Vietnam Airlines Customer Service Plan

Vietnam Airlines Customer Service Plan

Vietnam Airlines is in business to provide safe and friendly air transportation to our customers along with numerous related services. Your safety, comfort and convenience are our most important concerns. For our customer’s benefit, we will address a number of the services offered when you take a flight with Vietnam Airlines in the Vietnam Airlines Customer Service Plan outlined below.

1. Treat passengers fairly and consistently in the case of oversales

Occasionally, we may not be able to provide you with a seat on a specific flight even if you hold a ticket and check in on time. This is called an oversale, and it occurs if the number of customers who check in (ready to board) exceeds the number of available seats.

If you voluntarily give up your seat, we will provide compensation and transportation on an alternate flight. A notice which explains the obligations and the compensation in an amount pursuant to Vietnam Airlines’ policy will be given to you.

If you are involuntarily denied boarding, we will also provide compensation and transportation on an alternate flight. A notice which explains the obligations and the compensation in an amount determined by Vietnam Airlines will be given to you.

The policies and procedures that we follow ensure you receive fair and consistent treatment if such an oversale event occurs.

2. Take responsibility for baggage damage

If your checked baggage is damaged or does not come off the conveyor belt, please file a report at our Lost and Found Counter located at the arrival station, as soon as possible. Our staff or handling agent will provide you with assistance.

Our responsibility for the damaged baggage and cargo is specified in article 16 of the conditions of carriage of Vietnam Airlines and chapter VIII of the conditions of cargo carriage of Vietnam Airlines.

3. Provide information of air tickets cancellation/refund or change

For ticket refund, please contact the issuing offices for assistance.

For refunding the tickets purchased on Vietnam Airlines’s website, please contact Vietnam Airlines branch offices or complete the Refund request form and email it to onlinesupport@vietnamairlines.com from the email address used during purchase. For Vietnam local payment by cash at branches of Vietcombank (VCB), Techcombank (TCB), please go to Vietnam Airlines branch offices in Vietnam for refund.

Depending on the fare rules, the refund may be permitted with fee or not permitted. The refund will be credited to the payment card or payment account used to purchase the tickets.

For detailed information regarding ticket cancellation, refund or change, please refer to our Condition of Online Booking.

4. Meet customers’ essential needs during irregular flights

4.1. Services provided while passengers are not on board for all Vietnam Airlines’ operating flights

  1. Services provision at the airport:
    The passenger having sconfirmed ticket and having been informed of the delay/cancellation shall be provided with following services:
    • From 1 hour to less than 2 hours: Drink
    • From 2 hours to less than 6 hours: Meal and drink
    • More than 6 hours: Accommodation
  2. Compensation payment:
    In case of a long delay, cancellation or denied boarding on flights departing from Vietnam, passengers shall be compensated as Circular 14/2015/TT-BGTVT dated 27/04/2015 signed by the Minister of Transport on non-refundable advance compensation in air transport. For flights outside Vietnam, compensation shall be applied in compliance with the current law of concerned countries or our regulations.

    3. Depending on the case, we will give compensation at the airport or VNA’s Branches. Compensation will be paid in one of the following payment methods: by cash, via bank, MCO or VNA’s service voucher.

    Please submit claims in writing to us within ninety (90) days of scheduled departure date, we will reply or give compensation within seven (07) days from the date of receiving the claim.

