Qantas fined $100million for selling tickets on cancelled flights, impacting 86,000+ customers

Qantas has been fined $100 million for misleading customers by selling tickets on flights that had already been cancelled, a practice that continued over several years.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) took the airline to court, where it was revealed that Qantas continued to sell tickets for up to 62 days after flights were cancelled and delayed notifying customers of cancellations for up to 67 days. This misconduct affected over 86,000 customers across more than 70,000 flights between 2021 and 2023.

The penalty is divided into $70 million for selling tickets on cancelled flights and $30 million for failing to notify customers promptly. Qantas admitted to these actions, and senior managers were aware of the issues but failed to act swiftly. The airline has since made changes to its systems to prevent future occurrences, including faster notification of cancellations and halting ticket sales for cancelled flights. Impacted customers have received $20 million in compensation, and Qantas expressed its regret for the situation.