Article: Should Qantas Have a Minimum Reward Seat Guarantee?

[mviy]

I have enough points for multiple J/F return trips to LHR if only I could find the classic reward (not plus) seats. At the moment I am chasing LTG so I’m not focused on chasing classic reward seats, but would certainly like to find them still.

 

[Russell Lewis]

100% they should

 

[Rnwillia]

This whole debacle of QFF points has evolved to a point where their value to many FFs has caused them to look elsewhere from Qantas.
It was Qantas who set this scheme up, initially to reward it’s loyal FFs but then Qantas found that it was an over generous source of profit for them so they began to mould a once generous scheme for loyal FFs into a huge profit making scheme for themselves. Qantas now has no intentions of rewarding their loyal FFs, rather they are devising ways to rip them off, hence the massively inflated Classic Plus scheme. IMO everyone who can earn QFF points must be given the opportunity to use them as they were originally designed - as fair reward for loyalty. No one FF should have an advantage over another FF to be able to access this reward. And, lastly, Qantas must make the appropriate numbers of rewards seats available on all flight destinations to enable this to be achieved.

 

[Aeryn]

It would be nice that in theory you could use your points on any flight.

Well you pretty much can if you are prepare to go with Classic+ but you pay a significant premium except during good sales.

Airlines need to invest in IT smarts to block bots, some concert ticket sellers have managed this.

 

[levelnine]

It would be nice that in theory you could use your points on any flight.

At the moment people join the club thinking they can earn points for their Christmas flight to London when it’s simply not possible - and it’s not obvious / transparent.

You can use your points for any flight. It's just not at a rate that anyone would consider good value.

 

[mt4789]

You can use your points for any flight. It's just not at a rate that anyone would consider good value.

But they don’t even release Classic Plus for many peak dates and flights?

 

[jase05]

Not too fussed either way but if they are going to release them I do hope they still allow high status pax first dibs and that’s as a QF nobody these days

 

[elanshin]

But they don’t even release Classic Plus for many peak dates and flights?

Points+ pay is still a thing.

 

[Kremmen]

I'll be flying Finnair soon because it was the best value airline to fly in business class from UK to Asia on points. Assuming it is a good experience, they might get more business from me in future. For domestic flights, I have started flying Virgin. I've given up making any effort to collect Qantas points, as they are close to useless. That means most of my flying goes to Star Alliance carriers. The main beneficiary of QF's lack of value to me is SQ. Qantas behaves as though they want me to fly Singapore Airlines instead and I'm quite happy to oblige.

It would be vastly better if Qantas were to release some seats when bookings open. It doesn't need to be every day. How about at least some days, rather than nothing? They know with a fair degree of certainty that there are planes they won't fill, especially in low season in the middle of the week.

 

[FallenFlyer]

Like many here I don't see Qantas changing their greedy plans - points plus was their solution to award flight availability - and a bad one. Like everyone else I'm now accumulating points with other carriers.

I would like to see them not only provide a guarantee for each flight, but where they do provide only 2 seats in a class, provide a guarantee that if you as an adult book them both (for yourself and your partner/a child, they'll provide however many additional classic award seats for you/ your remaining children at the same points cost.

It's impossible to find classic reward seats as a family.

 

[clifford]

Points+ pay is still a thing.

But is it better value than using your points to get a toaster?

On the broader question of whether Qantas "should" do something, the fact of the matter is something rather quite different. But at least it's a fun academic discussion.

 

[SydneySwan]

I fully support @Mattg proposal and have voiced that opinion on multiple threads here over the years. It would add a degree of transparency to points redemption and fulfill the 'social contract' that you have a chance of redeeming a classic rewards seat on any flight. Currently I highly doubt that J/F classic rewards seats are ever made available on most QF flights.

 

[levelnine]

Currently I highly doubt that J/F classic rewards seats are ever made available on most QF flights.

