Eye opening customer service quotes

According to the MoU, Pharmacity will become a partner in the customer care network of Hanwha Life. Customers of Hanwha Life Vietnam will be able to access the benefits provided from this collaboration as well as experience policy owner services such as premium payments at the system of over 500 drugstores of Pharmacity nationwide via payment service providers like Payoo, Momo, and VNPay. About 450 staff members and 44,000 agents of Hanwha Life will be the recipients of the incentives of Pharmacity.

The MoU with Pharmacity also aims to realise Hanwha Life’s mission to build a comprehensive life solution for customers in Vietnam

As a life insurance company pioneering co-operating with a leading healthcare partner, Im Dong Jun, CEO cum chairman of the Member Council of Hanwha Life Vietnam, said, “Healthcare is an essential part of our business, considering its nature. Particularly in the context of the pandemic, human health has become a great concern for most people and the whole society. With a hope to bring more benefits and healthcare services to customers to improve their quality of life, Hanwha Life Vietnam has tried to intensify its co-operation with reliable healthcare partners, including Pharmacity.”

“I believe that this mutual endeavour will create a more comprehensive healthcare service to the customers of both parties. Pharmacity’s customers will be able to access Hanwha Life’s financial protection solutions, whereas Hanwha Life’s customers, staff members, and agents will have access to medicines and better healthcare services from Pharmacity. To make this happen in a more customer-friendly environment, Hanwha Life and Pharmacity will continue to further collaborate to integrate its customer service platforms,” added Im Dong Jun.

Chris Blank, CEO of Pharmacity, said, “We are glad to join hands with Hanwha Life, a leading life insurance company from South Korea, to take care of and improve the health of the Vietnamese people. With a network of over 500 pharmacies in big cities like Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Binh Duong, Ba Ria-Vung Tau, Dong Nai, Can Tho, and Danang, together with professional, thoughtful pharmacists, we are confident that Pharmacity will bring the best services to customers. The co-operation with a life insurer having a wide network of offices like Hanwha Life and its sister companies will also help us materialise the target of having 1,000 drugstores by the end of this year.”

Pharmacity is one of the leading drugstore chains in Vietnam with a network of over 500 pharmacies

As a life insurance company endeavouring to meet the ever-changing demands of customers, Hanwha Life is strengthening co-operation with its numerous partners in health, banking, and fintech, and with technology companies so that customers can experience Hanwha Life’s products in their daily life. Earlier, in December 2020, Hanwha Life signed a co-operation deal with Gene Solutions, a leading company in genetics in Vietnam.

With the motto of customer-centricity, Hanwha Life is boosting investment in improving customer experience. Along with the co-operation with many partners in many fields, the company is accelerating the digitisation of its sales network.

Recently, Hanwha Life Vietnam has launched the LIME mobile app to improve services for customers. In addition, the company has also developed many different tools to support its business system professionally and effectively in the digital technology environment concerning recruitment, policy management, and staff training, which are important for its business.

Despite the strong impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, Hanwha Life Vietnam maintained stable business and sustainable growth in 2020, with total premium revenue of nearly VND3.4 trillion ($147.83 million), up 20 per cent on-year, and profit estimated at over VND300 billion ($13 million).

This is the first time that Hanwha Life Vietnam has earned profits for two consecutive years. In 2021, Hanwha Life continues to strive to become the most reliable life insurance company and aims to bring optimal life solutions to customers. At present, Hanwha Life Vietnam has more than 170 customer service points, over 44,000 financial consultants, and 450 staff members serving more than 600,000 customers countrywide.

The Hanoitimes – Vietnamese air carriers have listed new domestic airfares which are higher than the fares applied during the social distancing period.

In the midst of the second social distancing period against the Covid-19 pandemic, Vietnamese airlines have quoted new domestic airfares that are three to five times higher than the fares applied since the beginning of the social distancing period, but still remain below the regulated ceiling price.

Source: Vietnam Airlines

Prices on the Ho Chi Minh City – Hanoi route range from VND3.6 million to VND6.7 million for Vietnam Airlines economy class, from VND1.7 million to VND2.9 million for Bamboo Airways’, from VND1.8 million to VND2.1 million for Vietjet Air’s.

