Consumer watchdog unleashes on Qantas

Consumer watchdog the Australian Consumer and Competition Commission is sometimes derided as a toothless tiger, accused of failing to act against serial offenders.

Today, however, the ACCC has initiated legal action in the Federal Court of Australia against national airline Qantas, alleging that the carrier has engaged in "false, misleading or deceptive conduct" by advertising tickets for flights that it had already cancelled, sometimes weeks earlier.

The ACCC has accused the airline of selling tickets for more than 8,000 flights scheduled to depart between May and July 2022, alleging the Australian flag carrier kept selling tickets on its website for what is alleged to be an average of more than two weeks - and and in some cases for up to 47 days -after the cancellation of the flights.

The ACCC also believes that for more than 10,000 flights scheduled to depart in May to July 2022, Qantas did not notify existing ticketholders that their flights had been cancelled for an average of about 18 days.

The ACCC alleges that Qantas did not update its “Manage Booking” web page for ticketholders to reflect the cancellations.

“We allege that Qantas’ conduct in continuing to sell tickets to cancelled flights, and not updating ticketholders about cancelled flights, left customers with less time to make alternative arrangements and may have led to them paying higher prices to fly at a particular time not knowing that flight had already been cancelled," the ACCC said.

The action comes at a particular interesting time with the Australian government lately being accused of giving Qantas favourable treatment over its rivals.

The ACCC is Australia's national competition, consumer, fair trading and product safety regulator.

“The ACCC has conducted a detailed investigation into Qantas’ flight cancellation practices," ACCC chair Gina Cass-Gottlieb said.

"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.

“We allege that Qantas’ conduct in continuing to sell tickets to cancelled flights, and not updating ticketholders about cancelled flights, left customers with less time to make alternative arrangements and may have led to them paying higher prices to fly at a particular time not knowing that flight had already been cancelled.

“There are vast distances between Australia’s major cities. Reliable air travel is essential for many consumers in Australia who are seeking to visit loved ones, take holidays, grow their businesses or connect with colleagues. Cancelled flights can result in significant financial, logistical and emotional impacts for consumers.”

As an example of the conduct, the ACCC said ticketholders scheduled to fly on Qantas flight QF93 from Melbourne to Los Angeles on May 6, 2022, were first notified of the cancellation on May 4, two days before the scheduled departure and four days after Qantas had cancelled the flight.

One consumer was provided with a replacement flight a day before their original departure date, which was communicated only by the Qantas app. As a result, the consumer had to change connecting flights and had a 15-hour layover in Los Angeles, which had a significant impact on the consumer and left them $600 out of pocket.

The ACCC is seeking orders including penalties, injunctions, declarations, and costs.