Interestingly, on the same day that TravelMole ran an article on shabby treatment of customers by Virgin Blue, it appears that Consumer Affairs Victoria has warned Qantas offshoot Jetstar that it needs to improve service or face potential action under the Fair Trading Act if it does not treat its passengers better.
The issue was revealed in the Victoria Consumer Affairs annual report which showed a disproportionate number of complaints by travellers realted to Jetstar, with 39% of complaints about all airlines between 2004 and 2006 related to Jetstar.
It appeared that the key issues related to Jetstar’s cancellation policies, Jetstar apparently failing to provide flights on the dates or times booked and/or issue refunds within a reasonable time, less that satisfactory service on flight, failing to advise passengers about visa or travel requirements and penalties related to timings for passengers changing bookings.
Another key issue was Jetstar’s strict enforcement of their terms and conditions including in particular, the strict application of the thirty minute cut off time for check prior to the scheduled departure time, with passengers who failed to comply, not allowed to board and forfeiting their fare.
Consumer Affairs Victoria says that Jetstar has not improved its services even though meetings took place last year.
A Report by The Mole
