AUC receives fewer passenger complaints in 07-08

The Air Transport Users Council (AUC), the UK consumer watchdog for aviation, has announced that it received fewer customer complaints in the 2007-08 financial year than in the previous 12-month period.

Some 11,077 complaints and enquiries were made to the AUC in 2007-08, compared to 12,046 the previous year.

This is despite a number of problems for passengers that the council said had been "well documented".

AUC chairman Tina Tietjen said the organisation was "pleasantly surprised" by the decrease in the number of complaints it received last year.

She added: "We hope that this means passengers are experiencing a better service from airlines.

"But we think that it might have as much to do with passengers and airlines working better together [and] being able to resolve complaints without the need for our help."

James Fremantle, industry affairs manager at the AUC, recently commented on the effect of the credit crunch on travellers' choices, saying that it has led to people adapting their holidays, rather than cutting them out altogether.

According to the Association of British Travel Agents, bookings have remained "strong" this summer, with Spain, France, Malta and the the Caribbean.

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