ILOILO City — To protect airport passengers from possible overcharging, the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) Region 6 has ordered taxis to strictly issue receipts, install clear signage and provide a weighing scale at the taxi bay of the Iloilo International Airport in Cabatuan, Iloilo following complaints over a P50 baggage charge.
LTFRB-6 director Richard Osmeña said the agency is tightening monitoring to ensure transparency in the collection of the P50 excess baggage fee, stressing that passengers must not be misled into thinking it is an unauthorized surcharge on top of the metered fare.
Last week a newly arrived traveler posted on Facebook that he was surprised to be asked to pay an additional P50 by a taxi driver at the airport, with no explanation given. He questioned whether the charge was standard practice in Iloilo, noting that in other airports passengers pay only the metered taxi fare.
“I looked at the Memorandum Circular. Insakto si Mr. Yap (referring to Association of Taxi Operators of Panay, Inc. chairperson Perfecto Yap). But the problem lang is the passenger thinks na it is above the…kon pila ang balayran sa meter,” Osmeña told Panay News.
“So, I said dapat you should issue a (separate) receipt so the passenger will be aware na ang ginbayran is for the additional baggage kag indi additional fare,” he added.
The director clarified that the charge is anchored on Memorandum Circular No. 2011-004, or the 2011 Revised Terms and Conditions of Certificate of Public Convenience (CPC), which provides that “every passenger is entitled to a free carriage of 10 kilograms of baggage and shall pay the corresponding freightage for excess weight.”
However, Osmeña has yet to cite the specific provision authorizing the fixed P50 rate and vowed to furnish the media with the relevant order upon his return.
To safeguard commuters, the LTFRB-6 required the Association of Taxi Operators of Panay, Inc. to prominently display a tarpaulin at the airport taxi area explaining the excess baggage rule and the legal basis for the charge.
“May ara per kilo P7-something up to P27 so gin-fix lang nila sa P50. So, I told them to put also a tarpaulin stating there is a Memorandum Circular so aware ang pasahero nga wala overcharge. Kag nag-ayu man ko kay Mr. Yap to put also a weighing scale so kon ang pasahero maghambal this is not more than 10 kilograms, ti timbangon eh. Kon not more than 10 kilos wala sila sang bayran,” Osmeña added.
He said he would personally inspect compliance upon his return to Iloilo.
“When I go back to Iloilo, ako mismo ma-inspect and I will make sure na there is receipt being issued,” he said.
For his part, taxi association chairperson Yap confirmed that signage has already been installed at the airport taxi parking area.
“Kay kon basehan ang MC we can charge sang P7 up to P27 per kilogram. So, masakit-sakit na kon daku imo karga, indi bala? But to simplify the charging para indi man desbentaha sa aton mga drivers kay bisan sa handling or hakwat-hakwat mo daw indi kabayad, pero sa excess baggage ginhambal namon kag gin-agree-han nga (uniform rate of) P50 lang. Kon wala baggage wala man charges,” Yap explained.
The LTFRB-6 said the new measures are meant to ensure that airport passengers pay only what is legally due — no more, no less — and that all additional charges are properly documented and clearly explained./PN
