FlySafair in hot water
The National Consumer Commission (NCC) has launched an investigation into FlySafair after the airline admitted to overbooking practices on social media.
This stems from a social media storm over overbooked flights impacting people’s travel plans.
FlySafair reportedly overbooked a flight over the past weekend, leaving a passenger stranded despite having paid to secure a seat on the flight.
“So we show up at the airport, and FlySafair says we don’t have seats for the same flight we paid for,” the passenger said in a post on X (formerly Twitter).
FlySafair responded, apologising for the inconvenience and explaining that it overbooks flights to ensure it can keep our tickets as affordable as possible for passengers.
“We do see how inconvenient this can be and therefore offer compensation for passengers that were not able to take the flight they’ve booked,” FlySafair said.
In response to this, the NCC published a statement on 8 January 2025, saying that it has noted concerns in the media, including social media platforms, regarding incidents of FlySafair overbooking and/or overselling practices.
On this basis, it announced that it has initiated an investigation into the conduct of overbooking and/or overselling by FlySafair to assess and review compliance with provisions of the Consumer Protection Act.
Two notable provisions the NCC said that they are looking at are sections 47 and 48(1)(b).
These prevent suppliers from overselling and overbooking goods and services and protect consumers without remedying the situations, as well as unfair, unreasonable, or unjust terms and conditions in agreements.
The NCC said that it has established communication with the airline and required relevant information to kick-start the investigation.
Acting NCC Commissioner, Hardin Ratshisusu, said that “the NCC will prioritise this investigation given the nature of the allegations.”
“Consumers affected by this practice are urged to come forward and provide information that could assist the investigation,” he added.
Speaking to Newzroom Afrika, aviation analyst Guy Leitch explained that overbooking is common in the aviation industry.
Leitch said that overbooking is a common practice across the airline industry, not just with FlySafair.
He explained that airlines often sell more seats than available, anticipating that some passengers will not show up. During peak times, this helps airlines maximize revenue.
If all passengers do show up, airlines may offer cash incentives for volunteers to take a later flight.
Leitch emphasised that he believes that the Consumer Protection Act does not consider this a violation, as there are no specific protections against overbooking.
He added that airlines are unlikely to be at fault if they have made reasonable efforts to ensure timely departures.
However, he noted that some passengers might face hefty financial consequences if such an incident prevents them from catching a connecting flight. In that scenario, they could have a case against the airline.
“I certainly think that you could have a case against the airline, but I would suggest that they would probably be happy to settle out of court for those kinds of things rather than drag them through court,” said Leitch.
BusinessTech requested comment by FlySafair but was told that the airline will only issue an official response next week.
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