Cebu Pacific: P2.7B worth of flight cancellations due to COVID-19 refunded

Budget carrier Cebu Pacific on Thursday said it has already refunded at least P2.7 billion worth of flight cancellation requests in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

In an advisory, Cebu Pacific said it continues to process a high volume of refund requests due to COVID-19 related flight cancellations.

“We have refunded an additional P300 million since our last update, for a total of P2.7 billion, and are currently processing refund requests filed in June,” the airline said.

In September, the carrier said if refunded over P2.4 billion worth of booking cancellations. The amount is equivalent to 50% of all the refund requests the airline has received. 

Local carriers earlier explained that it was taking more time to process air ticket refunds as volume of applications piled up due to frequent flight cancellations.

“To ensure Cebu Pacific continues to provide affordable and accessible air transport services in the years to come, we have been working on raising fresh capital,” the carrier said.

“Rest assured, we remain fully committed to close off pending refunds at the earliest possible time. Updates will be provided to our passengers once their requests have been processed,” it said.

Cebu Air Inc., the operator of Cebu Pacific, announced last month its plan to raise $500 million (around P25 billion) additional capital to strengthen its position to recover from the adverse impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Cebu Air said it is seeking regulatory approval for the issuance of up to $250 million in new convertible preferred shares, as well as another $250 million in privately placed convertible bonds.

“We understand how difficult this situation is for everyone, and we sincerely apologize for the delay. As the aviation industry gradually restarts and reshapes amidst this new normal, we hope for your continued patience and understanding, as refunds may still take up to six months from the time the request was filed,” Cebu Pacific said.

“We are continuously enhancing our processes for a better overall customer experience. Thank you, everyJuan, for your support in this unprecedented and challenging time,” it said. -MDM, GMA News