The Philippines has ordered AirAsia MOVE to stop selling tickets in the country due to complaints about the company charging exorbitant prices for flights. During a press conference on Monday, Transportation Secretary Vince Dizon explained that police have been instructed to take down AirAsia MOVE’s website as part of a cease-and-desist order issued by the Civil Aeronautics Board.
According to the agency, which is responsible for setting price ceilings for airfares in the country, AirAsia MOVE hiked its prices following transportation issues in Tacloban City, which was caused by the closure of a key bridge. During the weekend, the price for a one-way ticket from Manila to Tacloban City via Philippine Airlines was listed as PHP77,000 (~RM5,874), which was three times the rate quoted when directly booking from Philippine Airlines. Dizon pointed out the absurdity of the situation, and said that the company’s actions were “criminal”.
AirAsia MOVE CEO Nadia Omer has since released a statement explaining the discrepancies in the fares. According to the company, the flights and prices listed are based on data provided by its authorized upstream suppliers, and the problem was caused by temporary data synchronisation issues with flight pricing partners. She went on to explain that the issue was not isolated to AirAsia MOVE as other booking platforms like Agoda, Kiwi.com, and Traveloka were also affected.
Additionally, the company reportedly took immediate steps and communicated the issue with its third-party provider after identifying the problem to find a resolution. It also affirmed that it is working with the government to uphold transparent and fair pricing and consumer protection.
(Source: The Edge Malaysia, AirAsia MOVE)