Fares of the Ho Chi Minh City – Hanoi route

Source: Bamboo Airways

Why high airfares?

The prices of domestic flights vary, depending on the time of purchase, Tran Trung Kien, a Thu Duc district-based ticket agent in Ho Chi Minh City told VnExpress . “Travel demand will increase as the social distancing will soon end and in anticipation of the coming public holidays (Reunification day of April 30 and May Day). Supply shortage drives airfares up,” Kien was quoted as saying.

Some airlines explained that travel demand between Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City is high even during the time of social distancing. Meanwhile, in compliance with the social distancing measures against Covid-19, flights are operated at half capacity with seating arrangement of just two passengers in one row to ensure a safe distance.

According to the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV), the Hanoi – Ho Chi Minh City route has been reopened but operated at the frequency of 5-6% below the pre-pandemic capacity. The agent also told local media that though domestic airfares are rising, they are still below the regulated ceiling.

Nguyen Xuan Thuy, a local transport insider, told Kinh te & Do thi that the airlines have heavily suffered from the Covid-19 pandemic and higher air fares are intended to offset the losses. However, as the Covid-19 pandemic is negatively affecting all people and every industry, “I suggest the transport ministry and airlines explain this increase more reasonably,” he was quoted as saying.

Due to the pandemic, 98% of airplanes have been grounded, local airlines could see a decline in revenue of up to VND65 trillion (US$2.7billion), much higher than the VND30 trillion (US$1.27 billion) previously estimated by the CAAV.

After three weeks of social distancing, domestic airlines have struggled with financial woes, according to Saigon Times . The airlines’ cash flow has been imbalanced in the first four months of this year, which makes it hard for them to recover faster. Cash flow from airfares and fuel cost reduction has not covered the fixed costs of the airlines.

In order for airlines to overcome the crisis, it is necessary to quickly issue policies on exemption and reduction of state-controlled aviation services (plane parking fees and screening fees, among others), environmental protection taxes for shipping companies, including airlines, to lower costs for air carriers, Saigon Times wrote.

In addition, the government should also refund value-added tax (VAT) in 2020 for industries directly affected by the pandemic such as aviation and tourism so that the enterprises can cover their operating costs.

The Hanoitimes – The aviation authority has proposed allowing carriers to increase flight frequency between Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, and resume air connection from these two cities to other domestic destinations.

The Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam has submitted to the Ministry of Transport a plan to resume flights from April 23 after the expiration of the social distancing extension. All domestic routes, except the Hanoi – Ho Chi Minh City – Danang routes, will be re-opened with limited frequency.

Photo: Vietjet Air

The agency has submitted the plan to re-open those routes from April 23 to 30. Accordingly, on the Hanoi – Ho Chi Minh City route, there will be 20 flights per day with Vietnam Airlines and Vietjet Air each permitted to operate six; and the rest of flights are distributed equally between Jetstar Pacific and Bamboo Airways.

On Hanoi/Ho Chi Minh City – Danang routes, Vietnam Airlines and Vietjet Air each will operate three flights per day, Jetstar Pacific and Bamboo Airways each with two flights per day.

In particular, each airline will operate one roundtrip flight per day for routes from Hanoi/Ho Chi Minh City to other localities; four roundtrip flights per day on the Ho Chi Minh City – Con Dao route; one roundtrip flight per day for routes between localities excluding the Hanoi-Ho Chi Minh City route.

The agency has also asked aviation businesses to continue implementing the government’s preventive measures. They are asked to keep implementing strictly measures on the disease prevention and control such as checking passengers’ health at the airport, requesting online health declaration before the flight, refusing to transport passengers who are suspected of contracting the coronavirus, arranging seats on board in a way to ensure safe distance as regulated.

Crew including pilots, flight attendants and technical staff on all flights are equipped with protective medical equipment. Passengers traveling on the plane are required to wear face masks during the whole flight.

The Hanoitimes – The revival of the aviation industry was a result of efforts by the government and the tourism industry to stimulate domestic travel.

With the social distancing orders loosened on April 23 after Covid-19 was contained, airports in Vietnam became busier in May, with air passengers jumping 14.3-fold from a month earlier to a total of 2.88 million.

