Qantas Call Centre Long Wait Times

My understanding (from unofficial sources) is that there is a pool of priority phone numbers that airport staff give to passengers which rotates every few weeks.

I will attempt to publish the currently active number(s) in this post:

1300 304 318
1300 659 161
1300 025 396
1300 659 116

1300 024 715
1300 025 390
1300 659 115
1300 659 134
1300 659 502

 

[Frustrated Qantas custome]

Thanks for the help with this page and these numbers have proved invaluable however it seems that the latest number posted just routes to the ‘normal’ call centre where the staff are not as knowledgeable or helpful

 

[RooFlyer]

Have any WP/P1s had recent experience calling on behalf of a lower tier friend to seek assistance with basic itinerary changes/etc? This is an option available to me, if feasible.

I don't believe thats possible, but happy to be corrected. The WP would get through, but when other pax is revealed I think they would not go further.

Thanks for the help with this page and these numbers have proved invaluable however it seems that the latest number posted just routes to the ‘normal’ call centre where the staff are not as knowledgeable or helpful

Welcome to AFF @Frustrated Qantas customer. I understand the priority numbers change frequently and the old ones just go back into the mix. We'll have to wait till someone can post the current number.

We really shouldn't have to resort to this type of shennanigans!

 

[Ade]

Day of week	Thurs
Time of call	2123 AEST (Canberra time)
Number used	13 12 11
Status	Platinum
Hold time	~4 mins
Call Centre (if known)	South Africa (going off accent)
Matter resolved	No
Details	Called up to request 1x Y seat CBR-MEl one way on 02 Jul 2022. The agent on the phone, to my knowledge, didn't really know what I wanted. Took me a while to explain to him what I needed and after hearing what I wanted, he asked me to confirm my full name & FF number ... anyways, after confirming that it was indeed me, he went on to put me on hold for over 20 minutes before he came back and said that no Y seats were available and only J seats are available. I'm booking this for a dear friend, who is going thru some stuff ... so, anyways, after a bit of call hold, he said the he had submitted a request for a J seat to be released and it will take up to 48 hours before I can get a confirmation if I got the seat or not ... I'm not going to lie, this is new to me. ... IME so far, I have always had my requests approved instantly and tickets issued within 30 minutes of getting of the phone. I can see that the booking in my QF app, with status as "requested". This dear friend needs to be in MEL by 02/07, so I'm also on hold with VA to see if I can get him a seat. Also booked a car as a backup to drive from CBR to MEL. Also trying to get a seat on Rex. Will update this thread as we go.

 

[Port Power]

Day of week	Thurs
Time of call	2123 AEST (Canberra time)
Number used	13 12 11
Status	Platinum
Hold time	~4 mins
Call Centre (if known)	South Africa (going off accent)
Matter resolved	No
Details	Called up to request 1x Y seat CBR-MEl one way on 02 Jul 2022. The agent on the phone, to my knowledge, didn't really know what I wanted. Took me a while to explain to him what I needed and after hearing what I wanted, he asked me to confirm my full name & FF number ... anyways, after confirming that it was indeed me, he went on to put me on hold for over 20 minutes before he came back and said that no Y seats were available and only J seats are available. I'm booking this for a dear friend, who is going thru some stuff ... so, anyways, after a bit of call hold, he said the he had submitted a request for a J seat to be released and it will take up to 48 hours before I can get a confirmation if I got the seat or not ... I'm not going to lie, this is new to me. ... IME so far, I have always had my requests approved instantly and tickets issued within 30 minutes of getting of the phone. I can see that the booking in my QF app, with status as "requested". This dear friend needs to be in MEL by 02/07, so I'm also on hold with VA to see if I can get him a seat. Also booked a car as a backup to drive from CBR to MEL. Also trying to get a seat on Rex. Will update this thread as we go.

As advised on another thread, releasing a reward seat for non family is not permitted. I look forward to the outcome.

 

[TahoeSkier]

I don't believe thats possible, but happy to be corrected. The WP would get through, but when other pax is revealed I think they would not go further.

I've read a few posts suggesting its OK - and the poster above seems to have just made a call on behalf of a friend too.

