Loss of Qantas Platinum 1 member points due to members accidental death....

[Kathleen01]

Hi everyone...Im new to this but wanted to ask if anyone has had experience with Qantas over this issue below.

My husband was a Platinum 1 Qantas Frequent Flyer at one point had just on 400k points. He died while on Business. I immediatly did a Family Transfer of the maximum amount of 100K and had a residual of 200K.

I did not contact Qantas, as I felt that the Family Transfer was available to me, his wife, as a wont of a better word, Benefit to use as time away from his family, was enormous.

A member of my husbands company called Qantas to cancel my husbands next flight, and also advised Qantas of his death.

This then shut down his account.:evil:

I am considering Legal against both his company and Qantas over breach of Mine and My Husbands Privacy.

Also Amex Death Benefit insurance will not be paid, as all AMEX Corperate Card bills need to be paid in Australia. My husbands company pays all Corperate Invoices from their Head Office in the USA.

Again Legal.

Does anyone have any previous experience in dealings such as this?.....Anyone in Sydney willing to take this case on for me against Qantas Amex and US company?

 

[nlagalle]

Hi everyone...Im new to this but wanted to ask if anyone has had experience with Qantas over this issue below.

My husband was a Platinum 1 Qantas Frequent Flyer at one point had just on 400k points. He died while on Business. I immediatly did a Family Transfer of the maximum amount of 100K and had a residual of 200K.

I did not contact Qantas, as I felt that the Family Transfer was available to me, his wife, as a wont of a better word, Benefit to use as time away from his family, was enormous.

A member of my husbands company called Qantas to cancel my husbands next flight, and also advised Qantas of his death.

This then shut down his account.:evil:

I am considering Legal against both his company and Qantas over breach of Mine and My Husbands Privacy.

Also Amex Death Benefit insurance will not be paid, as all AMEX Corperate Card bills need to be paid in Australia. My husbands company pays all Corperate Invoices from their Head Office in the USA.

Again Legal.

Does anyone have any previous experience in dealings such as this?.....Anyone in Sydney willing to take this case on for me against Qantas Amex and US company?

Hi Kathleen01 and welcome to AFF. Condolences on the passing of your husband.

The only thing I can say is in the QFF part that they will close an account on notification of a person's death. I don't know the dealing on how they verify it, but it does say the points would be forfeited. I'm guessing the company cancelling the flight has triggered the account closing.

 

[moa999]

Kathleen,

Deeply sorry for your loss, and best wishes to you and family at this time.

I think first thing to say is that from a bush lawyer perspective I suspect you have some issues - the QF T&Cs are fairly black and white in this regard. Whilst I am sure you will take legal advice, I suspect that the company had an obligation (to its shareholders) to cancel the flight. I am unaware of many situations where transmission of a fact (that is otherwise publicly available) is a breach of privacy.

That said I am aware of one case where a family member successfully claimed over 500k points (deceased was a CEO and CL member) after discussions with Qantas - they were required to redeem them (used for flight bookings over the next twelve months). I believe they contacted Qantas directly.


I have no idea about Amex death benefits.

 

[parsonstrish]

Welcome Kathleen, I'm very sorry for your loss. You've probably looked at 8.3 under ff terms and agreement. (sorry, not able to copy and paste) The section does state points earned but not yet redeemed or transferred prior to the death of the member will be cancelled. Qantas will close the Member's account on notification of the member's death. This may mean, no matter who notified Qantas, the account is closed on death of the member.

The experts here may be able to give useful information to you that will have a better outcome, than currently, for you. I hope there is some way around this for you.

Once again, please accept my condolences.

 

[Hvr]

Welcome to AFF, sorry that it is under such sad circumstances.

I guess the first thing is to read the Qantas Frequent Flyer terms and conditions.

8.3 Membership will terminate automatically on the death of a Member. Points earned but not yet redeemed or transferred prior to the death of the Member will be cancelled. Qantas will close the Member's account on notification of the Member's death. Qantas will not be liable for any loss or damage whatsoever suffered by any person as a result of such cancellation.

Frequent Flyer - About the Program - Terms & Conditions

Whilst it has been awhile since I studied and applied privacy provisions in the real world I cannot think of how it might be a breach of privacy to advise Qantas of your husbands' death.

As with any internet forum the advice you get here is worth exactly what you paid for it. If you decide to pursue Qantas and/or his former employer you might be best to have determined ahead of time what your legal adviser believes is actually possible in the circumstances.

Again, sorry for your loss.

 

[Kathleen01]

Thank you Moa999 and others for your reply.
Thank you for your kind words and condolences...Its been a tough lesson with many issues surrounding death of a husband while on business.....quick learning and immediate action, is necessary in order to remain sane !!

