Qantas Promises to Fix Ongoing Reward Flight Ticketing Failures

[1022]

Hi AFF members,
I’ve been reading everyone’s horror stories and trying to navigate through my own booking issues.

Long story short but on 15 Mar I booked reward tickets to Taipei on QF website on China Airlines.
The following day I made a change to the booking and requested the QF team send me the e-ticket via email which they said would take up to 48 hours to be issued.
This obviously didn’t happen and I chased them every few days with the agent reassuring me that it’s fine and it takes time. Fast forward a month after chasing them non stop via phone and FB messenger, I find out someone an error of some sort and now they will issue the ticket. The next day the flights disappear from the QF app and when I called they advised me that China Airlines had cancelled the flights as tickets weren’t issued in time.

Now the agent then tells me that there are no more J class reward tickets from TPE-SYD and I was adamant that this wasn’t my fault as I had chased them constantly they’ve said they have contacted China Airlines to reinstate the tickets.
Now it’s been 2 weeks and no update and they keep telling me to wait until they hear back. Some agents even telling me don’t worry your trip isn’t until November.

I’ve called back again today as now my flights to TPE have also disappeared from the app and QF agent said they’ve reached out to China Airlines and I will need to wait another 3-5 working days before they can follow up again.
I have emailed that reservations email and called so many times I am so annoyed at the incompetence of these call centres.

Any insights on how to proceed? Should I keep calling until I get an agent that is able to resolve the issue on the phone?
All of them keep saying they need to call me back or to keep waiting until they hear back from China Airlines.

Appreciate everyone’s thoughts.

Have you emailed the escalations team that the first post on this thread is all about? Many people have had positive outcomes, though it usually takes up to a week for a response.

 

[sykoticx]

Have you emailed the escalations team that the first post on this thread is all about? Many people have had positive outcomes, though it usually takes up to a week for a response.

Yes I did email them today. Fingers crossed they will be able to respond and resolve this.

 

[RichardMEL]

good luck. This is clearly a case for that escalation team. Unbelievable how poor this has been for you (and everyone else).

 

[Anni]

I’m so sorry to hear this has happened to you too! If the escalations team don’t resolve this issue, you might want to consider writing a letter and mailing it to Alan Joyce-CEO. Explain in detail what’s happened and advise very clearly what you want him to do,to resolve the problem. You may also need to advise you are prepared to take the matter further to get a satisfactory result. You will probably receive a phone call within a week. You may need to write more than once too. Persist, be polite and firm. Hopefully you will get your flights back or replaced with Q flights. Good luck!

 

[djkelly69]

you might want to consider writing a letter and mailing it to Alan Joyce-CEO

Probably copy in the new CEO as well, given QF's track record of how long it takes to sort such issues out!

 

[anyonebutqantas]

Buy revenue flights then file a claim in small claims court for the cost.

 

[sykoticx]

Buy revenue flights then file a claim in small claims court for the cost.

If I had plenty of money to spare I would do that but who knows if Qantas would actually reimburse.

Sigh. Nothing has progressed and no response from the escalations team.

 

[yaksha98]

If I had plenty of money to spare I would do that but who knows if Qantas would actually reimburse.

Sigh. Nothing has progressed and no response from the escalations team.

Similar story posted earlier today....

https://www.news.com.au/travel/travel-updates/incidents/shellshocked-qantas-mistake-costs-aussie-couple-19k/news-story/04ea5e041dd54dd00317230f3b2d9dd6?amp

 

[PaulyB]

If I had plenty of money to spare I would do that but who knows if Qantas would actually reimburse.

Sigh. Nothing has progressed and no response from the escalations team.

I'd say ask again. The squeaky wheel and all that...

There is no excuse and I suspect I am not the only one looking on saying 'bloody hell'. But as you know you are far from alone. Persistence has had results and the story linked above did actually have a positive result. The pain is inexcusable but in the end, your position is justified. A call to the same journo could well be worthwhile....

 

[tdimdad]

A slightly off-topic but still about reward bookings needing a change, and in preparation before me fronting the QF call centre lottery.

I have QF rewards booked for SIN-xKUL-TPE on MH in June (and return on CI on the same ticket). I got an email notification about flight changes, pushing out the trip by a day. Looking at the individual segments, it looks like they've cancelled the KUL-TPE flight (not visible on MH booking page nor in ExpertFlyer), therefore the schedule change.