 

[Port Power]

I've read a few posts suggesting its OK - and the poster above seems to have just made a call on behalf of a friend too.

He’s made a call but not yet heard the outcome. Plus in one case IIRC, I believe the friend is now going to be called a cousin.

 

[sudoer]

I have called on behalf of friends to get issues fixed with existing bookings several times. Mostly recently I called regarding a simple one-leg QF award itinerary my (QFF Bronze) friend booked online over a month ago, which still had not ticketed less than a week before departure.

The friend had tried to call themselves get it fixed multiple times but continually got useless Cape Town agents as expected for NB. I called and gave HBA the PNR & passengers names, explained the difficulty my friend had gone through, and they were happy to sort it out. I told them I was the travel arranger but had to book directly through the friend's QFF account as it was an award flight.

Sometimes the agent will transfer you to the automated QFF number & PIN code prompt to authorise actions on your friend's behalf, sometimes they don't.

 

[encryptededdy]

I have called on behalf of friends to get issues fixed with existing bookings several times. Mostly recently I called regarding a simple one-leg QF award itinerary my (QFF Bronze) friend booked online over a month ago, which still had not ticketed less than a week before departure

In principle yeah, but we've heard in the past some agents really don't like this...

I've done this and they go absolutely mental if the questions relate to a person who is not Platinum. I mean absolutely mental. Once they ranted but helped me (pre-COVID). Once they refused to help and told me I would be reported for abusing Platinum privilege - and I was calling for my then 86 year old mum who was flying domestic J in COVID times!!!!! However, these bullying tactics have worked and I just don't take the risk.

BTW, I have been WP or P1 for 15+ years, so twice in that time is not like I make a habit of "abusing privilege"!

 

[love_the_life]

Day of week	Thurs
Time of call	2123 AEST (Canberra time)
Number used	13 12 11
Status	Platinum
Hold time	~4 mins
Call Centre (if known)	South Africa (going off accent)
Matter resolved	No
Details	Called up to request 1x Y seat CBR-MEl one way on 02 Jul 2022. The agent on the phone, to my knowledge, didn't really know what I wanted. Took me a while to explain to him what I needed and after hearing what I wanted, he asked me to confirm my full name & FF number ... anyways, after confirming that it was indeed me, he went on to put me on hold for over 20 minutes before he came back and said that no Y seats were available and only J seats are available. I'm booking this for a dear friend, who is going thru some stuff ... so, anyways, after a bit of call hold, he said the he had submitted a request for a J seat to be released and it will take up to 48 hours before I can get a confirmation if I got the seat or not ... I'm not going to lie, this is new to me. ... IME so far, I have always had my requests approved instantly and tickets issued within 30 minutes of getting of the phone. I can see that the booking in my QF app, with status as "requested". This dear friend needs to be in MEL by 02/07, so I'm also on hold with VA to see if I can get him a seat. Also booked a car as a backup to drive from CBR to MEL. Also trying to get a seat on Rex. Will update this thread as we go.

Would it not be easier to just pay for a flight for your friend and be done with it? Especially as friends are not listed as eligible family members although I know of many instances where points have been used for bookings. Just seems easier and if the friend is very close, tell them you used points. They won’t be any the wiser.

 

[dylarr]

In principle yeah, but we've heard in the past some agents really don't like this...

I do it for my parents all the time. Whenever they make a booking they put my name into the travel arranger field.

Never had any issues with the premium desk making changes when I call for them and mention I'm the travel arranger.

 

[TahoeSkier]

Never had any issues with the premium desk making changes when I call for them and mention I'm the travel arranger.

This seems to be the key, as it means you're making changes to 'your' booking essentially, rather than just 'helping a mate'.

 

[robinsparkles]

1300 659 161, no hold time, straight through to Cape Town, silver useless status lol
The agent at least admitted to correcting the previous agents mistake and queued the remainder of a refund.

I also asked her to escalate my customer feedback form relating to my missing Poli payment of $2.6K to Qantas that these agents haven't been able to see since April.

 

[Boof1]

Hoping someone in this thread could help without me trawling through a lot of pages.