I am aware Qantas T&C's state that upon Death all points are forfeited...this is really not my issue. The issue is with my husbands collegue taking it upon himself to advise Qantas of his death. The company is a private owned. No shareholders to report to. Having said that, Im happy for the ongoing flight that was booked to be cancelled and refunded, BUT not anyone elses business to advise 'By the way, this is the reason why, he's passed away' That information just did not need to be passed on. That information was for ME to decide when and IF I was to inform Qantas, as I said I was his wife and entitled to a Family Transfer which, will now no longer be permissable, all due to one person , acting ON MY BEHALF.

Thank you all, again.....your wonderful

 

[nlagalle]

I am aware Qantas T&C's state that upon Death all points are forfeited...this is really not my issue. The issue is with my husbands collegue taking it upon himself to advise Qantas of his death. The company is a private owned. No shareholders to report to. Having said that, Im happy for the ongoing flight that was booked to be cancelled and refunded, BUT not anyone elses business to advise 'By the way, this is the reason why, he's passed away' That information just did not need to be passed on. That information was for ME to decide when and IF I was to inform Qantas, as I said I was his wife and entitled to a Family Transfer which, will now no longer be permissable, all due to one person , acting ON MY BEHALF.

Thank you all, again.....your wonderful

I don't think them telling Qantas he died, on work travel to, is a breach of the Privacy act. They would be simply informing them why they need to cancel that leg.

 

[vitagen]

I'm sorry for your loss and hope you find resolution.

 

[medhead]

I am sorry for your loss.

I am surprised that they cancelled the account. I thought it required written notification, possibly from a family member. The company has definitely overstepped the mark on this, IMO. As well as the person who closed the account. I know my mum rang and discussed my fathers passing with qantas and the phone operator said that they needed the death certificate and written notification and left mum with that information.

Perhaps the initial point to take up with qantas is them acting on information from some random person who has no connection with the family. "what can anyone just call and have an account closed" type of thing. The obvious difficulty is the timing of your notification. I would also imagine that your husband gave you firm instruction to transfer all his points to your/family accounts and also to book some flights (or something) while still alive.

 

[reductionist]

I am sorry for your loss.

I am surprised that they cancelled the account. I thought it required written notification, possibly from a family member. The company has definitely overstepped the mark on this, IMO. As well as the person who closed the account. I know my mum rang and discussed my fathers passing with qantas and the phone operator said that they needed the death certificate and written notification and left mum with that information.

Perhaps the initial point to take up with qantas is them acting on information from some random person who has no connection with the family. "what can anyone just call and have an account closed" type of thing. The obvious difficulty is the timing of your notification. I would also imagine that your husband gave you firm instruction to transfer all his points to your/family accounts and also to book some flights (or something) while still alive.

I'm with you on this one.

Is it theoretically possible to get someone's name & FF number from a boarding pass left in a seat pocket and then call QF to say they died, thus closing their account?

I would love to know how the colleague of the deceased verbally auth'd themselves with QF.

Back on track.

I would hope that QF come to the party on this one before the lawyers have to get involved.

From their own Platinum One marketing:

People who are flying this much are almost living on aircraft

When it comes to leisure travel, we know it's important for you to use your points the way you want

It's nice to be able to share your benefits. When you use your points to upgrade an eligible family member, they too can benefit from your Platinum One status.

...inviting Platinum One members to enjoy a range of other experiences, from family tickets to Qantas sponsored events...

Occasionally though, you may need a little extra help. In these special circumstances, send an email to our Platinum One Special Service Team and they'll do all they can to assist with your requests. This benefit is available for Platinum One members and eligible family members in the same booking.

This is obviously just marketing spin & not a contract. I just wanted to get across that, in my eyes, one of the selling points of P1 status is... "you probably spend more time with QF than your family, we'd like to help you look after your family a little bit".

Kathleen01, sorry for your loss.

 

[pshepvic]

Whilst this is a terrible situation, unfortunately the privacy act does not apply to the deceased, and so there has been no breach in that regard.

See item 15 on the below page:

http://www.privacy.gov.au/materials/types/infosheets/view/6549

I would be more inclined to go down the path that Qantas have acted based on un-verified information. Many companies will actually require a copy of a death certificate (but often that is when they are providing a credit type arrangement, such as a bank, and would be out of pocket in the event of the death - in this case Qantas is more likely to be out of pocket by leaving the account open, and so that may be the reason they do not verify - and it would not be difficult to reinstate the account if required).


