The Malta Competition and Consumer Affairs Authority has received 105 complaints concerning refunds and other payments over the cancellation of holidays or travel this year, Tourism Minister Julia Farrugia-Portelli has confirmed.
The figures tabled in Parliament by the minister show that the number of complaints to the MCCAA peaked during the summer.
| month | complaints |
| January | 1 |
| February | 5 |
| March | 10 |
| April | 4 |
| May | 10 |
| June | 12 |
| July | 18 |
| August | 20 |
| September | 9 |
| October | 16 |
In reply to a series of related parliamentary questions by Nationalist MP Chris Said, Farrugia-Portelli also said that the Covid-19 helpline set up by the Malta Tourism Authority had received 102 calls. Curiously, all of these calls were made in May.
An additional 40 emails were sent to tourismcovid-19helpline@visitmalta.com between March and October.
1,096 complaints made to European Consumer Centre Malta
Said also asked the minister – who is also responsible for consumer affairs – to provide figures on the number of complaints received by the European Consumer Centre Malta, which assists consumers in connection with cross-border shopping within the EU.
The centre received a total of 1,096 queries, of which 753 were classified as simple complaints or requests for assistance, while the remaining 343 were formal complaints.
| month | requests for assistance/ simple complaints | complaints |
| January | 40 | 26 |
| February | 54 | 28 |
| March | 91 | 36 |
| April | 150 | 40 |
| May | 102 | 35 |
| June | 85 | 43 |
| July | 74 | 44 |
| August | 53 | 35 |
| September | 49 | 23 |
| October | 55 | 33 |
The main source of complaint was transport, accounting for 50% of all complaints received by the ECC Malta. The centre also received complaints concerning accommodation and restaurants (18%), culture and recreation (10%), household objects (7%), clothing and footwear (6%), and miscellaneous items (9%).
