The Association of Maritime Truck Owners (AMATO) has called for an urgent review of the Electronic Call-Up (ETO) system due to unfair cancellations of paid truck bookings, which they assert violate consumer protection laws.
AMATO noted that these cancellations lead to avoidable losses for truckers, who must pay new booking fees when delays occur beyond their control.
Adeshina Ajibola, AMATO’s Head of Research and Technical, cited violations of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act (FCCPA) 2018, emphasizing the need for timely service and redress.
He urged stakeholders, including Truck Transit Parks and the Nigerian Ports Authority, to create a transparent dispute resolution process and implement refunds or booking transfers for delays caused by systemic issues.
AMATO Secretary Sani Mohammed emphasized the need for TTP and the NPA to permanently link each Truck Delivery Order (TDO) to a specific truck to avoid duplication, which currently enables abuse by some importers.
He also called for TTP to refund ETO wallet balances for inadvertently cancelled bookings, arguing that truckers should not incur costs for services not rendered while terminal operators and agents face no repercussions for operational failures.
“Where a service is not rendered, the trucker should not lose the booking fee,” Mohammed said, questioning why truckers bear the cost of operational inefficiencies while terminal operators and agents face no sanctions.