Airline ‘customer rights charter’ to specify when cash refunds required

Written by: Michelle Grattan, Professorial Fellow, University of Canberra

An “aviation industry ombuds scheme” and improved assistance for passengers with a disability will be among measures the federal government will announce on Monday to force airlines to address the extensive public discontent with their services.

A new aviation customer rights charter will set out “fair and reasonable” conduct by airlines and airports, including when flights are delayed or cancelled.

It will cover customers’ entitlements to refunds, and when these must be provided in cash rather than with travel vouchers.

This follows class actions against both Qantas ^[1] and Jetstar ^[2] that allege they have failed to provide timely cash refunds for cancelled flights, despite being legally obliged to do so.

Both airlines issued vouchers instead of cash refunds, initially with expiry dates.

The class action against Qantas has entered mediation. That against Jetstar was launched last week.

The customer rights charter will also address “unreasonable” lengths of delays and timely communication with passengers.

Transport Minister Catherine King will release the government’s white paper on aviation, with legislation planned for next year, after further consultations. In the meantime an interim ombudsperson will be appointed from her department.

King said too many people had been “left out to dry when flights are cancelled or disrupted and it’s impossibly complex to get a refund or even contact a company representative.

"Customers deserve to get their money back if they are owed. Full stop,” she said.

The ombuds scheme will have an external dispute resolution service, and direct airlines and airports to provide remedies to consumers. It will provide reports on conduct, and refer instances of misconduct for investigation.

Barriers presently faced by people with a disability include unreasonable wait times for checking in, refusals to carry assistance animals, and limits on wheelchair and other access.

The government will create specific disability standards for the industry and review compliance with them.

It will improve remedies for damage to wheelchairs and other equipment, and require airport development plans to set out how they will enable access for people with a disability.

“Through our consultations we have heard clearly that the treatment of people with disability by the airlines and airports is not good enough,” King said.

“People have been left stranded on planes, forced to return to their departure port or had to put up with poor treatment due to a lack of access to appropriate facilities at their destination.”