If Valid Ticket Is Denied Boarding, The Airline Would Be Fined Rs 10,000: DGCA

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) announced on June 14 that if a passenger with a valid ticket is denied boarding, the airline must compensate the passenger up to Rs 10,000 if the carrier is unable to find an alternate flight for the passenger within an hour.

In its new recommendations, India’s aviation regulator stated that if a customer with a valid ticket and who has presented on time is denied boarding, the airline must provide a compensation of Rs 10,000 if an alternate arrangement is established within the following 24 hours.

The DGCA stated that anything that lasts more than 24 hours is subject to a compensation of up to Rs. 20,000.

The move comes after the aviation authority conducted a series of examinations at Bengaluru, Hyderabad, and Delhi airports and discovered specific instances where Air India denied customers boarding.

In a news statement, the DGCA stated, “A show cause notice was issued to the Airline (Air India) and a personal hearing was also afforded.”

The DGCA further stated that till today, Air India did not have a particular protocol in place for customers who were denied boarding.

The DGCA stated, “It appears that the airline (Air India) does not have a policy in this regard and is not compensating hapless passengers, whose numbers are unknown.”

The DGCA has also fined Air India Rs 10 lakh for rejecting boarding to passengers with valid tickets, and has ordered the airline to put in place procedures to fix the issue promptly.

“After reviewing AI submissions, the competent authority has imposed a penalty of Rs. 10 lakh as part of enforcement action.” Furthermore, the airline has been urged to put mechanisms in place promptly to remedy the issue, failing which the DGCA will take additional action,” the aviation authority said in a statement.