Australia’s frustrated flyers face delays for changes that might ease the pain of cancellations.
The government’s long-awaited Aviation White Paper was released on Monday to address long-term challenges and halt a deterioration in services, as air travel bounces back from the COVID-19 slow down.
Airline passengers are set to receive compensation or refunds for delayed or cancelled flights as part of the boost to travellers’ rights. This marks a shift away from domestic airline vouchers and credits.
The duties of airlines to their customers will be laid out, among 56 recommended changes to the aviation sector, including the creation of an industry watchdog to handle complaints.
The Aviation Industry Ombudsman Scheme will be able to force airlines to provide remedies to passengers, but the measures won’t be in force until 2025.
And there’s uncertainty about how compensation will be classified and calculated, travel lawyer and Australian Lawyers Alliance spokesperson Victoria Roy said.
“It raises the question of whether the ombudsperson will direct airlines to pay compensation for inconvenience and distress as well as ticket refunds and passenger expenses, and if so, how it will quantify that compensation.
“A commitment to a flight delay compensation scheme would have given passengers certainty.”
By failing to introduce such a scheme, the government has committed to keep Australian passenger rights behind the EU, UK, Canada, Malaysia, Brazil, India, Turkey and countless other jurisdictions for the next 25 years, Ms Roy said.
The white paper aims to address reasons why Australia is not able to support more than two major domestic airlines after Bonza was forced to close and regional carrier Rex went into administration.
Qantas and Virgin Australia control 93 per cent of the market.
Penalties will apply for airlines that don’t meet the charter of rights, but it is not known what they will be.
The charter of rights will include a list of minimum standards passengers can expect from airlines and will be drawn up by the ombudsman.
Airlines will be forced to explain why flights are delayed or cancelled without a good reason, Infrastructure Minister Catherine King said.
“You’ve bought a ticket, if the flight doesn’t go when you expect it to go, you should expect that that’s the service that is provided,” she said in Canberra on Monday.
“Obviously there are causes that are beyond (airlines’) control … but if it is because there has been overbooking, or there is something that has occurred that is not in the reasonable, then it will be up to airlines to explain that.”
People living under flight paths will be able to make concerns known to a new body designed to handle complaints.
Compensation would also be available to people with disabilities whose wheelchairs or other mobility devices were damaged on flights.
A new set of disability standards will be introduced for airlines.
Ms King said incentives would be reduced for anti-competitive misuses of slots at major airports.
But opposition transport spokeswoman Bridget McKenzie said the white paper did little to solve long-running issues in the sector.
“(These are) 56 recommendations that do nothing too make sure planes run on time, do nothing to deal with the spiralling cost of a ticket,” she said.
“All that (the minister’s) saying is needed is a complaints box for Australian travellers based out of Canberra.”
Virgin Australia and Qantas said they would review the white paper.
Australian Services Union national secretary Emeline Gaske said the paper was a chance to improve conditions for airline workers.
