A couple who were unable to board their Qantas flight during Covid lockdowns and told they were not eligible for a refund because they were ‘no shows’ have finally won their battle to have the funds returned – after three years of arguments.
Healthcare worker Kieran McGregor and his partner booked their flights through travel agency Expedia and were set to fly from Melbourne to Darwin on July 18, 2021.
When Covid cases began to rise again, Mr McGregor brought the departure date forward to July 16 in hopes of avoiding another Victorian lockdown.
However, then-Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews announced the state’s fifth lockdown on July 15, preventing Mr McGregor and his partner from travelling.
‘How could I fly if the state of Victoria was in lockdown and I couldn’t move more than 5km from the house?’ Mr McGregor told News.com.au last week.
In seeking a refund, they were put into a repetitive back-and-forth with Expedia and Qantas; Expedia blamed Qantas for not issuing the refund while Qantas insisted Expedia had the couple’s money.
It was not until last week, more than three years after their missed flight, that the couple were finally issued a refund.
During an exchange on X last year, Expedia said: ‘We just got off the phone with the airline, and as per advised, the ticket shows suspended on their end due to a no show.
‘Your ticket is no (sic) eligible for a refund, and has no value as per the airline. We apologize for the inconvenience.’
Meanwhile, Qantas told Mr McGregor ‘the funds will still remain with the agency that you’ve booked with’ and insisted he contact Expedia for a refund.
Mr McGregor was infuriated by the reaction of both companies, saying his $2,500 claim was nothing compared with the ‘billions of dollars in profit’ they collect.
The companies have promised Mr McGregor he would be issued a refund this week but it is unclear which one will shoulder the reimbursement.
‘For flight bookings at Expedia, we generally follow the policies of our travel partners, so any refund is determined by the airline,’ an Expedia spokeswoman said.
‘We have looked into this case with Qantas, and we will be contacting the traveller to process the refund.’
A Qantas spokesman said: ‘We apologise for the extended delay in resolving this issue and are processing a full refund for their bookings.’
Daily Mail has contacted Qantas and Expedia for additional comment.
Qantas CEO Vanessa Hudson last week announced the company had recorded an underlying profit, before tax, of $2.08billion for the 2023-24 financial year.
The figure was down 16 per cent compared with the year prior.
Ms Hudson described the result as ‘strong’ and blamed the drop on lower airfares and lower freight revenue.
Qantas last year faced massive backlash over the expiry dates of credits issued for Covid refunds, worth $370million.
Then-outgoing CEO Alan Joyce faced an intense grilling by politicians about the controversy at a Senate hearing in August, 2023.
Shortly after, the airline backflipped over the expiry date decision and scrapped the cut-off amid the growing public outcry.
The huge backlog in travel credits built up during the Covid pandemic when flights were cancelled worldwide amid widespread border closures.
The policy reversal allowed customers who had flights cancelled before October 2021 to retain the flight credits indefinitely or get refunds.
They also offered a limited time deal to double their Frequent Flyer points for flights booked with relevant travel credits before December 31, 2023.
‘The Qantas Group will remove the expiry date on Covid travel credits that were due to run out at the end of this year,’ a spokesman said at the time.
‘Qantas customers with Covid credits can request a cash refund, and Jetstar customers can use their Covid vouchers for flights, indefinitely.
It was the fourth amendment by the airline over its flights refund policy in the wake of the pandemic.