Edit: New readers to this topic can join it as of Feb 2023 by clicking here.
Just spent 9 hours holding on the phone to redeem our voucher!
How can there be so few operators manning the phones?
Not to defend Qantas, but it is also possible that they have a lot of operators, but are inundated with calls? Clearly they need to do something to improve the situation.
Perhaps a more appropriate question would be āwhy has Qantas not taken steps to reduce the on-hold time down from 9 hoursā?
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Choice is on the job.
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The problem I found was that when I had to cancel travel last year I received $850 travel credit. We had booked 3 people to travel Brisbane to Sydney. This year my wife and daughter were travelling Toowoomba to Canberra via Sydney for Easter. I am a Qantas FF and tried to redeem credit. This proved impossible as when I booked for 2 x people to travel for a cost of $1300 it would not allow the use of the credit. The reason is that all passengers on the travel credit had to travel. As I was not travelling there was no option to untick myself on passenger list to use the flight credit. It was locked. We tried on multiple occasions to contact Qantas Call Centre but on hold for hours. We gave up as flight costs were going up so ended up purchasing flights for $1300 and still have a flight credit unused. The big problem is the passengers on the old flight credit and having this locked and all 3 travelers being required to travel. The only option it would allow was for me to use the flight credit as it is under my frequent flyer account and I could use the credit.
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Qantas issued credits for people who flights were cancelled and there is alot of publicity going on about issues with the call centre and credits.One thing that needs to be addressed and that is. I have a credit with Qantas valid until December next year - now if I pass away during that period - if my next of kin is not aware of the credit Qantas will send a email out to my booking email address no response so one can assume Qantas will keep the money.
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Welcome to the Community @Johnny1
I merged your post into this similar topic to assist Choice staff see all of the wrinkles in what is happening to travellers with vouchers.
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A slow skip over the COVID lockdowns with many pax having flight credits. QF seems to be doing its āgood workā to soak up as many of those credit dollars as they can.
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Recently, I had my flight Mel-Per cancelled and changed 3 times by Qantas. Each time I was offered unviable flights or to pay exorbitantly for viable alternatives. My husband and I, travelling together in linked bookings (not same booking), were re-booked by Qantas on separate flights and made to pay extra (ie get a credit and rebook) in order to simply be able to re-book on the same flight. Arranging re-bookings took hours. I had call centre agents literally refuse to assist and read out policy for minutes on end. When I demanded they stop and put me through to someone who would help they hung up.
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Thatās a shocker @JanElsner. Unfortunately we are hearing Qantas horror stories regularly, and people are telling itās very difficult to find resolution for their problems. It sounds like this situation is already come to a resolution (if not let me know), but thanks for flagging it with us.
We are also interested to hear from others with Qantas booking issues.
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Two related topics worth linking,
and
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Hi all
I donāt know that my story is that much different than others, but here goes. I planned a holiday in WA in 2020, cancelled for obvious reasons; rebooked for 2021, ditto. I had a voucher from Qantas for the flights for $1,500 (or thereabouts).
I rebooked my holiday to VIC instead, and had to ring Qantas to book the flights (2+ hours on hold, starting at 4.30 am), where I was advised that the flight from Melbourne to Sydney would cost $522. I questioned this, and was given a very vague explanation (which I still donāt understand) from the service rep, that it related to the original flight booked to Sydney - Perth / Perth - Tom Price. I asked to speak to a manager but was just told that I would get the same message.
I was also told Iād be sent my itinerary within 24 hours - nothing arrived. I logged in to my Frequent Flyers account and could see the Sydney - Melbourne return flights but also a one-way Sydney-Perth!
I rang again (2+ hours, from about 4.30 am one morning) and was told the Sydney - Perth flight was ānothingā and would be removed (it has been). I was promised a second time that I would get my itinerary, but nothing. I mainly want the itinerary so that I can see how much of my credit remainsā¦
I expect that Qantas would tell me that something written in the Ts and Cs of the voucher would explain why Iām paying $522 for a 1.5-hour flight - but itās beyond me.