Sent from my iPhone using AustFreqFly app

 

[cove]

You may be able to deal with Qantas confidentially despite the black and white terms and conditions that exist.
If you can get them to allow you to use up those points over 12 months and keep quiet about it that would be a very nice result for you. Try a gentle negotiation directly with that division of Qantas.
In this forum most of us know these rules and a family transfer is limited to 100,000 a year so flight bookings would be your best recovery so grab that if it gets offered.
I am sorry to hear of your loss.

 

[wandersen]

When my wife's father was died, my mother in law called qantas and they said to use family transfer to transfer out the points. He had about 400000 at the time, so she has been transferring 100,000 a year since.

I would probably call Qantas and say they didn't have the relevant authorisation to close the account. You are an authorised user of the account and can tell them the pin. If they ask about the death, just tell them that isn't relevant. They've had no proper authorisation to close the account from next of kin.

As for Amex, that doesn't surprise me. I've just closed by Platinum card account after 15 years due to failures in service. A couple of things to check:

- does your HUsband's work have a separate travel insurance policy? We certainly don't rely on credit card insurances at my work when travelling on business. There should be a cash benefit there.
- Did your husband have any death in service cover? Most exec level salary packages include this these days.

 

[markis10]

Hi everyone...Im new to this but wanted to ask if anyone has had experience with Qantas over this issue below.

My husband was a Platinum 1 Qantas Frequent Flyer at one point had just on 400k points. He died while on Business. I immediatly did a Family Transfer of the maximum amount of 100K and had a residual of 200K.

I did not contact Qantas, as I felt that the Family Transfer was available to me, his wife, as a wont of a better word, Benefit to use as time away from his family, was enormous.

A member of my husbands company called Qantas to cancel my husbands next flight, and also advised Qantas of his death.

This then shut down his account.:evil:

I am considering Legal against both his company and Qantas over breach of Mine and My Husbands Privacy.

Also Amex Death Benefit insurance will not be paid, as all AMEX Corperate Card bills need to be paid in Australia. My husbands company pays all Corperate Invoices from their Head Office in the USA.

Again Legal.

Does anyone have any previous experience in dealings such as this?.....Anyone in Sydney willing to take this case on for me against Qantas Amex and US company?

It sounds like you need to speak to a lawyer regardless, for instance in most cases a substantial amount is payable on death if its due to injury whilst travelling for employment under workers compensation which also covers relocation of the remains and funeral expenses.

Best wishes regardless during this difficult time, the sudden changes in your life must be very stressful and that may affect your decision making inadvertently, so keep your friends and family close and seek support when needed.

 

[Must...Fly!]

Terribly sorry for your loss, my condolences.

Please do keep us updated with what you can. I think a confidential discussion with Qantas might yield results and would be the best way to go about it with regards to the points.

The insurance though is an interesting one. I wonder who is the responsible party for the bill not bring paid in Australia...unreasonable AMEX policy, poor organisation on the companies part..?

 

[sumthinfornuthin]

Sorry to hear of your loss and issues.

relevant question would be..."who booked and paid for flight" ?

if the Company then they would have the right to cancel I think. the question of the other info I don't know but maybe death of the traveller entitled them to a refund of the fare ?

seek independant legal advise and good luck.

The message to all, make sure your family knows your pin

 

[Mrmaxwell]

Like many others have said I am sorry for your loss.

It seems you will need legal advise/representation regardless of this QF issue.

I would first give QF the chance to 'rectify' their actions by writing to them ASAP and detailing what happened using polite but stern wording around the closure of the account without any verification (mentioning how this breach of privacy has only added to your grief at this time). You may get a professional yet understanding response from them to your favour.

 

[Kathleen01]

Thank you so much for your insight. As I dont have much paper work from Qantas to my husband - I suspect all comms were via email which I dont have account details - i have paper copies of his account. Had I known that they offer the level of service - Host - I would have accessed this to bring his body back, as it was I was left to deal with all of this from overseas. I didnt have Insurance details/paperwork, I had to come up with funds to pay Funeral Homes, Qantas for transport and load of other expenses. Once home I could claim via Travel Insurance details I found, but the American Express Corperate Card NO Death Benefit, as bills were not paid in Australia, is the one that me fuming. I will contatc Qantas now I can see through the haze and the shock has reduced. I will definatly refer to your post. Again thank you for taking the time to reply.....kind regards

 

[simongr]

One observation if you call and state that they had no right to cancel the account and insist that they keep it open you could very well be caught misinforming QF and potentially be considered to be committing fraud. It is a terrible situation.

The person cancelling the flight was probably just doing their job and had no idea of the implications.

 

[dajop]

Very sad, my sympathy for your loss.

At the very least ask for a good will gesture, as the competition (Virgin) gives 12 months for a will's executors to notify what should be done with the points. Also I am sure the person cancelling the flight was doing what they though was right, as many fares waive cancellation penalties for the death of the passenger.