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 customer’s benefits, we address a number of services in Vietnam Airlines Customer Service Plan while you take Vietnam Airlines’ flights.

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 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 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 oversales occur.

2. Take responsibility for baggage damage

If your checked baggage may be damaged or does not come off the conveyor belt, please file a report with 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 conditions of carriage of Vietnam Airlines and chapter VIII of conditions of cargo carriage of Vietnam Airlines.

3. Provide information of Air Tickets Cancellation/Refund or Change

For refunding your tickets, please contact the issuing offices for assistance.

For refunding your tickets purchased on Vietnam Airlines’s website, please contact Vietnam Airlines branch offices or complete Refund request form and email to refund-online@vietnamairlines.com from your registered email address. 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 that was used to purchase the tickets.

For detailed information regarding the ticket cancellation, refund or change, please kindly 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 confirmed ticket and having been informed of the delayed/cancellation shall be provided with following service:
   • From 1hour 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 long delay, cancellation or denied boarding on flights departing from Viet Nam, 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 Viet Nam, compensation shall be applied in compliance with the current law of concerned countries or our regulations.
3. Waiver of liability:
   Under the provisions of the Government of Vietnam relevant countries, we shall be exempt obligation to provide services and compensation in the following cases:
   • The delay or cancellation flight caused by Force Majeure conditions as Act of God, war, strike, aviation security, request of competent authorities…
   • We prove that passengers have been informed of the cancellation no later than 24 hours prior to the STD; 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, passenger’s ticket is made according to law and our regulation.
   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 flight is delayed for more than 4 hours or departs more than 4 hours early; (ii) The flight is cancelled; (iii) passengers are denied boarding on the confirmed flight. Please contact Vietnam Airlines for more details.
   Passengers may access legal document 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.

4.2. Services provided while passengers are on board for flights to/from Republic of Korea

On the very few occasions where flights are delayed whilst 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, we want to give our passengers the following assurances:

1. We will not permit any irregular on-ground delays of four (4) hours or more at airports in the Republic of Korea without allowing passengers to deplane.
2. When a delay exceeding four (4) hours is expected, the flight will return to the gate to provide passengers an opportunity to deplane safely, unless:
   • When 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
   • When air traffic control advises that returning to the gate or deplaning passengers at a location other than the gate would significantly disrupt airport operations.
3. 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.
4. You will receive notifications regarding the status off the tarmac delay every 30 minutes while the aircarft is delayed, including the reason for the delay (if known).
5. We have sufficient reasonable resources to implement the plan.
6. We have coordinated its station tarmac delay contingency plan with the airport operators of Republic of Korea and related agencies including the immigration services authorities for the compliance of tarmac delay.
7. 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 of four (4) hours or more will apply.

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

We will notify in a timely manner of changes on your flight when there is a change 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 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 of our baggage allowance policy on website at Baggage Information. The changed policy regarding baggage fee or free baggage allowance shall be published regularly on our website

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

The cabin arrangement which shows seat layout (including seat pitch, seat, and width), location of emergency exit is clearly displayed on our website at below links:

• Our Fleet
• Business class seats
• Premium Economy seats
• Economy seats

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

• Online Check-In
• Taxes, fee, charges & surcharges