Aussies Struggling To Utilise $1.3 billion In Flying Credits

More than $1.3 billion in travel credits issued to Australians have proven impossible to redeem due to airlines’ stringent criteria.

Confusion over the terms and conditions has resulted in customers paying more to rebook flights and being prohibited from combining credits and paying higher fares.

To date, Qantas and Jetstar have accumulated $1.3 billion in unused credits, the vast majority of which will expire in December 2023.

Qantas requires a new booking on a flexible price of equal or greater value than the original ticket if a client must cancel a flight due to circumstances beyond their control. However, the vouchers can be used as cash in the event of flight cancellation by the airline.

In October, a ticket from Hobart to Sydney costs $351 on a Flexi price but only $284 on a Red e-Deal.

Qantas reports that each month over $80 million in vouchers are redeemed. In the coming weeks, they will launch a dedicated concierge phone number to help customers understand the program’s regulations and use up their ticket credits.

Qantas CFO Vanessa Hudson said, “We will be reminding them (customers) and providing new ways to access them (flight credits), and we will be putting on a dedicated concierge phone number,”.

Part of the price increase can be attributed to the spike in jet fuel prices caused by the conflict in Ukraine; however, the other part of the airfare increase is simply because the supply does not meet the demand. With fewer flights and seats, the airlines are capitalising on increasing fares, delivering a greater profit.

Let’s see if they can sustain the current fares when they increase capacity.