After one customer was chagred VND1.03 million (USD47) for parking her car at Noi Bai International Airport for four days, even aviation officials were surprised.
The customer, Nguyen Thi Tuyet Nhung, sent a complaint directly to DTiNews. Her family left the car at the airport from August 22 to August 26 for a trip to the south. When they returned, they were surprised to be charged so much.
“I was shocked at the fees for keeping my car for such a short time," she said.
Subsequently, she called a hotline and spoke to Mr. Thinh, Deputy Director of the Northern Airport Operation Centre. His explanation was that she was charged by 15-minute blocks, and added that if she had complaints she should send them to higher-level agencies.
Nhung was also not happy with the facilities themselves, saying, "The parking lot didn't even have a roof."
Noi Bai International Airport
Deputy Head of the Civil Aviation Administration of Vietnam (CAAV) Luu Thanh Binh was also amazed at the high fees. “It is unbelievable to me that she had to pay more than VND1 million for parking there for just four days,” he said. He added that he will ask Northern Airports Authority to investigate the case.
Nguyen Huy Duong, Deputy Director of Noi Bai International Airport, said that the airport is not a parking lot, and has always discouraged those who would leave their vehicles for any extended period. "We have always maintained this policy. Anyone who still chooses to park here for a long time will be subject to high fees, which include security."
He added that Noi Bai is facing an overload, since it was only designed to service six million passengers per year, but in actuality they service around 12 million.
This has added to the recent discussion over services at Vietnamese airports, which started complaints of other high service charges. The Minister of Transport, Dinh La Thang, instructed airport management boards to examine the prices charged for services and improve their quality.
Airports nationwide will be required to establish public hotlines to record customer complaints.
Head of the CAAV, Lai Xuan Thanh, said that the department will issue a set of quality standards, clearly stipulating specific procedures to improve services. Based on these, Thanh added, authorities will be able to inspect, and if necessary, warn service providers.