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After receiving various complaints from users and travelers, the Superintendency of Transportation, through Resolution 8004 of October 21, 2020, initiated an administrative investigation to Avianca SA, by means of the formulation of a statement of charges, for facts related to the alleged violation and non-compliance with the obligations that legally correspond to its users.
According to the control and surveillance body, the process was opened because the Directorate of Investigations for the Protection of Users of the Transportation Sector learned of various events thanks to petitions, complaints and claims filed by users, between March 24 and September 29, 2020.
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The Supertransporter indicated that 17 alleged charges were found, the most important being the alleged failure of the air transport service to move its passengers from one destination to another, according to the agreed terms.
Second, the entity initiated the respective investigation for the alleged violation of the right to information by not issuing flight data in Spanish and by not informing users of changes or delays in itineraries, according to the terms indicated by regulations.
Since the beginning of the health emergency, reimbursement was the first cause of complaints against Avianca, with 50.5% of the total. Itinerary changes were the second reason, with 36.87%
Various practices against travelers
Likewise, the process contemplates the alleged violation of the right to free choice of users and the breach of the right of withdrawal, since Avianca would have included abusive clauses in the terms and conditions to redeem the vouchers or vouchers delivered.
“For example, by providing that these means of reimbursement were non-transferable or non-endorsable,” adds the entity.
Fourth, the entity also initiated the investigation for the alleged violation of the users’ right to request reimbursements for non-executed journeys.
Likewise, there was evidence of an alleged reluctance of Avianca SA, repeatedly, to provide the information requested by this Superintendency, which is enshrined in law.
According to a document from the control body, of the 3,986 complaints received in the health emergency, As of March 12, 2020 and until the October 29, 2020 cutoff, 895 complaints have been received against the company, which represents 22.45 percent of the total, placing it in second place, below Viva Air.
According to these data, since the health emergency began reimbursement was the first cause of user complaints against Avianca, with 50.5 percent of the total, while the second cause was itinerary changes, with 36.87 percent of the total.
And in October, the volume of claims filed against the airline before the Supertransporte, rose 123 percent compared to September, when the progressive resumption of flights began.
The data of the 232 complaints in October is the highest for a month since that registered in December 2019, when with the full operation and without a pandemic, users filed 293 complaints against Avianca.
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The superintendent of Transportation, Camilo Pabón Almanza, said that although “the Superintendency is willing to accompany businessmen in the midst of the health emergency, it must also be remembered that this entity has the competence to request information for the correct exercise of functions surveillance, inspection and control. For this reason, we call on businessmen to respond to the requests of the Superintendency in a timely and complete manner to avoid sanctions ”.
In recent weeks, protests against the airline have raged on social networks: there are multiple cases in which flights are sold, are canceled and to travel, users must pay a difference in fare greater than the cost of a new ticket, which for some sources would be a way of making cash on the part of the company.
Possible sanctions
According to the Supertransporte, in case of being found responsible, Avianca SA could be fined up to 21,950 monthly legal minimum wages in force, which is equivalent to more than 19,267 million pesos.
“There is no appeal against the decision to open the investigation and statement of charges. The principles of due process and the right to defense will be guaranteed, and it is specified that the sanctioning procedure initiated will be carried out in accordance with the provisions of the law, ”said the entity.
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