IndiGo Responds After Passenger Loses Rs 1.4 Lakh After Flight Gets Cancelled

The world of air travel is no longer a luxury concept and now plays an important role in connecting people and businesses globally. The use of websites to book and make payments for tickets has become a common trend. But along with convenience comes expectation. Apart from looking for low prices and timely service, passengers are expecting accountability from airlines and travel websites these days.

Various factors, such as weather changes, technical problems, and operational issues, can disrupt flights. Disruptions like flight delays and cancellations are something that cannot always be avoided, but their handling by airlines can influence customer satisfaction. A recent incident involving an IndiGo passenger highlighted these concerns. An IndiGo passenger lost Rs 40,000 due to flight cancellations because IndiGo and MakeMyTrip refused to take responsibility. Later on, IndiGo came up with its official statement about the matter. Here’s what happened:

IndiGo flyer alleges trip cancellation by IndiGo, still faces deductions

The LinkedIn post of Kanika Mohan Saxena, Vice President at Vodafone Idea, has attracted attention due to her assertion that she was made to lose almost Rs 40,000 as a result of booking a trip to Bali worth Rs 1 lakh despite the cancellations being made by IndiGo.

Saxena asserts that she had booked two-way flights from Mumbai to Bali on the date of 3rd July for Rs 102,928. She says that IndiGo canceled her first ticket and offered her an alternate booking where she had to make an 18-hour layover, which she did not find feasible. After customer support allegedly told her that no suitable alternatives were available, she said a travel agent helped identify another route, following which she was rebooked on a Mumbai–Singapore–Bali itinerary. However, Saxena claimed that the revised itinerary was also cancelled a few days later.

IndiGo flyer alleges Rs 40,000 deduction after airline cancelled Bali trip

According to the information posted by her on LinkedIn, Saxena believed that she was promised a full refund since the cancellation of flights was done by the airline itself. Moreover, she also shared screenshots showing a MakeMyTrip chatbot confirming that the refund process had been initiated. However, she later got a notification that informed her that only Rs 67,334 would be refunded, leaving her to wonder why there have been so many deductions. The screenshot of her flight bookings displayed the status “Flight Cancelled & Refund Processed” along with the total amount to be refunded.

Saxena stressed that she had not cancelled the tickets herself and questioned why she should be penalised for an airline-triggered disruption. She alleged that nearly Rs 40,000 had been deducted, including Rs 27,996 from IndiGo, Rs 7,500 from MakeMyTrip, and around Rs 2,000 in ancillary charges.

Describing the situation as that of Rs 40,000 cancellation fees for an aircraft that won’t take off, she stated that she had documented proof of all customer interactions. Moreover, she also raised the problem that she was stuck in a never-ending cycle between IndiGo and MakeMyTrip, and AI-powered customer support could not solve her query.

How did IndiGo and MakeMyTrip react to the allegations?

Once the post became popular, responses came from both parties via their comment sections.

While IndiGo apologized for the inconvenience, the carrier stated that it had refunded all the payments related to the canceled flights. As far as the refund process went, since the ticket was booked via MakeMyTrip, the money has gone to them. In other words, IndiGo recommended that Saxena coordinate everything with MakeMyTrip.

As for MakeMyTrip, it confirmed they were looking into the matter. They suggested Saxena send them her booking details by using the direct messages feature. Eventually, the company reported they had got in touch with her and were cooperating with the airline to sort things out.

What do you think about this situation? Do share your thoughts with us in the comments section of this article.