Full refund for air tickets booked in lockdown: Centre to SC

Passengers must be paid full refund for air tickets booked during the Covid-19 lockdown, the government has told the Supreme Court, adding that if the airlines are unable to pay fliers will get credit shell up to 31 March next year.

This applies to domestic and international tickets booked between 25 March and 3 May this year and will have to be refunded immediately.

This comes after the apex court asked the Centre’s views on a PIL seeking full refund of booked air tickets during the lockdown.

The Centre also said the passenger can use the credit on any route of choice and should also be able to transfer it to anyone.

“The passenger can transfer the credit shell to any person, and the airlines shall honour such a transfer. The airlines shall devise a mechanism to facilitate such a transfer. By the end of March 2021, the Airlines shall refund cash to the holder of the credit shell,” the Centre told the SC.

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) in its affidavit filed in the apex court on Saturday said the refund must be initiated as the airlines were not supposed to book tickets during the first lockdown period.

 “There shall be an incentive mechanism to compensate the passenger if there is a delay in consuming the credit shell – from the date of cancellation up to 30th June, 2020. The value of credit shell shall be enhanced by 0.5% of the face value (the amount of fare collected) for every month or part thereof between the date of cancellation and 30th June, 2020. Thereafter, the value of credit shell shall be enhanced by 0.75% of the face value per month, up to March 2021,” the DGCA said in its affidavit.

Pravasi Legal Cell, an NGO, had gone to the Supreme Court for full refund of tickets booked during lockdown.