FCCPC summons Air Peace over consumer complaints

The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) has formally summoned the management of Air Peace Limited in response to consumer complaints reported nationwide concerning the non-refund of ticket fares and other infractions.

In a statement released Monday by FCCPC’s Corporate Affairs Director, Ondaje Ijagwu, the commission indicated that the actions taken by the airline are in violation of multiple provisions of the commission’s regulations.

“The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) has summoned the management of Air Peace Limited over a deluge of consumer complaints from across the country relating to the non-refund of ticket fares, even in instances where the airline had cancelled its flight operations,” the statement said.

It explained that Air Peace’s actions potentially contravene Sections 130(1)(a) and (b), and 130(2)(b) of the FCCPA 2018 Act, which expressly guarantee consumers the right to timely refunds where advance bookings, reservations, or orders are unfulfilled due to service-provider’s failure.

According to the statement, this provision enshrines the principle of fair dealing and safeguards consumers against unfair, unjust, or unreasonable practices by service-providers.

The FCCPC said in a formal summons dated 13 June that it invoked sections 32 and 33 of the FCCPA 2018 Act, requiring Air Peace to appear before the commission at its Abuja headquarters on Monday, 23 June.

“Specifically, Section 33(3) of the FCCPA mandates compliance and failure attracts severe sanctions including fines or imprisonment,” the statement said.

The commission said the airline is further directed to produce documentary evidence including complaint log for refunds over the past 12 months, total records of processed refunds to date, list of cancelled flights on all routes within the past 12 months, and remedial actions taken to mitigate consumer hardship resulting from cancelled flights.

Earlier in December 2024, the FCCPC said they commenced inquiries into separate allegations of exploitative ticket pricing, including substantial price hikes for advance bookings on certain domestic routes by Air Peace.

However, in response, the commission said the airline instituted legal proceedings seeking to restrain them from continuing the inquiry.

“This is an entirely different matter,” the FCCPC noted, saying they remain committed to enforcing the provisions of the FCCPA Act (2018).

The commission said it is committed to holding service providers accountable and ensuring that consumers, including airline passengers, are protected from exploitative or unfair market practices.

Concerns

The summoning of Air Peace by the FCCPC comes less than a week after the airline’s dispute with a Nigerian Senator and former governor, Adams Oshiomhole, as well as several other passengers at the Lagos airport. 

The incident prompted the Nigerian government to direct relevant aviation agencies to investigate the matter accordingly.

Meanwhile, recently, numerous passengers have expressed concerns regarding the frequent disruptions, cancellations, and chronic delays associated with the flight schedules of Air Peace.

Nigerians have been calling on regulatory authorities to investigate the operations of Air Peace, in light of the disappointments and frustration experienced by travellers at airports.

Last month,  the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) directed Air Peace to enhance its flight operations within the country amidst persistent disappointment concerns raised by passengers. 

In December last year, Air Peace was among the five airlines sanctioned by the NCAA over regulatory violations in the country.