  3. Waiver of liability:
    Under the provisions of the Government of Vietnam and relevant countries, we will be exempt from obligation to provide services and compensation in the following cases:
    • The delay or cancellation of flight was caused by Force Majeure conditions such as an Act of God, war, strike, aviation security or request by competent authorities.
    • We prove that passengers have been informed of the cancellation no later than 24 hours prior to the scheduled time of departure, or that passengers have not registered their contact address; or failure to contact with their registered address.
    • If passenger is denied boarding due to the passenger‘s reasons (health status, disease, passenger’s failure to comply with Carrier’s Conditions of Carriage, the terms and conditions of the contract of carriage, laws and regulation, aviation security, request of authorities.
    • Other Force Majeure events occur.
  4. Refund:
    In situations with delay/cancellation, the passenger’s ticket is made according to the law and our regulations.
    All restrictions, penalty fees, additional fare and surcharges (if any) are waived for  passengers travelling on domestic or international flights departing from Vietnam in the following cases (i) the confirmed flight delays more than 2 hours; (ii) the confirmed flight departs earlier than scheduled; (iii) passengers are denied boarding on the confirmed flight. Please contact Vietnam Airlines for more details.
    Passengers may access legal documents as follows for more information:
    • Law on Civil Aviation of Vietnam
    • Circular 36/2014/TT-BGTVT dated 29 August 2014 of the Ministry of Transport regulating the quality of passenger services at airports
    • Circular 81/2014/TT-BGTVT dated 31 December 2014 of the Ministry of Transport providing for air carriage and general aviation
    • Circular 14/2015/TT-BGTVT dated 27 April 2015 of the Ministry of Transport on non-refundable advanced compensations in air transportation of passengers
    • EC261/2004 dated 11/02/2004 establishing common rules on compensation and assistance to passengers in the event of denied boarding and of cancellation or long delay of flights (applies to flights to/from an EU member state)
    • General conditions of carriage for passengers and baggage of Vietnam Airlines.
  5. Personal Data:
    6. Processing of all personal data relating to compensation or refund will be compliant with the applicable Data Protection regulations, namely the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR - Regulation (EU) 2016/679). When your personal data are collected by Vietnam Airlines, you will be invited to read and agree with the Privacy Policy before validating and proceeding with any booking.

4.2. Services provided while passengers are on board for flights to/from Republic of Korea, People’s Republic of China

On the very few occasions where flights are delayed while passengers are on board (known as a tarmac delay) we will take all reasonable steps to ensure you are made as comfortable as possible. For those flights encountering a tarmac delay at airports in the Republic of Korea or the People’s Republic of China (including HongKong, Macau), we want to give our passengers the following assurances:

a. In the event of a lengthy on-ground delay, we will provide adequate food and drinking water no later than two hours after the aircraft leaves the gate or touches down unless our pilot-in-command determines such service threatens safety or security.

b. You will receive notifications regarding the status off the tarmac delay every 30 minutes while the aircraft is delayed, including the reason for the delay (if known).

    c. We will not permit any tarmac delays without allowing passengers to deplane in case of three-hour-delay or more at airports in the People’s Repbulic of China or four-hour-delay or more at airports in the Republic of Korea. When a Tarmac delay exceeding three hours or four hours is expected, the flight will return to the gate to provide passengers an opportunity to deplane safely, unless:
  • The pilot-in-command determines that the safety and security of the passengers are not guaranteed (e.g., due to weather conditions, air traffic control issues or government directive); or
  • Air traffic control advises that returning to the gate or deplaning passengers at a location other than the gate would significantly disrupt airport operations.
    • d. We have sufficient reasonable resources to implement the plan

e. We have coordinated the station tarmac delay contingency plan with the airport operators and related agencies including immigration services authorities for the compliance of tarmac delay.

f. In the event that you are on a flight operated by one of Vietnam Airlines’ code-share partners, the operating carrier’s contingency plan for tarmac delays will apply.

5. Notify customers in a timely manner of changes in itineraries

When there is a change to your flight, we will notify you in a timely manner so as not to affect your itineraries. We will contact you about the schedule changes when the event is known, using the contact information you provide us in your reservation.

If you purchase tickets on Vietnam Airlines' website www.vietnamairlines.com, we will send the schedule change notification to your registered email.

6. Disclose other policies that affect your travel

We provide information on our baggage allowance policy on our website at Baggage Information. Change to policy regarding baggage fees and the free baggage allowance will be published regularly on our website.

In case that you book a joint operation ticket, you should take note that the operating airline takes responsibilities for boarding procedure and baggage policy.

Cabin arrangement which shows seat layout (including seat pitch, seat, and width) and locations of the emergency exits is clearly displayed on our website at the following links:

For more information about boarding procedures, taxes, fee, charges and surcharges, please kindly refer to the following links: