While on their way to London, United Kingdom (UK), on July 6, Tobi Benson, a Lagos State resident, and her 78-year-old mother had to board a connecting flight in Casablanca, Morocco, to get to their destination.

The airline that was scheduled to take them from Casablanca to the UK was Royal Air Maroc, Morocco’s largest airline and national carrier.

As both women waited at the Casablanca-Anfa Airport, anticipating the announcement of their flight, they discovered that passengers at the airport were only being addressed in Arabic. More importantly, information coming from the airport’s public address system was also only made in Arabic.

In an attempt not to miss the UK-bound flight, Benson told EQ that she promptly approached Royal Air Maroc’s desk to ask when passengers would be called upon to commence boarding.

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Benson’s Flight Ticket

Unfortunately, and just like the official on the public address system, the airline’s officials also only spoke to her in Arabic.

In the end, due to the language barrier, Benson and her mother spent hours at the airport and ultimately missed their flight.

After the drama of June 6, Benson and her mother were forced to spend the night in Maroc without the provision of any proper accommodation. In addition, she also had to pay an extra £250 to rebook a flight that would take her and her mother to the UK on July 7.

That, however, was not the end of the unpleasant experience. Royal Air Maroc also created a problem for Benson and her mother and it remains unresolved to date.

MISSING LUGGAGE

The Missing Luggage Form Benson Filled

When Benson and her mother arrived in London, they discovered that their luggage which included a 22.5kg bag containing essential items and another bag were missing.

“That actually broke the camel’s back. It made matters worse,” Benson said in an interview with EQ.

“When I drew Royal Air Maroc’s attention to the fact that our luggage were missing, our names were listed in their missing luggage report and we were promised that they would be found and delivered to us.

“To our greatest surprise, only one bag was found and eventually delivered to us.”

Benson and her mother went on to spend 15 days in London without the luggage delivered to them as promised by the airline.

BACK IN NIGERIA, STILL NO LUGGAGE

An Email Benson Sent to Royal Air Maroc

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Benson told EQ that she and her mother eventually returned to Nigeria on July 22 without the missing luggage.

“On my return to Nigeria, I made several complaints via email on the missing luggage to the airline and at one time, they sent me a complaint form to fill,” Benson said.

“I have since submitted the form but there has been no response from the airline.

“They did not even bother to acknowledge receipt of the form. They also did not advise on the time it will take for them to resolve the issue.

“There also has been no form of communication from the airline on the issue. Now, our luggage has been missing for 42 days and Royal Air Maroc has not taken any reasonable or serious step to find it.”

EQ sent an email to Royal Air Maroc for a reaction to Benson’s complaint on Friday morning, but the airline had not responded at press time.
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