NAN run over - massive price increase?

[The Rok]

I just had a look at the QF website at the "Book Now, Pay Later" section and it does not say anything about guaranteeing a particular fare bucket. Does it specifically mention fare bucket in the full terms & conditions somewhere?

 

[Blackadder]

Unfortunately the nature of the beast, no airfares are guaranteed until fully paid.

 

[richie9x]

I can understand them getting rid of cheap BNE-xMEL-xSYD-NAN. But I would have thought they could have left combinations with only one interconnection at a reasonable price. The direct Melbourne flights are red eye flights. It seems a bit rough that if Melbourne passengers want to fly at a more reasonable time they have to pay more than double the price.

 

[ozbeachbabe]

I just had a look at the QF website at the "Book Now, Pay Later" section and it does not say anything about guaranteeing a particular fare bucket. Does it specifically mention fare bucket in the full terms & conditions somewhere?

If it doesn't guarantee the fare shouldn't it say that in the terms & conditions?

 

[mannej]

If it doesn't guarantee the fare shouldn't it say that in the terms & conditions?

Qantas Flights | Book Now Pay Later

 

[notzac]

So what we're seeing is a fare increase, not a change in "surcharges and taxes" as QF seems to be claiming?

It's more an example of rubbish error messages coded in to the QF website than it is anything else. markis10 had a booking held for a single fare with a permitted routing of BNE-MEL-SYD-NAN; that routing is no longer permitted on the one fare so the QF system re-constructed it with multiple fares (probably BNE-MEL in J, MEL-SYD in J, SYD-NAN in J) .. hence the massive increase in price.

 

[The Rok]

If it doesn't guarantee the fare shouldn't it say that in the terms & conditions?

It does say that.

Note, that while your booking is on hold, the total ticket price may change due to amendments in surcharges, taxes and fare adjustments.

 

[ozbeachbabe]

I love the way airlines sugarcoat a possible increase by using the word 'adjustment'. Maybe we won't feel as bad if we hear an airfare has been adjusted by a couple of K however if it had increased we'd be mad as hell.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

It does say that.

hmmm... bit what do they mean by 'and fare adjustments'?

to me, and I'm guessing to any ordinary member of that public, that does NOT mean a fare increase.... otherwise, why not make it very clear that any booki on hold will be subject to fare increases? at the very best, if that IS what they mean, then they are being misleading in their advertising by trying to cover up fare increases.

if 'fare adjustment' means fare increase... does it also mean a fare decrease? so if you had a fare on hold to Perth and they reduced it by $15, would they now give you the lower price? (we see this from time to ti e with red edeals to Perth that drop from $209 down to $189... not worth losing your deposit and rebooking, but would they match the lower fare?)

 

[The Rok]

hmmm... bit what do they mean by 'and fare adjustments'?

to me, and I'm guessing to any ordinary member of that public, that does NOT mean a fare increase.... otherwise, why not make it very clear that any booki on hold will be subject to fare increases? at the very best, if that IS what they mean, then they are being misleading in their advertising by trying to cover up fare increases.

if 'fare adjustment' means fare increase... does it also mean a fare decrease? so if you had a fare on hold to Perth and they reduced it by $15, would they now give you the lower price? (we see this from time to ti e with red edeals to Perth that drop from $209 down to $189... not worth losing your deposit and rebooking, but would they match the lower fare?)

I believe that YES is the answer to your question. You would get the fare reduction. However that we need to be confirmed.

Jump in here at any stage RedRoo.

 

[medhead]

A fare adjustment might also cover a change to the valid routing, which occurred in this case.


Sent from my iPhone using Aust Freq Fly app so please excuse the lack of links.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

whatever way... the term 'fare adjustment' is misleading if it means your ticket can be subject to a price increase. what's the point of putting it on hold otherwise?

edited to add.... just saw in the terms and conditions that book now pay later is not available for red e deals domestic.

 

[Must...Fly!]

