In a formal notice dated June 13, 2025, the Commission ordered Air Peace to appear before its Abuja headquarters on Monday, June 23, 2025. This follows mounting public dissatisfaction and allegations of consumer rights violations by the airline.
According to a statement issued in Abuja by the Commission’s Director of Corporate Affairs, Ondaje Ijagwu, Air Peace is accused of breaching Sections 130(1)(a) and (b), and 130(2)(b) of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act (FCCPA) 2018. These provisions guarantee passengers the right to timely refunds when services are not delivered as promised.
“The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission has summoned the management of Air Peace Limited over a deluge of consumer complaints relating to the non-refund of ticket fares, even in instances where the airline had cancelled its flight operations,” Ijagwu stated.
Heexplained that the Commission’s directive, issued under Sections 32 and 33 of the FCCPA, requires Air Peace to submit several documents. These include a 12-month log of refund-related complaints, records of all processed refunds, a list of all cancelled flights within the period, and details of steps taken to mitigate passenger hardship.
Section 33(3) of the Act mandates compliance with such summonses, with noncompliance attracting sanctions, including possible fines or imprisonment.
While the statement did not reference any specific incident, it comes on the heels of a recent altercation involving Senator Adams Oshiomhole and Air Peace staff. The senator accused airline officials of extorting passengers and manipulating flight schedules, claiming he was denied boarding despite arriving on time, while others who paid additional fees were allegedly allowed to board.
Oshiomhole alleged that 20 to 30 other passengers faced similar treatment, claiming staff demanded an extra N109,100 to rebook them onto a later flight.
The FCCPC’s investigation is expected to shed more light on these and other allegations as part of its broader consumer protection mandate.
