Yesterday Qantas finally reimbursed us for their extra charges. It seems that the automated (robo) contact area of the frequent flyer webpage was eventually looked at and acted upon by a ‘rational’ human. I had posted the complete history of the problem along with dates, agent’s names etc. (who knows that you need to keep so much info to support your claims) and originally only got the bot’s dumb response. Thank you for your advice.
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In the context of the many posts here and on other forums about the difficulty of getting flights or just a human who can and will help, this is a bit rich.
‘Consumer group Choice has asked the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) for a formal investigation into the matter.’
‘However, the airline argues they’ve been reminding customers to use their points and it’s down to them.’
The translation from the QF position seems to be ‘not our problem’.
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I am having a similar problem to Oceanmapper.
I had a flight credit ($11K) with an expiry date of 31 December 2022, when I tried to book flights to Europe for myself and my wife in early November 2022. I was informed that I could not use it as it was too old. I was to be given a refund. I gave Qantas all the relevant information as they requested it (28 November 2022) and then purchased my flights using my own money (well over $14K each!).
On 7 Dec 2022, I received an email giving me a new flight credit expiring Dec 2023 and I had already paid for all my expected 2023 travel.
I rang Qantas on 16 December and asked that the original agreed refund be made. I was told that it would take 6 to 8 business days to process.
By the end of January there was no refund and I rang Qantas again on 10th February 2023. I was told there had been an error in processing and that this would now be corrected and the refund ($5K each) would be made and had been given a priority due to the various problems to date.
Qantas was unreachable on 7th Feb by phone.
I rang again on the 23rd February and was told that the processing time was normally now 6 to 10 working days and I should wait two more days. I requested expedited processing, again.
On 23 February, I received an email from Qantas Customer Services saying that my refund had been processed.
By 6 March, no payment had been received, so I rang again. I was told that my refund of $5K had been processed and if I hadn’t received it, the I should contact BPay as they had the money. After considerable to-ing and fro-ing, I received an acknowledgement that the amount should be $11K, another error on their part, and that I would receive a phone call to discuss this matter from their finance team within 48 hours.
March 7, I received a call from Qantas Operations saying that they would expedite the case and refer it back to ticketing, but it would be another 10 to 14 business days. Also it was for $5K until I queried the amount and they agreed it was $11K.
I’m not expecting the refund any time soon.
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I suggest that you make a bullet point summary with dates and if possible agent names for each stage… then post/copy-paste it onto the enquiry/message panel to the bottom right of Qantas’ Facebook page (where they expect you normally are expected to have a dumb conversation with a machine).
In due course a human may take notice and intervene … as they did in our case. They can do things quickly and correctly if motivated. Perhaps we were lucky.
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An update in the Qantas flight credits saga:
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I can’t understand why Qantas didn’t or don’t now offer refunds. I have outstanding credits since 2020 (could be passes, credits or vouchers - they have moved the goal posts several times) and despite contacting customer care in July 2021 and getting a response in June 2022, I am still attempting to get either credit or refund. After yet another marathon call session today, I am awaiting a call back regarding a refund. For a company who recently announced a $1b half year profit, this is outrageous.
The refund solution would be way more cost effective for them except for the risk of losing future business, which they have already lost were it not for the relatively captive market here in Australia.
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Read previous complaints re vouchers refunds etc and wondered if there is anything that can be done
Hello I am very green when it comes to this it’s just I googled Qantas class action and read a lot of posts to this and have the same complaints and just wondered whether there was anything that can help us little people
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No worries, we move posts as needed and it is not a problem
If you read through the posts you may gain some idea of steps that may be taken if you have problems.
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I have cancelled flights for 2 grandchildren because it was not feasible for them to travel as planned. QANTAS has issued credit vouchers but these will not be able to be used because they will expire too soon. The vouchers are not transferable to anyone else and must be used on the same airline and class of flight (e.g. Jetstar or Qantas, domestic or international). I think that there may be other restrictions. It would be fairer if the vouchers were transferable after incurring a fee or even partially refundable.
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Welcome to the Community @jroughan
There are a number of topics touching on airline vouchers but your post does not fit them.
Another option if you have not tried - contact QF and ask them to extend your vouchers as a gesture of good will since your grandchildren cannot fly at will. I presume they are minors and thus limited by school holidays, parental issues, your own schedules, and so on, and put that to them.
A good outcome should be broadcast but unfortunately they have not shown any inclination to be bothered by ‘bad press’. Yet nothing ventured…
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There is now a class action those having had to deal with Qantas vouchers might be interested in?
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My wife and I had booked Qantas (business class) flights to Vanuatu a few days before the Covid Pandemic closed the border, in April 2020.
