Dana Air refund delays: Abuja civil servant still waiting

Adedamola Kazeem, a civil servant based in Abuja, is among numerous Nigerians waiting for refunds from Dana Air following a flight cancellation in April.

Kazeem, who paid N129,600 for a round-trip ticket to attend an official assignment in Lagos State, has reported that his refund request has gone unanswered by the airline.

Dana Air cancelled Kazeem’s flight on April 24 due to a suspension mandated by an operational audit from the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA). After the cancellation, Kazeem had to book an alternative flight.

Despite sending an email on May 6 with his ticket and national identity card as required for the refund process, Kazeem received no acknowledgement from Dana Air. A subsequent email attempt on May 9 resulted in a failed delivery, suggesting that the airline might have disabled its email address.

Kazeem’s experience is not unique. Other affected customers include a graduate trainee awaiting N259,200, a software developer owed N231,000, a mother and daughter waiting for N198,000, and a civil servant in Taraba seeking an N73,080 refund.

Dana Air has repeatedly assured affected customers that refund requests are being processed but has failed to provide specific timelines for resolution. An additional message sent to the airline via WhatsApp on Monday also went unanswered.

Michael Achimugu, the NCAA’s Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection, informed FIJ on August 21 that the agency had given Dana Air a two-week deadline to complete all customer refunds. This deadline is set to expire on Wednesday.