (PTAA), consisting of 439 members, issued an estimate of ₱940 million for receivables due to agents and consumers for canceled flights during the coronavirus pandemic.

Jhaytee Wong, executive vice-president of the PTAA, said “The usual refund time — without the pandemic — is about one to two months for airlines to refund the actual money. Since March, all the refunds that we have requested to airlines have not been processed,”

Wong added “The problem is, we as travel agents, are having a hard time explaining to our clients because it’s already almost six months and we haven’t been refunding them. And it’s hard for us to shell out money for refunds… the funds are with the airlines, not the agents,”

The agencies said previously that the refunds were due from 27 airlines, including Philippine Airlines, Cebu Pacific, and Philippines AirAsia.

Philippines AirAsia stated “AirAsia understands the urgency of customer queries relating to the current health situation and any changes to their travel plans. The company has made it a priority to persistently work with various partner organizations, including banks and travel agencies, to immediately address guests’ concerns.”

Candice A. Iyog, Cebu Pacific vice-president for marketing and customer service, said “Given the high number of flight cancellations, refund requests continue to rise and pile up day by day. This unprecedented volume has caused a backlog in the system, resulting in processes taking longer than expected. As of now, refunds take about five (5) months from the date it was filed,”

Currently only 20 members of the PTAA are actively operating, catering to overseas Filipino workers and seafarers.

Wong said “Currently, all the members are hanging on. They’re waiting until the end of the year to make a decision if they’re going to close permanently or they will continue to be temporarily closed,”