Again, FCCPC summons Air Peace over ticket refund complaints

The Nigerian apex consumer protection agency, the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) has again summoned the management of Air Peace for what it described as a deluge of consumer complaints from across the country relating to non-refund of ticket fares even in the instances where the airline had cancelled its flights operations.

This is the second time in seven months that the agency would be summoning the airline with a view to investigate so many violations of consumer rights and alleged extortion by the carrier.

In December, 2024, the agency issued a statement, said the inquiry into Air Peace’s pricing practices stems from allegations of unjustified fare increases on bookings for certain domestic routes, lack of transparency in pricing structures and practices that potentially contravene consumer rights and fair competition principles.

It accused the carrier of series of ploys calculated to both obfuscate the issues and distract the Commission from the ongoing inquiry into alleged exploitative ticket pricing among other potential violations of consumers’ rights after Air Peace released a counter statement that it was not under investigation by the consumer protection agency.

This latest summon and investigation is coming on the backdrop of complaints by passengers of many alleged infractions on passengers right.

The Director of Media, Corporate Affairs of FCCPC, Ondaje Ijagwu said Air Peace’s action violates Sections 130(1)(a), 130(1)(b), and 130(2)(b) of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act (FCCPA) 2018, which guarantees consumers the right to timely refunds when service providers fail to deliver prepaid services.

In a formal summons dated June 16, 2025, the FCCPC directed Air Peace to appear at its headquarters in Abuja on Monday, June 23.

The Commission cited Sections 32 and 33 of the FCCPA, warning that non-compliance could result in sanctions, including fines or imprisonment, under Section 33(3).

According to the statement, “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 read in part.”

FCCPC further directed the airline to provide documentary evidence, including: a log of refund-related complaints over the past twelve months, records of processed refunds, a list of all cancelled flights across its routes within the period, and actions taken to mitigate passenger hardship.

This development is separate from an earlier investigation launched by the FCCPC in December 2024 concerning alleged exploitative pricing for advance bookings on certain domestic routes. In that case, Air Peace initiated legal proceedings to stop the Commission’s inquiry.

Under Section 130 of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act (FCCPA) 2018, consumers are entitled to timely and fair refunds when a service provider—such as an airline—fails to deliver a prepaid service.

Specifically, the law affirms that if a business agrees to perform a service but does not meet expected standards or fails to complete the service (such as a cancelled flight), the consumer has the right to request a refund proportional to the failure.

Additionally, Part 19 of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) Regulations 2023 outlines the rights of airline passengers and the obligations of airlines. Section 19.9 provides that passengers are entitled to reimbursement or re-routing in the event of a flight cancellation.

Reimbursements must be processed promptly—immediately for domestic flights paid in cash, or within 14 days for other modes of payment, including electronic transfers, or for international routes.

These provisions form the legal basis for the FCCPC’s summons to Air Peace, reinforcing the expectation that airlines must fulfil refund obligations promptly and transparently when flights are cancelled.

Wole Shadare