Revamp complaint process at Mavcom, says transport expert

Transport consultant Rosli Khan says airlines with a record of delays or cancellations will not be favoured by potential passengers.

PETALING JAYA: Any move to fix the Malaysian Aviation Commission (Mavcom) must include a revamp of its complaints resolution process, says a transport expert.

Transport consultant Rosli Khan, who is in favour of a Mavcom overhaul, said the fact that passengers must wait 30 days for airlines or airports to address their complaints before contacting the commission is unwarranted.

“What if Mavcom takes another 30 days to investigate your complaint?” he asked.

Rosli told FMT that Mavcom should publish data on unethical practices and poor service by airlines and complaints from passengers to empower consumers with the necessary information to make informed decisions.

“It will also ensure accountability on the part of the airlines. There will then be an incentive for them to improve their services and address consumer grievances to maintain their reputation and market share,” he said.

“Airlines with a record of delays or cancellations will naturally not be favoured by potential passengers. This element of transparency is important to both airlines and passengers.”

Last Friday, former law minister Zaid Ibrahim advocated a significant overhaul of Mavcom, citing a failure on its part to adequately protect consumer rights.

Zaid said this after a recent incident where he was charged RM50 for correcting a minor error in his name while checking in for a flight.

Federation of Malaysian Consumers Associations CEO Saravanan Thambiraj said that while Mavcom has implemented a better consumer complaints system, called the FlySmart system, more can be done.

“Having a complaints handling system does not resolve the real issue of making airlines more responsible in terms of consumer protection,” he told FMT.

He noted that even after the pandemic, issues such as refunds, flight cancellations and delays as well as missing luggage continue to be a problem.

“The service quality of certain airlines in terms of counter check-in service, luggage and others continue to come up short,” he said.

However, Saravanan added that overhauling Mavcom would entail a complex process that must include policy reviews, possibly legislative changes and stakeholder buy-in.

“From a feasibility standpoint, such an overhaul would require comprehensive policy reviews, new legislation and certainly buy-in from multiple stakeholders, namely the government, industry and consumers,” he said.