Qantas customers who are owed flight refunds by the airline will no longer have to claim them by the end of December in a massive backdown by the airline.
The move comes as the Australian consumer watchdog launched legal action against the airline over allegations it advertised tickets for 8,000 flights which had already been cancelled.
The airline’s controversial deadline threatened to strip passengers owed flight credits worth $370 million which sparked uproar.
Outgoing Qantas CEO Alan Joyce faced heavy flak in a grilling by politicians about the controversy at a Senate hearing this week.
But on Thursday, it was reported the airline had backflipped over the expiry date decision and scrapped the cut off after the growing public outcry.
The huge backlog in travel credits built up during the Covid pandemic when flights were cancelled worldwide amid widespread border closures.
Qantas customers who are owed flight refunds by the airline will no longer have to claim them by the end of December in a massive backdown by the airline
The airline’s controversial deadline threatened to strip passengers owed flight credits worth $370 million which sparked uproar
The reversal will allow customers who had flights cancelled before October 2021 to retain the flight credits indefinitely for a refund, reports the Sydney Morning Herald.
Customers who booked flights through a travel agent can also claim a refund and Jetstar passenger with flight credits can use them indefinitely.
It is the fourth amendment by the airline over its flights refund policy in the wake of the pandemic which wreaked havoc in the airline industry.
Qantas currently faces a class action by passengers whose travel plans were wrecked and claim they have been unable to get a refund.
The Senate hearing into the cost of living summoned Mr Joyce to be grilled about the airline’s operations on Monday.
The Senate hearing into the cost of living summoned Mr Joyce to be grilled about the airline’s operations on Monday
It discovered a further $100million of flight refunds and credits are outstanding to Jetstar passengers on top of the $370million owed to Qantas customers
It discovered a further $100million of flight refunds and credits are outstanding to Jetstar passengers on top of the $370million owed to Qantas customers.
A further $50-$100million is owed to overseas bookings, the hearing was told.
Daily Mail Australia has sought comment from Qantas.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission is claiming in the Federal Court that Qantas engaged in false, misleading or deceptive conduct after continuing to sell the tickets for an average of more than two weeks, and up to 47 days in some cases.
It’s also alleging the airline didn’t notify existing ticket holders for 10,000 flights that they had been cancelled for an average of 18 days, and up to 48 days, between May and July 2022.
This left customers less time to make alternative arrangements and may have led to them paying higher prices.
The ACCC said Qantas continued to sell tickets for the flights on its website for two days or more and delayed telling ticketholders their flights were cancelled for the same period of time for about 70 per cent of cancelled flights.
Qantas cancelled a quarter of its flights between May and July 2022, which amounted to about 15,000, the watchdog said.
Chair Gina Cass-Gottlieb said the commission had conducted a detailed investigation into the airline.
‘As a result, we have commenced these proceedings alleging that Qantas continued selling tickets for thousands of cancelled flights, likely affecting the travel plans of tens of thousands of people,’ she said.
‘This case does not involve any alleged breach in relation to the actual cancellation of flights, but rather relates to Qantas’ conduct after it had cancelled the flights.’
The ACCC is seeking penalties, injunctions, declarations and costs.
Qantas responded to the ACCC claim, saying they the allegations ‘seriously’.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission is launching action in the Federal Court claiming Qantas engaged in false, misleading or deceptive conduct after continuing to sell the tickets for an average of more than two weeks, and up to 47 days in some cases
‘We have a longstanding approach to managing cancellations for flights, with a focus on providing customers with rebooking options or refunds,’ a spokesman told Daily Mail Australia.
‘It’s a process that is consistent with common practice at many other airlines.
‘It’s important to note that the period examined by the ACCC between May and July 2022 was a time of unprecedented upheaval for the entire airline industry.
‘All airlines were experiencing well-publicised issues from a very challenging restart, with ongoing border uncertainty, industry wide staff shortages and fleet availability causing a lot of disruption.
‘We will examine the details of the ACCC’s allegations and respond to them in full in court.’