DANA Air Set To Compensate Families

Barely 48 hours after the House of Representatives issued DANA Air to pay insurance compensation to the families of the crashed victims of one of its aircraft, the airline management said it had since set machinery in motion to ensure that compensation was fully paid.
Reacting to the ultimatum, the airline said it was aware of the mandatory requirements as regards insurance payment to the victims’ families.
“Dana Air is fully aware of the mandatory requirement by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) and the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), for interim benefits to be paid to the families of the victims within 30 days of the accident.
“The airline has since set machinery in motion to ensure that compensation is fully and duly paid. Teams comprising staff of Dana Air, counsellors and clergy have been visiting the affected families to condole with them and also to provide information on claims administration and payment.”
To facilitate the payment process, the airline said it had deployed three dedicated toll-free lines, manned by trained personnel, to a Crisis Management Centre in Lagos and Abuja, and public announcements were made in the national dailies and local radio requesting affected families to come forward with details of the Next-Of-Kin, especially those whom the company had difficulty reaching. The airline will continue to provide these services until all claims have been addressed and settled.
Equally, the airline had announced that it had  made a direct contact with 119 of the 120 families who lost loved ones in the accident and that it had also made contact with the nine embassies managing communications with the families of foreign nationals involved.
“As of the close of business on Friday, June 29, the company had received completed insurance forms for 57 of the victims, four of who are our staff members. These forms have been forwarded to our insurers for processing, and initial payments should be made to many families shortly. The airline is also calling on all families, who are yet to come forward with the necessary documentation, to please do so, in order for us to promptly fulfil our obligation to them.
“Dana Air appreciates that the statutory payments cannot compensate for any of the precious lives lost in the accident but we hope that it will lessen the pains of the families knowing that they are not alone in these extremely difficult times.
“Dana Air is maintaining contact with all the families, and will continue to offer all necessary assistance to them,” it stated
While investigations into the cause of the accident were ongoing, the airline promised  to co-operate fully with and offer all support to the investigating authorities, adding, “Dana Air shares in the pains of the affected families and continues to offer every form of assistance required by the hospital management and overseas laboratory to ensure that the process is completed as soon as possible, so that the families can lay their loved ones to rest.”
Officials of the airline, Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA) and the displaced Iju-Ishaga residents were scheduled to meet on Friday to finalise the process of securing permanent accommodation for the families, but on the request of the residents, the meeting has been postponed to Tuesday, 3rd July, 2012.