Source: Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam. Chart: Nhat Minh.

The revival of the aviation industry was a result of efforts by the government and the tourism industry to encourage businesses to offer promotional packages that stimulate the demand of domestic travelers while borders remain closed to foreigners.

However, compared to the May 2019, the number of passengers fell 70% due to the suspension of foreign entry and travel restrictions to curb the spread of Covid-19, according to the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam.

In May, the number of international passengers dropped 97.6% year-on-year to just 78,000 while the number of Vietnamese passengers decreased by 56.6% to 2.8 million.

In particular, Vietnamese airlines transported 78,000 international passengers and 2.8 million domestic passengers in May.

Source: the CAAV. Chart: Nhat Minh.

On May 25, the government decided to issue e-visas for citizens of 80 countries from July 1. This would lay a foundation for welcoming foreign tourists again.

Vietnam is expected to be the first countries in the world to open up to foreign tourists, according to WeSwap, the UK’s largest P2P travel money provider.

Vietnam has had one of the lowest cases and death rates in the world, despite sharing a long border with China. The country has had just over 320 cases and zero deaths. It has gone 41 days without community infection as of May 26.

The Hanoitimes – Vietnam’s tourism sector is preparing to welcome back foreign tourists. The tourism sector will submit a schedule for re-starting inbound tourism in the coming time.

Vietnam’s tourism sector is expected to resume welcoming inbound travelers sooner than many other countries in the region will do thanks to the success in containing the pandemic. “Vietnam is a safe place” would be the new slogan, said businesses and insiders at the recent conference on post-Covid-19 solutions for the tourism industry.

En cave, Quang Binh province. Photo: Vic (Facebook)

At the conference titled “Solutions promoting domestic tourism and recover international tourists” held on May 21, Steve Wolstenholme, CEO of Hoi An South Development (Hoiana), suggested that Vietnam needs to communicate the message “Vietnam is a safe place” and has to safeguard those who work in the industry.

Sharing the same idea, Vice President of Lodgis Hospitality Holdings Vietnam Craig Douglas added that Vietnam needs to take the opportunity to promote itself as a safe tourism corridor to attract tourists.

Kenneth Atkinson, vice president of the Tourism Advisory Board (TAB), underlined that Vietnam could learn from experiences of Australia, New Zealand and Thailand on creating specific resorts meeting anti-pandemic safety standards to accommodate international tourists.

Safety is of utmost priority for the tourism industry when it is re-opened to tourists, Nguyen Le Phuc, deputy general director of the Vietnam National Administration of Tourism (VNAT), affirmed at the conference.

The conference entitled “Solutions promoting domestic tourism and recover international tourists” on May 21.

“To achieve this target, the industry could apply technology for controlling the pandemic. At this time, the VNAT is implementing a communication plan on safe tourist destinations to lure tourists,” Phuc added. “Travel businesses are encouraged to devise sets of criteria on the safety and safe tourist destinations by themselves as well as cooperate with each other for better promotion.”

Trinh Hong Quang, deputy CEO of national flag carrier Vietnam Airlines, added that local businesses should take advantage of Vietnam’s successful control against the Covid-19 pandemic to build new product packages that focuse on the safety of the tourists.

Since the social distancing order was loosened, travel businesses have offered in unison promotional programs to attract domestic travelers. However, local insiders commented that this is only a short-term solution. For long-term ones, it is important to lure foreign travelers due to their high spending and purchasing power.

Le Quang Tung, deputy minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, concluded that Vietnam needs to communicate the safe destination images to the world. In addition, businesses need to work together to develop and take advantage of opportunities to revive the Vietnamese tourism industry.

Gianh River, Quang Binh province. Photo: dimorua (Facebook)

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism will, based on the collaboration with relevant agencies, build a schedule for reopening the industry, Tung said.

In the first four months of 2020, international arrivals to Vietnam plunged 37.8% year-on-year to 3.7 million, according to the General Statistics Office.

In April alone, the number of tourists fell 98.2% from a year earlier and 94.2% against March. The pandemic impacted on the whole tourism industry and its goal of welcoming about 20.5 million international visitors this year is highly unlikely.