How would you feel if Qantas did release this data (they never will — so this is purely hypothetical) and it turned out 2x J + 2x F seats were being released on every single Qantas flight?

It's just that only CL were getting them through release of reward seats on the most in-demand routes.

 

[nowmedia]

yes

 

[Ade]

My take is no on the minimum seat guarantee. As someone noted above thread, having a min. seat guarantee, will mean that once the min. guarantee quota is released, QF does not release any more and say we have fulfilled our obligation of min. seat guarantee. Now the other side of this is, given there is no publicly available data on how many CR seats are released per service, we do not know if QF is releasing ANY CR seats on a given flight. There is no way for Joe Public to know this and introducing min. seat guarantee is not going to change that (and is not intended to change the situation as well).

The way CR seat releases work (according to my limited understanding is), as of now, there are a few CR seats released per route and depending on the FF's status - they get to see them at various points in time during the year. I'm assuming a P1/WP would get first dibs (as they get to see the seats first when logged in) then a SG, then a PS and so on. There are some seats that *everyone* (who may not even a QFF) can see. I have not included CL in my understanding statement above, because, I have always thought that CLs are a different level of customers (not necessarily flyers) to QF and may or may not be the regular passenger type flyer that relies on CR seats.

The major issue that I see is, not just seeing/getting 1 seat - it is getting 'N' seats. Say 4 seats for a family or 2 seats for a couple etc. As someone who flew almost all trips on points in 2024, (I burned around 500k QF points)I did not have a major issue in getting the CR seats I wanted. I travel solo, so it is always 1 seat in Y (or some times J, if Y seats are not available to convert) for me. Also, I was WP until Dec last year, so I could either find seats on the website (first dibs for P1/WP according to my understanding) or call CC and request a CR seat release. 7/10 times the CR seat released worked in my favour. It is worth noting that the international destinations I fly to are most SIN, KUL, CMB, MAA, BLR, DEL. Not high demand routes (such as US/UK/EU) from a AU pax perspective.

Changing the current system to make a min. seat guarantee may also introduce 'panic bookings' - pax will book now when seats are available and later decide if you really want to make that trip or not. Cancelling/changing the trip at/to a later date (hence paying a penalty) is also beneficial to QF as they can charge penalty (as points). Now what we don't know (or we will ever know) is if the cancelled/changed CR seats are put back into the CR pool for someone else to book.

I don't think I'm seeing many benefits in having a min. seat guarantee that will change the current CR booking situation, I ACK that the majority of the pax are unable to book CR seats and have heaps of points (via CC signups, utilities etc), however, introducing min. seat guarantee is not going to make those pax's situation any better than what it is right now.

I don't know what the right solution is, but current system doesn't work and the min. seat guarantee system may not work either. But introducing to testing it out will only make it more challenging to secure CR seats. For instance, QF introduced CP seats as a trial basis. Few months down the line we saw a messaging from QF that our FFs are LOVING the CP program and their ability to purchase seats for them and their loved ones to their dream destination blah blah blah and we are looking forward to rolling it out to many destinations etc. I can't honestly find one FF (that I know of) is happy with the CP seats.

So my hunch is min. seat guarantee might become the next CP.

 

[Basalt]

Yes, 100%!

The primary driver to make QFF gold for us many years ago was because it was common to see classic award availability release at 353 days. We're now platinum and that feels as useful as silver was back then. Classic award plus is such deplorable value for our main destinations - so much so we're now being driven towards BFOD rather than points flights and that means one thing - abandoning Qantas.

 

[Zulu0929]

Qantas are offering FF Points on just about everything out there. We pay for something, get the points they are constantly pushing and they have a win, which is why the QF FF Programme is making so much money.
So, we are not given the points gratis, we are buying the points. Therefore, if we want to book a flight with those points, say to LHR and return for roughly 350,000 points in J plus $$$ (which cost most of us over $300,000 to accumulate), then stop making it so difficult to find a seat without introducing more special classes like Classic Plus, costing more. It is all a rip off!