Qantas Award Charges Outrageous

[exceladdict]

IMO, it seems to be friction within/between the QF Air and QFFF business units.

QFFF sells AA award tickets with little or no YQ, as do AA.

QFFF sells BA award tickets with phenomenal YQ, as do BA and AA.

However, QFFF sells QF award tickets with phenomenal YQ, however AA do not.

It seems to be a 'penalty' for using your QF awards on QF (or JQ, or EK). There is something wrong with this cost-sharing (or gouging) model as surely it shouldcost QFFF more to put you on a CX award flight than it would a QF one.

 

[basso]

If they want to charge it, they should give it a better name. Claiming it is a fuel surcharge due to ongoing high prices is a bare faced lie. Qantas employees should be ashamed of working for a comapny that lies in such an oifficial way to its customers.

 

[Happy Trails]

There is something wrong with this cost-sharing (or gouging) model as surely it should cost QFFF more to put you on a CX award flight than it would a QF one.

They do charge up to 25% more points for equivalent flights, e.g 28K vs 35K for SYD-HKG in Y.

 

[exceladdict]

They do charge up to 25% more points for equivalent flights, e.g 28K vs 35K for SYD-HKG in Y.

Point Taken, however is the 7k points equal to the fuel surcharge?

 

[Happy Trails]

Point Taken, however is the 7k points equal to the fuel surcharge?

Don't know, but the surcharge is $158 on QF and $104 with CX.

 

[timster]

I find it much easier to just ignore YQ as being anything to do with fuel.

It is a carrier charge to make money from Reward flights (and to some extent limit corporate and other fare discounts)

The actual rates are just as much a business decision as the prices of tickets and are determined by market forces.

Absolutely. "Award" is from the same bizarre Qantas lexicon as "enhancement", ie bearing no relationship to the accepted dictionary meaning of the term.

"Award" tickets are simply ticket products that can be paid for with a combination of points and cash. You are kidding yourself if you think the cash component really has anything to do with fuel. It suits QF for pax to believe that though, as it's "kind of" an excuse for the payment. But it's basically a lie.

QF give away points for blowing your nose, conning you into thinking you are getting something substantial for nothing. Instead you are simply earning the right to give them almost as much cash as many Y fares cost. It's a brilliant con.

 

[ozbeachbabe]

Was looking to book 2 x Y BNE/HNL/BNE using 140,000 QF points, but once again those additional charges I find are simply outrageous at $877 for 2 pax when I can buy 1 ticket return for that, considering most airlines do not whack their loyal frequent flyers like this why cant QF do the right thing?.

What dates are you looking at Limewood? Is using QF points on FJ via NAN appealing at all? You'll pay a lot less in taxes.

We bought airfares on QF for approx AUD1,150.00 pp in whY QF BNE/xSYD/HNL/xSYD/BNE in March on a Saver fare (upgradeable) returning in April on a Sale fare and have put in an points upgrade request for the outbound SYD/HNL portion which we had success with this time last year.

We'll get 100 SC for the trip 10+45+35+10 plus 16,600 points. This price was cheaper than what we paid for the same routing 23 years ago in 1993 so part of the reason award tickets seem expensive is that paid fares are so cheap.

Not all award travel has high taxes eg a lot of AA domestic flights have taxes of only USD5.50 per person. CX taxes for flights in F & J ex HKG to Europe are less than QF in whY BNE/HNL/BNE and FJ in whY to HNL are cheap as I mentioned above. It's just a matter of working out in each case whether it's smarter to use points or to pay.

 

[ffhound]

Hi all

It is plainly a rip-off and there really is only 1 solution.

If Qantas is not prepared to reduce its fuel surcharges to a reasonable level, or nil, then the Government should intervene to set fuel surcharges at a reasonable level. It is clear that there is market failure and/or deceptive business dealings in charging such fees under the pretext that fuel costs are high.

There is precedent for this in several overseas jurisdictions.

In particular, note the following article reporting that fuel surcharges ex Hong Kong have been removed because the Civil Aviation Department, which regulates fuel surcharges, stated that they were "not warranted".

Link to article

If an overseas aviation regulator in a comparable developed economy states that fuel surcharges are not warranted, the fuel surcharges are probably not warranted.

cheers Peter

 

[Limewood]

I think QF is guilty as charged by people here.

We're still waiting on the defence to turn up here and make its case.

No comment from QF is a comment from QF.

Matt

and we should keep this thread going until such time they change those impost costs.

 

[ffhound]

and we should keep this thread going until such time they change those impost costs.

In the meantime however it may be possible to get around the charges another way.

Let's take flying to Europe as an example eg MEL-AMS return.

Last time I looked the fees and charges were over $600 although they may have dropped off a bit. Now I read that as of Feb 1 the Hong Kong authorities would no longer allow fuel surcharges on flights but I am unsure as to whether this means flights departing HKG, flights to HKG or both.

Let's assume it applies to flights booked ex HKG. One could book a one way MEL- HKG then a return HKG-AMS-HKG and then a one way HKG to MEL and that should avoid most of the charges.

Can someone knowledgeable please outline which flights involving HKG Qantas would not be able to charge fuel surcharges on?

Thanks Peter

 

[JohnK]

If they want to charge it, they should give it a better name. Claiming it is a fuel surcharge due to ongoing high prices is a bare faced lie. Qantas employees should be ashamed of working for a comapny that lies in such an oifficial way to its customers.

Is it still a lie when people are aware of their scam?

 

[MEL_Traveller]

Is it still a lie when people are aware of their scam?

I guess it could be in some cases, and depending on the situation, could attract penalties for being misleading. People complain about false advertising... even they know it is false (which is why they make the complaint in the fist place).

The problem is that many people still don't understand it. Many people still think they are 'taxes' and are not imposed by Qantas at all.

Qantas refers to fuel surcharges as 'carrier imposed charges' rather than 'Qantas imposed charges'. Almost trying to make it sound - again - like it is not them adding the charge.

 

[Limewood]

ozbeachbabe - What dates are you looking at Limewood?

Was mid Aug to Mid Sept out of SYD.

ffhound - doesn't matter what they call these rip off charges its plain and simply wrong.

Would be a good idea to have a poll on this cause I recon it would be 100% to stop this additional cost impost.

where are you Red Roo?

 

[Limewood]

and not before time.

 

[travelislife]

It's pretty bad on SQ too. I looked at some flights on them and the surcharges were worse than Qantas in some cases!

What was annoying is when Emirates and Qantas joined forces. Emirates used to not have surcharges (or really low ones at least), except then when they tied up with Qantas they went up to QF's level.

 

[Limewood]

Yes heard that, only know of BA, QF and BA that charge award fees like a wounded bull :evil:.

 

[andye]

Yes heard that, only know of BA, QF and BA that charge award fees like a wounded bull :evil:.

MH and EK pretty hefty too

 

[cjd600]

MH and EK pretty hefty too

SQ.........

 

[Limewood]

So looks like 5 airlines out of a 1000 - well maybe not that many, but gee these charges should be reduced big time.

 

[JohnK]

So looks like 5 airlines out of a 1000 - well maybe not that many, but gee these charges should be reduced big time.

There are more and more. Bangkok Airways has hefty surcharges on domestic award flights.