This exorbitant price, and the appalling fact that Iām forced to wait on hold when I ring Qantas when clearly they want all their customers to use the web (Iād be DELIGHTED to be able to avoid those waits!) really leaves a bitter taste.
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Your story is typical of many I have heard and I am sorry for your woes.
What I have never understood is that many pax (and I am not suggesting youāre amongst them) continue over time to stick to QF even though on any objective analysis, the airlineās customer service is inferior to say EK, SQ, TG, CX, VA etc yet its prices are the highest or amongst the highest.
I think it is time for the Cāth Gov to investigate such outrages. For instance, why do airlines and travel agents require immediate pmt to secure a booking yet take weeks or months to refund monies (and that assumes that pax negotiate the countless hurdles thrown in their way by airlines). Refunds should take minutes, after all the airline knows it or its agent was paid some time ago. They can establish that in seconds.
Also why do we in AU not enjoy what say the US, EU and IL amongst other jursidictions that allow open skies ie any airline can fly to/from a country without the stone age requirement that the so called ānationalā airline of a country be granted exactly the same reciprocal rights as foreign airlines flying into a country. Sure such a move would depress teh QF share price, but the massive rise in competition would drive down air fares so as to benefit the public enormously.
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Similar story.
I made a booking and paid via BPAY. I am yet to receive any receipt or e-ticket itinerary, despite the money leaving my account and the correct payment details being entered. I have rung Qantas 3 times and waited on hold for 3 hours every time, only for the phone to just hang up without even getting to speak to someone. I have tried emailing their customer service email, and received no acknowledgement. I filled out the Frequent Flyer online form, for which it said I would receive a confirmation email and reference number - never received it. I even tried using the online chat on the Qantas Freight website - it said there were no agents available to chat.
I donāt know what to do - my flight is next Wednesday, and whilst I can see the booking remains on my account, I canāt manage or edit it as it says that it is pending payment. I have paid! Canāt contact anyone, not sure if I should book another flight with Virgin, or just turn up the airport and hope to get on the plane.
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Hi @FraM, welcome to the community. You are not alone, and challenges associated with buying and flying donāt seem to be restricted necessarily to Qantas. Qantas has been receiving a lot of attention lately due to challenges in redeeming flight credits.
When did you pay for the ticket?
BPay can take a number of days (2-3 days) to process and appear in the recipientās account and then the payment needs to be reconciled by the recipient (Qantas - reconciliation to check funds received are correct). This can take up to 5 business days - most cases less and around 1-3 business days (24-36 hours). If you paid in the past day or two, you might need to be patient. If it was iver 5 days, you might need to contact Qantas to double check they have received the BPay funds.
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CHOICE talks about problems with redeeming vouchers. What about getting a voucher in the first place? My flight was cancelled last June. If you call in order to get a refund/voucher you can hold on all day but will not be answered. If you press the button to get a call-back when you place in queue is reached, they do not call back. If you send them an email, they do not respond (apart from the automated response). Iām talking about the second half of last year when they layed off lots of staff who could have been utilised to deal with these issues. How do you even get a voucher in the first place??
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Welcome to the Community @MarkN
I donāt authoritatively know the answer but to punt, it appears the pax needs to request it via the manage booking page, and the credit should have the same reference number as the original booking according to this QF page.
Considering QF seems uncontactable this recent Choice advice of You could be on the phone for a few hours if you call them, so only contact them if you havenāt heard from them within a few days of your departure date seems inappropriate @JodiBird. If QF donāt contact and donāt answer and the hold time is hours only to be dropped from the queue time and time again and no email or other responses are received the pax could be in a world of difficulty. Trying early and often seems more appropriate? It might clog their lines but every pax seems to need to take care of themselves in the face of what is a black hole.
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My story is similar to those above and Iām currently losing sleep as well as feeling very frustrated, angry and upset.
