Andrew Wilkie (Clark, Independent) Share this | Hansard source

I move:

That this House:

(1) notes that:

(a) the conduct of Australian airlines has recently come under fire for a variety of practices, such as sometimes only offering Frequent Flyer and discount tickets one way, meaning customers are stuck with expensive tickets the other way, increasingly frequent flight delays and cancellations, and the linkage of passenger personal profiles to the fares offered to them;

(b) seeking refunds and other assistance for cancelled flights often leaves consumers feeling underwhelmed, with many offered little to no compensation for flight disruptions;

(c) the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) is concerned about the high level of complaints about airlines as well as their low reliability of services; and

(d) Australian airline staff are among the best in the world, yet bear the brunt of increasingly frustrated customers because of improper decisions by management within airline companies; and

(2) calls on the Government to:

(a) accept the ACCC's recommendations made in its submission to the Australian Government's Aviation Green Paper;

(b) establish an independent airline ombudsman with the power to make binding decisions, to allow for fair and efficient resolution of customer complaints; and

(c) establish a targeted and fit-for-purpose compensation scheme for delayed and cancelled flights.

It's obviously no secret that Australian airlines have regularly been in the headlines lately for all the wrong reasons, like unfair pricing practices, poor communication with customers, advertising fares for cancelled flights and frustrating flight delays. Indeed, in its recent report on domestic airline competition in Australia, the ACCC reported that 'service reliability remains a significant concern'. It's no wonder, when just in December last year, the industry cancelled more than 2,200 flights, or five per cent, which is more than double the industry long-term average. Passengers are also struggling with flight delays, with on-time performance rates declining. Indeed, just 63.6 per cent of flights arrived on time in December. What's even more frustrating is that these poor results are often the consequence of problems within the control of the airline, with the ACCC pointing the finger at the airlines management of:

… systemic issues associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, pilot shortages, pilot training bottlenecks and some supply chain disruptions.

To be clear, my criticism is not directed at frontline airline staff. Indeed, most staff are among the best in the world, as I experienced just last week on my short trip to London, to Julian Assange. No, my criticism is directed squarely at airline management and the terrible decisions they've been making to maximising profit at the expense of all else.

Plenty of constituents have contacted my office about all this, sharing stories of delayed or cancelled flights and the financial burden that comes with that, as well as evidence of unfair pricing practices and poor communication from airlines. For example, one constituent told me about a flight that he and his wife booked to Perth with Virgin, late last year. The boarding time came and went. It was not until one hour after the scheduled departure that they were advised the flight was cancelled. While they were booked on another flight the following evening, there was no compensation for their $120 taxi fare to and from the airport nor for the very significant inconvenience. Another constituent was out of pocket by about $700 when Jetstar cancelled her flight at the last minute. She lost more than $500 just on the rental car and airport parking. She was told by Jetstar, in no uncertain terms, that the airline won't compensate these pre-booked expenses.

The airlines should not be able to get away with this, but they do. It's mostly the airlines who get to decide what happens when a passenger has missed a holiday, an important work meeting, a wedding or even a funeral. All too often, customers are left in terrible despair and very significantly out of pocket. Yes, while it is the case that Australians have some rights under Australian consumer law, those rights are far from clear when it comes to flight delays and cancellations. Moreover, the lack of effective mechanisms for consumers to resolve disputes and enforce their consumer guarantees leaves consumers having to resort to raising problems with regulators or pursuing claims in tribunals or small claims courts, which is time consuming, sometimes costly and often beyond people. No wonder contacts to the ACCC about airline issues have remained persistently high and above the pre-pandemic level. Indeed, for the first nine months of 2023, contacts to the ACCC about airlines were 179 per cent higher than in 2018 and 100 per cent higher than in 2019. No wonder, given Australia's lack of regulation, enforcement and complaint-handling mechanisms.

Indeed, Australia lags behind other countries when it comes to securing compensation from airlines. For example, in the UK, all airlines are required by law to ensure passengers arrive at their destination, to provide compensation if flights arrive more than three hours late for reasons within the airline's control and to support passengers who are delayed by providing meal vouchers, phone calls, accommodation and transport. Clearly, the Australian government must implement similar protections here.

While it's obviously a positive that Qantas is promising service improvements, the airlines simply cannot be left to regulate themselves. No, we need strong consumer protections, and the government must heed the calls of the ACCC, which in its domestic airline competition report called for an independent ombudsman scheme to handle consumer complaints and a targeted and fit-for-purpose compensation scheme for delayed and cancelled flights. Only then will Australians have confidence that they will not be unreasonably out of pocket for flight disruptions, and, if they are, that there will be appropriate mechanisms in place to help navigate the system.

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