QANTAS: New USA fare refund laws apply to Qantas flights

USA Secretary of Transport Pete Buttigieg has changed entitlements provided by national consumer protection rules for refunds on flights that are significantly delayed, changed, or cancelled.

Passengers deserve to get their money back when an airline owes them – without headaches or haggling, Our new rule sets a new standard to require airlines to promptly provide cash refunds to their passengers.”  

U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg

Those new rules come into effect this week, and will affect Qantas flight, and all other airlines flying to and from the USA, plus passengers in transit in the USA to other destinations like Canada, or South America.

Qantas currently flies to USA destinations including Dallas-Forth Worth, Los Angeles, New York and San Francisco from Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney.

Airlines must issue refunds

No longer will airlines be able to offer credits or vouchers, but must provide refunds. Those refunds should be ‘automatic’ meaning that fare holders do not need to request a refund. And here, ‘automatic’ means within seven working days. That’s for fares bought using a credit card, and 20 calendar days for any other form of payment.

Important note: Refunds only apply if a passenger has not already accepted a ‘significantly changed flight, rebooking on an alternative flight, or alternative compensation.’

The old division between ‘in our control’ like staffing issues and ‘out of our control’ (weather/air traffic) no longer apply. Your delay, change or cancellation, whatever the cause require that passengers be advised of their rights.

The new rules

These new rules apply to USA based airlines and those international carriers who fly to and from the USA. That includes the likes of Qantas. Here is when the refund would apply:

• for domestic flights a ‘significant delay’ is 3 hours and over
• for international flights a ‘significant delay’ is 6 hours or more
• cancelled flights
• more connection points are added to the initially booked journey
• departure point is changed
• downgraded to a lower cabin class
• for passengers with a disibility when there is an aircraft change which does not have the accessibility features of the initially booked aircraft
• Checked baggage fees are to be refunded if luggage is delayed for 12 hours or more on domestic flights, or 15 hours for international (12 hor or less flights) or 30 hours for international flights over 12 hours in duration
• refunds also apply to any service promised but not delivered on the flight like WiFi, entertainment, seat selection etc

For additional detail, read the briefing room document from 24 April, 2024.

You get a full refund under the new rules:

‘Full amount: Airlines and ticket agents must provide full refunds of the ticket purchase price, minus the value of any portion of transportation already used. The refunds must include all government-imposed taxes and fees and airline-imposed fees, regardless of whether the taxes or fees are refundable to airlines.’

U.S. Department of Transportation

2PAXfly Takeout

Hon Catherine King MP and Australian minister for Transport, take note. We should see these same consumer protections reflected here in Australian law. They should be applied to domestic and international airlines servicing Australia.

Australia generally has a good consumer protection regime, but not for the behaviour of airlines. Its time we caught up to the superior protections of Europe or the USA.

The sooner that happens, the better.