Qantas extends expiry date on COVID credits

Melbourne, Australia - September 24, 2011: Qantas Boeing 737-476 VH-TJK departing Melbourne International Airport.
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Qantas and Jetstar have announced they will give customers an extra 12 months to use COVID credits, extending the date from 31 December 2023 to 31 December 2024.

This is the third time since the onset of the pandemic that the expiry dates of $800 million of unused flight credits have been extended.

Of the $800m that were amassed up until October 2021, 76 per cent were priced at less than $500, 24 per cent were valued between $500-$5000, and less than one per cent were worth over $5000.

Both airlines came under pressure to push this date back amid accusations of having inflexible refund policies and poor customer service by those who attempted rebooking their travel since flying resumed.

“We literally had millions of bookings that were cancelled during several waves of lockdowns and border closures,” Qantas Group CCO Markus Svensson said.

“No airline had systems that were designed to manage that in a seamless way and we realise there’s been frustration for some customers as a result.”

Qantas stood by its system of credits and refunds, saying that all passengers who had their travel cancelled by COVID-induced border restrictions could get cash refund of their credit if they preferred.

“Our main goal is for everyone who has a COVID credit to be able to put it to good use, which is why we’re doing one final extension of the travel expiry date by 12 months,” Svensson said. “This is on top of all the system changes we’re making, so people can be reunited with credits they might have forgotten they even have.”

Virgin Australia’s travel credits will expire at the end of this year, while Air New Zealand’s travellers until 2024 to book and travel.

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