November 2021, I booked 3 return flights to Sydney for my sister, my niece and myself, we hoped to visit Mum (Nan) before she passed away. We were unable to travel due to Covid restrictions both in Qld and in my Mumās NSW nursing home. I cancelled our flights and we were issued a Credit Voucher for $1,315.95 and told that on any future flight using that voucher we would need to, all 3 of us, fly togetherā¦we had no problem with that.
On March 3, 2022 I went online to book 3 return flights to Sydney using our credit voucher so we can attend a planned memorial lunch for Mum. I was unable to complete the booking online as there was no āFind Flightsā button. I tried 2 separate search engines, Google Chrome and Firefox with no luck. I phoned Qantas and requested a call back as I was unable to stay on the phone indefinitely. A female Qantas employee phoned me back and completed my booking for me but not before charging me an extra $39 ($13 each) because I was making that booking over the phoneā¦never mind that I had no other option but to do the booking over the phone. I was told I would receive my e-ticket within 24 hours at which time I could complete our seat selections.
To date I have still not received an e-ticket.
On March 8th, 5 days later, I booked a return ticket for my husband on those same flights at a cost of $160.20 return but from what I can tell from my credit voucher, which still appears on my Qantas FF account, we have been charged $1,315.95 for our 3 return flights.
I have since phoned Qantas on March 17, March 18, March 28 and April 4th, each time I have been assured that I would receive my e-ticket within 24 hours. On April 4th the male customer service agent offered to phone me back the next day to check that Iād received my e-ticketā¦no surprise, Iām still waiting for that call.
Whilst my Qantas FF account shows that Iām booked on those new flights when I select āManageā my booking Iām taken to my original credit voucher details and Iām told this voucher is being processed and to phone Qantas. I have no way of knowing that my sister and niece are confirmed on those flights and do we have seats?
We are due to fly in 17 days, on April 30, how hard can it be to issue an e-ticket?
Australiaās supposed No.1 airlineā¦really?
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I apologise for going OT but to address a question often asked
Airline ticket prices are not like taxis where there is a km and minutes waiting time applied to the time and distance.
Fares include amortisation of the airplane; (considerable) maintenance that is required based on the airplaneās total air time, calendar time, or landing-takeoff cycles whichever comes first; fund the flight crew and backup flight crews on standby for illness etc; gate agents; refuellers, catering arrangements, and baggage handlers. There are also Air Services, meteorology and airport fees such as landing fees, gate fees, and rental for their counters. In context of all the costs the actual flight time costs (fuel and hourly rate for the aircrew) may be negligible and for smaller regional airports the ground costs could be disproportionately high as municipalities want the airline(s) to essentially fund airport operation and āsock it to them accordinglyā when there are only 1, 2 or 3 commercial flights per day plus local general (private and charter) aviation.
There is also a concept of place and time utility (something in the right place at the right time is deemed to have more value than it might otherwise have). Since the capacity of an airplane is finite and a second airplane cannot be dispatched on demand, airlines charge more for the scarce seats; that effectively manages demand by making the ride unaffordable for some, or more attractive to many at other times with lesser demand and thus lower fares.
The airlines make out when they have full pax loads on each flight, as well as air freight when applicable. For the many unoccupied seats over the year they forecast fares and services to make up that revenue, while flying at full capacity most of the time is Very Profitable.
I hope that adds to why ticket prices seem āall over the placeā but short trips to regional airports are obviously very expensive, and seem ridiculously so in cases.
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Thanks, PhilT, Iād buy that answer if the Syd-Mel trip wasnāt a third of the price. And even lower prices are shown on the website.
Qantasā (unclear to me) explanation seemed to indicate that the cost of that flight was somehow related to the cost of the original flightā¦
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I think it is clear from the many posts QF is probably manipulating the vouchers/credit to minimise the pax benefits and maximise their own position, that being separate to āwhy faresā. Yours was a convenient quote grabbed with an intention to address short haul regional fares - but perhaps an inappropriate one so apologies.
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