I need to contact QF to change some flights and take advantage of the fee free changes domestically due to a covid positive test. Before I spend hours on hold what information will they need to confirm this?

I'll try and use one of the contact centre numbers in the thread to get through a bit quicker but hoping to avoid calling twice if QF need extra info. Any other useful suggestions are also welcome.

Thanks
Boof

 

[RooFlyer]

Not a long wait time, but first ever (chilling) experience with Cape Town call centre (going by accent).

WP, calling 13 1211; wait time was about 2 minutes, calling at 1:50pm on Friday.

Answered with a bit of a silent pause
they: Hello this is <name>, how can I help you?
me: Hi I'm calling about a flight that was recently changed but not yet ticketed <a revenue J ticket>
they: OK, I can help you with that, for today, right?
me: No its ... (interrupted)
they: Oh sorry, that would be for the <incorrect date>
me: No - can I give you the booking reference number - ABCDEF
they: OK GHI to JKL (correct) on the <another incorrect> date <Note I only have one booking for this itinerary!>
Then pretended that I couldn't hear them any more and, giving apologies so as not to offend, hung up.

 

[Pele]

Gday

The help desk is still a circus of useless fools.

Nine days ago I rang up to book a simple one way classic reward trip originating from Doha (hence cannot be booked online).

It all went pear shaped from the first call when the agent charged a 7,700 point international assistance fee per ticket which meant my account didnt have enough points to complete the booking. Multiple calls over the past week were unable to fix this (and in fact multiple agents said they could not even see this charge) and in the end i relented and just topped up my QFF account to be able to pay for the final ticket. After 2 more days the PNR had e-ticket numbers issued and i breathed a sigh of relief. Except now the points for the final ticket havent been deducted and the taxes which were charged on the first call (it was pending on my credit card) never got charged.

Due to the points and taxes not being deducted is there a risk of the tickets being cancelled? I would prefer to go out and p*ss into the wind then call the 'help' desk again so im thinking i will just do nothing.

And remember this was a simple point to point classic reward. Anyone trying to book one of those round the world 318k point tickets through QFF needs their head read!

 

[kpc]

Hobart is 7.00am-11.00pm AEST every day. Auckland Is 24/7, as is Cape Town.

I rang at 701am today and got answered after 5 mins with "Qantas Premium" and an Aussie accent...sorted out my problem easily and competently. Going to have to call again tomorrow with a new issue after making a partially failed partner award booking....I put wrong credit card details in.

 

[Mr H]

After 2 more days the PNR had e-ticket numbers issued and i breathed a sigh of relief. Except now the points for the final ticket havent been deducted and the taxes which were charged on the first call (it was pending on my credit card) never got charged.

Due to the points and taxes not being deducted is there a risk of the tickets being cancelled?

If you have a ticket number then all is good. I did an award booking last week through the call centre (originating in ADD so couldn't do it online). It took several days for the points to be deducted from my account. I actually got excited to think I might have got away without them being charged, but the inevitable happened. I also got whacked with a 7,700 point international assistance fee which I got refunded by phoning the FF assistance helpline.

 

[Pele]

If you have a ticket number then all is good. I did an award booking last week through the call centre (originating in ADD so couldn't do it online). It took several days for the points to be deducted from my account. I actually got excited to think I might have got away without them being charged, but the inevitable happened. I also got whacked with a 7,700 point international assistance fee which I got refunded by phoning the FF assistance helpline.

Thanks for that info.

Once the correct points and taxes are charged i will have to ring the number you mention to get them to refund the multiple international assistance fees they deducted.

 

[blackcat20]

Have any WP/P1s had recent experience calling on behalf of a lower tier friend to seek assistance with basic itinerary changes/etc? This is an option available to me, if feasible.

I'm definitely considering asking a P1 friend to help...

 

[There'sOnlyOneJimmy]

I'm definitely considering asking a P1 friend to help...

It worked for me today, after taking an hour to get get through to Hobart rather than SA/Fiji. Perseverance is required.
From the look of other posts, it seems to be best to start dialling at 7am (rather than 10:15am as we did…)
It may help for your P1 friend to say somet like they are acting as your ‘travel arranger’.