A voice for consumers

Ombudsman for aviation sector a good move

It has been reported that the Union Ministry of Civil Aviation is seeking opinion on establishing an ombudsman for the sector. The ministry has reportedly written not just to the existing regulators — the Directorate General of Civil Aviation and the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security — but airport administrations and airlines as well in order to solicit their opinion about this. Though the ministry already runs the AirSewa helpline for passengers and it is widely publicised on flights and through text messages, the institution of an ombudsman might enable a clearer representation of consumer concerns in this sector, which is the location of constant disagreements among passengers, airlines, and regulators. The recommendations of an ombudsman are rarely mandatory. However, a statement from an ombudsman normally forces regulators and bureaucrats, as well as businesses in the sector, to clarify and in some cases improve their decision-making processes.

The background to this move is illuminating. The Union Ministry of Consumer Affairs has taken up concerns that some air passengers must have expressed through the ministry’s National Consumer Helpline. These include the tendency of some low-cost carriers to charge for seat selection at the time of web check-in. This might, under some circumstances, be viewed as improperly disguised fees, and the suggestion that web check-in is “free” as deceptive. The Union Ministry of Civil Aviation has pointed out the regulator permits the unbundling of services, including seat selection, which can then be charged separately. Another concern was the question of responsibility for refunded fares during the period when Covid-19 was raging, and many flights were cancelled. Although the Supreme Court has mandated that such fares be refunded, it is not clear whether this charge should fall in each case on the online portal through which the fare was booked or on the airline itself.

Regardless of the merits of these particular complaints, many such issues are continually being raised in a sector that is expanding quickly, and in which new business and revenue models are constantly being tried. Everything — from fares to on-ground experience — shifts swiftly under such circumstances, and there is rarely anything consumers can do about it. Nor should regulators intervene constantly, given that the sector needs to be allowed to find its own solutions to emerging problems without waiting for the government. Yet consumers cannot themselves be denied a role in the process of deliberation about such solutions, and the Union Ministry of Consumer Affairs can hardly be expected to play that role. In 2023, the number of domestic passengers went up to 152 million, an increase of almost a quarter from the previous year. This number may reach 300 million by 2030. Tens of millions of Indians with no experience of airlines may begin to fly by then, aided by the expansion of airport infrastructure to smaller towns and the ubiquity of low-cost airlines. New consumers cannot be expected to have the savvy of long-term flyers, and they will need a voice that aggregates their concerns. There is a view that an ombudsman is an unnecessary addition to the portfolio of stakeholders in an already crowded sector. But it is, nevertheless, an essential one.