2024-05-06 05:07:00
Australian airline Qantas should pay a $66 million fine and $13 million in compensation to passengers affected by the canceled or poorly scheduled “ghost flight” scandal, the competition watchdog said on Monday.
The size of the fine must still be approved by the courts.
86,000 people were injured
The company “admitted to misleading consumers” by advertising seats on tens of thousands of canceled flights, according to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission.
Qantas is expected to pay $13 million in compensation to 86,000 travelers affected by the cancellations or erroneous rerouting, according to this source.
“Ghost Flights”
“Qantas’ behavior was unacceptable,” said commission chair Gina Cass-Gottlieb.
“Many consumers will have made holiday, business and travel plans following booking a ghost flight that was cancelled,” she lamented.
Qantas admitted that in some cases customers had booked flights that had been canceled “two days or more” earlier.
Qantas has “let down” its customers
New Qantas CEO Vanessa Hudson admitted the airline had “let down customers and failed to follow its own rules”.
“We know that many of our customers have been affected by our failure to provide timely cancellation notices, and we sincerely apologize,” it said in a statement.
The company has been under attack since 2019
The 103-year-old national airline Qantas, long nicknamed the “spirit of Australia”, is on a mission to restore its image following facing a backlash from consumers following the scandal, the increase in ticket prices and the layoff of 1,700 ground staff during Covid -19 pandemic.
Former Qantas CEO Alan Joyce announced his early retirement in September.
Qantas’ net profit fell 13.2% year-on-year to $869 million (526 million euros) in the second half of 2023, although the company said customer satisfaction had improved under the impetus of Vanessa Hudson.
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