Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, June 16) — The Senate Committee on Tourism is set to conduct an investigation on June 21 regarding complaints raised by passengers against low-cost carrier Cebu Pacific.
Under Senate Resolution No. 575 filed by Senator Nancy Binay, chairman of the committee, the inquiry will look into the issues on alleged overbooking, offloading, and booking glitches.
It also aims to call the attention of the Department of Tourism and the Civil Aeronautics Board to address these concerns and come up with measures on proper compensation, she added.
“Affected travelers and customers complained that Cebu Pacific has not provided immediate assistance or support regarding their concerns despite seeking help from the airline’s customer service hotlines and in person help desks,” the resolution read.
Binay said there were also cases about travelers getting offloaded due to the airline’s overbooking.
“Overbooking is a deliberate industry-wide business practice where airlines are allowed to sell 10% more tickets than the number of seats available for a particular flight,\” Binay ponted out.
\”From the industry standard of 10%, the Civil Aeronautics Board has set a 5% allowable overbooking to optimize utility, and avoid empty seats,\” she added.
She noted that being offloaded without being offered an alternative flight or compensation not only disrupts the passenger’s travel plans, but also shows how the airline treats its customers.
Aside from this issue, some customers also complained about being charged multiple times due to Cebu Pacific Super Pass glitches, the senator said.
