The Malaysian Ministry of Transport has announced a new regulation aimed at strengthening the protection of aviation consumer rights, requiring all airlines to provide passengers with the option of a full refund when their flights are delayed for five hours or more. This new regulationAlready inThe official implementation from September 2nd marks an important step for Malaysia in improving the quality of aviation services and safeguarding passenger rights.

Malaysian Minister of Transport, Lu ZhaofuoncestayAt the press conference, it was stated that,becauseThe surge in flight delay complaints received prompted the Ministry of Transport to take swift action and revise the Malaysia Airlines Consumer Protection Guidelines through the Malaysia Airlines Commission.

The new regulations clearly state that if a flight is delayed for five hours or more, the airline must not only refund the passenger's ticket fee, but also include all related fees such as fuel surcharges, departure taxes, and airport taxes. This policy also applies to tickets originally marked as non refundable.

Minister Lu Zhaofu emphasized that the full refund measure provides more flexible and humane options for passengers who are unwilling to continue their journey due to flight delays. We are well aware that temporarily searching for and purchasing tickets for other flights often increases the financial burden on passengers. Therefore, this new regulation aims to alleviate their financial pressure and give passengers more autonomy in the event of flight delays

In addition, the new guidelines also stipulate that from January next year, airlines must notify passengers of any changes in flight schedules at least two weeks before departure, unless delays are caused by special circumstances or unavoidable technical issues. This regulation aims to enhance the transparency of airlines and ensure that passengers can make corresponding arrangements in advance.

In order to further strengthen the supervision of airlines, the Malaysian Ministry of Transport has also extended the validity period of passenger complaints against airlines from one year to two years. For airlines that do not comply with the new guidelines, they will face high fines, with a first-time violation fine of up to RM200000 and a repeat offense fine of up to 10 times the first-time fine.

Minister Lu Zhaofu stated that the implementation of these new measures is a concrete manifestation of the Malaysian government's commitment to improving the quality of aviation services and safeguarding consumer rights. He promised that the Malaysian Airlines Commission will continue to closely monitor the performance of airlines to ensure they strictly comply with the new industry standards.

Recently, Malaysia Airlines Group has received much attention due to frequent incidents of flight service disruptions. The group has announced a temporary reduction in flights for its subsidiaries Malaysia Airlines, Firefly, and Amal Airlines to address the shortage of operational aircraft caused by delayed delivery of new aircraft. This decision has had a significant impact on domestic and international flights in Malaysia, triggering public dissatisfaction and complaints. In this context, the introduction of new regulations undoubtedly provides passengers with more solid protection of their rights and interests.