Doesn't the fact that QF have taken a deposit of AUD25.00 for these flights mean they have entered some kind of binding agreement with the pax to supply those flights for that price?

They are, but are the underlying rules subject to unilateral change by Qantas?

It would, IMO, come under the banner of a fare adjustment; the fare has been adjusted. In this case, the routing rules.

whatever way... the term 'fare adjustment' is misleading if it means your ticket can be subject to a price increase. what's the point of putting it on hold otherwise?

It's made quite clear that the price is not guaranteed and subject to changes.

 

[oz_mark]

It would, IMO, come under the banner of a fare adjustment; the fare has been adjusted. In this case, the routing rules.

IMO, it may well fall foul of bait-and-switch rules.

 

[medhead]

whatever way... the term 'fare adjustment' is misleading if it means your ticket can be subject to a price increase. what's the point of putting it on hold otherwise?
.

Fare adjustment covers more than just changing the monetary cost so I don't see it as misleading. That doesn't mean I think it is fair or disagree about bait and switch. Just objectively looking at the words.


Sent from my iPhone using Aust Freq Fly app so please excuse the lack of links.

 

[Must...Fly!]

IMO, it may well fall foul of bait-and-switch rules.

Not sure how that applies here...not like QF was actively promoting this fare or anything.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

Fare adjustment covers more than just changing the monetary cost so I don't see it as misleading. That doesn't mean I think it is fair or disagree about bait and switch. Just objectively looking at the words.


Sent from my iPhone using Aust Freq Fly app so please excuse the lack of links.

it is misleading because they could have very simply added the words 'including any price increase' if they had wanted to (after the words fare adjustment). they have also put 'fare adjustment' as the last item on the list of potential changes, when in fact it is probably the most likely thing. government taxes don't increase all that often.

nobody, in the ordinary course of language or discussion, uses the term 'adjustment' to potentially mean 'increase'.

on other parts of the qf website, for example, if you want to change your ticket, it says you must pay any difference in fare. why not use that same wording?

all of that leads me to believe that in fact 'fare adjustment' does not mean that you pay any increase... once you pay the $25 that is the fare locked in... unless... government taxes increase, or there is some other factor, such as discontinuing a route, that means they can no longer carry you as planned.

I'm sure red roo will chime in on this one...otherwise the book and pay makes no sense!

I guess most importantly, the 'book now, pay later' is part of the 'book with confidence' campaign... what possible confidence could you get unless it really did mean your fare was locked in?

 

[medhead]

it is misleading because they could have very simply added the words 'including any price increase' if they had wanted to (after the words fare adjustment). they have also put 'fare adjustment' as the last item on the list of potential changes, when in fact it is probably the most likely thing. government taxes don't increase all that often.

nobody, in the ordinary course of language or discussion, uses the term 'adjustment' to potentially mean 'increase'.

The problem with your argument is that adjustment does not only mean increase. It also covers a decrease and changes to the fare rules. In fact anyway that the fare might be adjusted. So if they need to explicitly state it means an increase then they would need to explicitly state all means of adjusting the fare. That gets well away from ordinary language.

I agree about the booking with confidence stuff that you raised.


Sent from my iPhone using Aust Freq Fly app so please excuse the lack of links.

 

[oz_mark]

Fare adjustment covers more than just changing the monetary cost so I don't see it as misleading. That doesn't mean I think it is fair or disagree about bait and switch. Just objectively looking at the words.

I'd really like to know what Qantas would, or did, say when contacted. It looks like one of those automated things that a person would look at and do something about. Now given that Markis10 has already spoken with the ACCC, it seems reasonable to assume that he would have tried to resolve this at Qantas first. So, what did they say?

 

[markis10]

I'd really like to know what Qantas would, or did, say when contacted. It looks like one of those automated things that a person would look at and do something about. Now given that Markis10 has already spoken with the ACCC, it seems reasonable to assume that he would have tried to resolve this at Qantas first. So, what did they say?

Put simply, they said The new fare amount applies, of course I could go back to a different operator and see what response I get, and may well do in due course.