Consumer NZ has lodged a complaint with the Commerce Commision against Jetstar, alleging the airline is misleading passengers about their rights under the Civil Aviation Act and breaching the Fair Trading Act.
Consumer NZ chief executive Jon Duffy said when flights are delayed or cancelled for reasons within an airline's control, it has a responsibility to refund the flight and reimburse any costs incurred as a result.
"This could be for things like accommodation, rental car hire and other additional costs. Part of the issue is that Jetstar is claiming its liability is limited when consumers could be entitled to more.
"Jetstar is currently claiming that it only needs to provide up to $150 AUD/NZD reimbursement per room for accommodation costs, up to $30 reimbursement per person for meals, and that it will only pay for transfers in some circumstances when there has been a delay or cancellation within the airline’s control," he said.
Duffy said this is misleading because Jetstar misrepresents the limits of its liability under the Civil Aviation Act.
The consumer rights watchdog says the airline’s breaching the Fair Trading Act, by misrepresenting its obligations under the Civil Aviation Act. (Source: 1News)
He said there are also concerns Jetstar is misleading passengers by advising them it's not liable to pay for overnight accommodation and additional costs, like meals and transport, as a result of an international flight delay within its control.
Consumer NZ said Jetstar's website says it's only required to provide a refund of the original fare, when consumers may actually be entitled to claim for things like extra transport costs, such as a flight on another airline.
Consumer NZ said in July a passenger, Ahmed, was meant to fly from Queenstown to the UK via Melbourne and Dubai.
In Queenstown, he was told his Jetstar flight to Melbourne was cancelled because of technical reasons.
"Jetstar offered us no assistance at all," he told the organisation.
"They left us to it. Luckily, we booked through a travel agent, who helped rearrange our flights.
"However, we were still left out of pocket because of the extra night spent in Queenstown."
The organisation said it continues to receive large numbers of complaints from Jetstar customers about information provided to them when flights are cancelled or delayed for reasons within the airline's control.
It said it contacted Jetstar about consumer rights and flight disruptions. The organisation said Jetstar then referred to "the potentially misleading information" on its website as evidence to show it is advising passengers of their rights.
Consumer NZ has also launched a flight rights petition, demanding airlines keep passengers informed of their rights.
Jetstar responds
A spokesperson for Jetstar told 1News the airline "firmly rejects" Consumer NZ's allegations that it misleads passengers.
"Specific information about passenger rights under the Civil Aviation Act has been available on Jetstar’s website for many years and we regularly review the information provided to customers on our website and via text and email in the event of a disruption."
The spokesperson said no airline ever wants to cancel or delay flights, and Jetstar does "everything" it can to prevent delays and cancellations.
"In the event of a delay or cancellation, we provide customers with a range of assistance including rebooking them on next available flights and depending on the circumstances, refunds or flight credits, reimbursement for accommodation, meals and other reasonable expenses."
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