I'd prefer to travel on the original date and there seems to be reasonable connections on CX (SIN-xHKG-TPE). Instead of accepting the proposed change, can I request QF to try to book me on the CX flights? What's the likely success? Or, now high is the likely risk of an agent breaking the whole booking? Would it be better to send this request straight into the QF's reward escalation email?

 

[masterpabu]

I'd prefer to travel on the original date and there seems to be reasonable connections on CX (SIN-xHKG-TPE). Instead of accepting the proposed change, can I request QF to try to book me on the CX flights? What's the likely success? Or, now high is the likely risk of an agent breaking the whole booking? Would it be better to send this request straight into the QF's reward escalation email?

I was able to request a reroute when one of the legs of my reward flight was cancelled, originally it was SYD-DOH-LGW but the new DOH-LGW flight ended up having a 20hour layover. Luckily I got through to a helpful agent and she rebooked the tickets to DOH-LHR without any problems.

So if the flights you want are available (and assuming it’s all within the reward rules etc) a competent/helpful agent should be able to do it. HUACA if you feel like the agent isn’t able to help, I called one of the 1300 numbers and thankfully got it sorted out within the second call.

 

[Mattg]

I changed a Classic Flight Reward booking yesterday on the Qantas website. Flights operated by MH.

The ticket wasn't re-issued straight away, so I tried calling Qantas but gave up after waiting on hold for a very long time (as a Platinum member). I then tried emailing the reward ticketing escalations inbox.

I got no response to my email (other than the automated reply) and around six hours later, MH cancelled my flights as the booking still hadn't been reticketed. I eventually was able to get the flights reinstated by calling Qantas again and speaking to someone in Hobart. Luckily the U seats had been returned to inventory.

That was a pretty poor experience, if I'm honest.

 

[1022]

Definitely a poor experience but also a useful data point - that even when classic rewards can be changed online (lots simply can’t), that ticketing delays are still common, flights will still drop off on the likes of MH and only WPs have any hope of a straightforward resolution on the phone. I despair.

 

[exceladdict]

I changed a Classic Flight Reward booking yesterday on the Qantas website. Flights operated by MH.

The ticket wasn't re-issued straight away, so I tried calling Qantas but gave up after waiting on hold for a very long time (as a Platinum member). I then tried emailing the reward ticketing escalations inbox.

I got no response to my email (other than the automated reply) and around six hours later, MH cancelled my flights as the booking still hadn't been reticketed. I eventually was able to get the flights reinstated by calling Qantas again and speaking to someone in Hobart. Luckily the U seats had been returned to inventory.

That was a pretty poor experience, if I'm honest.

Definitely a poor experience but also a useful data point - that even when classic rewards can be changed online (lots simply can’t), that ticketing delays are still common, flights will still drop off on the likes of MH and only WPs have any hope of a straightforward resolution on the phone. I despair.

Indeed, I've never been able to change a flight online, even on straightforward qf domestic.

 

[sykoticx]

I'd say ask again. The squeaky wheel and all that...

There is no excuse and I suspect I am not the only one looking on saying 'bloody hell'. But as you know you are far from alone. Persistence has had results and the story linked above did actually have a positive result. The pain is inexcusable but in the end, your position is justified. A call to the same journo could well be worthwhile....

It's actually becoming ridiculous now because the escalations email team don't even respond.
The call centre agents are not helpful and I keep going around in circles.
Qantas customer service levels definitely gone down the drain!

 

[PaulyB]

Media…

 

[anyonebutqantas]

Can we get the media interested in these stories?

 

[tassie6]

Booked the in-laws a classic rewards ticket to the EU earlier this week to fly next week in a combo of QF Y and JL J, via Tokyo

Given the short time from booking to flying, after about 18 hours and no e-ticket we emailed the escalations address with the details.

Within about 1.25 hrs received the ticket and this response

‘Thank you for your email.

The tickets have been issued. A copy has been sent to the email address listed in the booking.’

So it seems that contacting did help, but also could have been a timing coincidence. Either way happy with the outcome and getting a response so quickly

Edit: grammar and spelling

 

[I love to travel]

3 calls this week as AA changes not re ticketed. Still not resolved but latest is someone will call me back today. Platinum sevice...not.

 

[stm1sydney]

Oh, look yet another Qantas promise on which they have not delivered! Why do people persist with that lot?