No Refunds for Air Tickets Booked via Agents, says DGCA

Here's another development regarding the issue of booking air tickets which may get cancelled due to present circumstances and uncertainty. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has said that refunds will only be issued for those air tickets which have been booked directly from airlines, and not via travel agents.

The statement follows after the issue was heard by the Supreme Court, where the DGCA had filed an affidavit promising all domestic and international bookings made during the lockdown phase between March 25 to May 3, 2020 will be refunded. However, the new decision, that clarifies that only tickets booked directly would be refunded via special credit shells of airlines, will adversely affect flyers as most tickets were booked via online agents during the period, due to the lockdown.

&ldquoThe travel agent, if any, involved in the purchase of any ticket on behalf of any passenger remains only a via-media, leaving the principal contract between the airlines and the passenger only, which is the only mode recognized under the regulatory mechanism of the DGCA,&rdquo the centre said in a statement.

Meanwhile, the Centre has also told the court that the refund scheme and credit shell benefit is restricted only to ex-India flights both domestic and international flight tickets will be refunded if the flight originates or ends in India.