Ticket numbers 081-xxxxxxxxx and 081-xxxxxxx, booking reference XXXXXX. This was a full, refundable ticket with the total cost AUD $4596.14.
The flight was due to leave on the 26th of March, and to return on the 6th of April. When Qantas advised that the flight was cancelled because of the closure of borders; they nominated that the credit for the flights would be extended, and did so perhaps twice more over the next two years so that the current expiry date is the end of this year.
I did not pursue this refund at the time, nor over the next two years, because I had enormous respect for Qantas, and realised that it was in a difficult state, and though one set of fares was small change in their business, if there were a legion of clients who respected the brand, then it could reduce some of their difficulties.
They had kept in touch over the intervening two years, extending the time limit for use of the outstanding funded tickets.
I received a note in June of this year from Qantas Frequent Flyers reminding me that my flight credits for flight XXXXXX would expire at the end of this year.
We were not in a position to be able to use this credit this year. I set about getting a refund, which was still nominated on my account in the Qantas Frequent Flyer website. Several hours were spent on phone calls, mostly to telephonists for whom English was not their first language, which produced further communication difficulties.
On the 29th of July 2023, I received a notice (for no known reason, and quite unilaterally) that I had a new booking number for the flight credit.
My flight was archived and as it had a new booking number, (YYYYYY) it was no longer eligible for a refund and I must use it before the end of the year or loose it completely .
I objected, twice to Qantas, with both appeals being rejected, They still nominate that the credits can be used up till the end of the year, but after that, they will no longer be valid. We have no opportunity to use them before the end of this year.
In essence, Qantas has taken our goodwill at refraining from pursuing the refund when I knew things were tight for Qantas, and trashed it.
Qantas has done this by unilaterally changing the structure of the debit, and saying that because of that restructure, it was no longer due for a refund.
This was in spite of the fact that I had been advised by Qantas that it would be eligible for a refund to the end of 2023, and this was confirmed as late as June this year on the Frequent Flyer website.
I cannot but help see this as blatant Robbery. They will have taken my $5,000 and given me nothing for it.
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Welcome to the community @jfo
It’s accounts such as yours which reveal just how miserable Qantas has become in the treatment of customers.
Of note in the preceding post are details of a class action which may be of interest. Although that may be a drawn out process.
The new Qantas CEO recently sent out a personal plea/apology to many of its past customers. It’s difficult to know if the Flying Kangaroo is about to change direction or reverse position. Kangaroos are noted for not being able to walk backwards.
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You might assemble a Letter of Complaint (search the Community, Choice, or the ACCC web site for the how to) including your evidence QF reconfirmed you are eligible for a refund through 2023, and address it to the new CEO Vanessa Hudson. State clearly and dispassionately what happened with a timeline. End it with a clear statement you want a full refund and include a reasonable (2 calendar weeks) date for ‘her’ reply.
Her office will handball it but worth a try since the customer facing agents knocked you back and she has a huge job to turn the airline reputation around. QF under her leadership may be more amenable to helping now than even 2 weeks ago when Allan Joyce was still QF’s [lack of] conscience as many saw him and QF itself.
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Thank you Mark and Phil. I have registered the situation with CASL, and will now write to Vanessa Hudson. Should I notify her
that I have registered with the Class Action?
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I am not sure that being part of a class action is the right thing to do. It can take many years and the end result may only be compensation worth far less than what you are owed now once the lawyers have extracted their substantial fees.
Qantas, once aware you are a plaintiff in a legal action, could simply wash their hands of you and stop any communication. All in the hands of the lawyers now, and see in a few years what happens.
There seems to be considerable pressure on QF to stop holding on to the half a billion in flight credits, and start clearing that out in refunds. They have already decided to ditch expiry on credits.
Keep at them whilst you are a customer owed either a refund or a flight. Not as a litigant passed off to the lawyers.
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As @gregr mentioned
that might not be your best way forward.
In your position I would not confuse issues by referencing the class action. QF know they are better off dealing with irate customers within the class action than individually so I would focus solely on dealing directly with QF. Best if you check your enrolment in the class action to see if you retain your rights to independently seek redress. You might need to make a choice of the class action (ie withdrawing from it) or stopping your own direct efforts unless it clearly allows you to do both.
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As @PhilT and @Gregr have suggested, the class action may see Qantas take the opportunity to “kick the can down the road”.
The following site FAQ offers answers to several of the points raised and possibly your question.
https://www.echolaw.com.au/qantas
Note it is an “Open Class Action” as explained in the FAQ’s. There is an FAQ concerning the situation where you receive a refund independently of the intended litigation, and advice on costs.
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