Qantas has been ordered to pay a $100 million fine for selling tickets on flights that didn’t exist.
Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) Chair Gina Cass-Gottlieb said the Federal Court handed down the order after it found the national carrier misled consumers by offering and selling tickets for flights it had already decided to cancel and by failing to promptly tell existing ticketholders of its decision.
“This is a substantial penalty, which sets a strong signal to all businesses, big or small, that they will face serious consequences if they mislead their customers,” Ms Cass-Gottlieb said.
She said in addition to these penalties, earlier in the year, Qantas gave an undertaking to the ACCC that it would pay about $20 million to consumers who purchased tickets on flights that Qantas had already decided to cancel, or in some cases who were re-accommodated on those flights after their original flights were cancelled.
“These payments are on top of any remedies these consumers already received from Qantas, such as alternative flights or refunds.
“We all know the inconvenience of cancelled flights. When this happens, consumers need to know about the cancellation as soon as possible, so they can work out alternative arrangements which suit them.”
Ms Cass-Gottlieb said up to 880,000 consumers were affected by Qantas’ conduct.
“People had made plans, and may have spent money on other related purchases, relying on the fact that the flight would depart as advertised. And the delay in notifying them of the cancellation may have made it more stressful and costly to make alternative arrangements,” she said.
