The Qantas Airways Ltd (ASX: QAN) share price struggled today, closing 1.67% in the red at $5.31 apiece.
Whilst there's been no market-sensitive announcements out of the airline's camp today, news has surfaced that many of its customers are seeing red, accusing Qantas of jacking up its prices on certain flight bookings.
Let's take a closer look at what's being levelled at the company today.
Qantas in the firing line
Qantas customers have accused the airline of "dishonest" conduct and potentially "price gouging".
It's claimed Qantas is charging high premiums on airline bookings being made under its flight credit redemption scheme, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
Some customers say when they attempted to redeem flight credit vouchers, ticket prices were suddenly jacked up anywhere between 50%-300% higher than if they were to pay normally.
One customer said he paid more than three times the amount of a standard ticket under the scheme after Qantas restricted its seating options for voucher holders.
He ended up paying more than $1400 in flying credits for a return trip between Adelaide and Brisbane while his wife's ticket cost only $437 for the economy seat next to him.
A slew of similar stories has emerged over recent weeks with many customers reporting they were struggling to get a response from Qantas on its flight credit redemption policies.
Now it seems Qantas customers holding credits should be aware of a key — and perhaps not so well known — policy.
Last year, Qantas changed its policy so that credit holders making a booking after 30 September 2021 could only use their credit to purchase a ticket of equivalent value or a more expensive seat.
In other words, if you hold a flight credit of $1,400, you'll only find ticket options of $1,400 or more — even though the same seats might be available for much less if you were paying normally.
If the booking was made before 30 September, the flight credits could be used for multiple bookings.
Qantas says its policies offer "a lot more flexibility with booking than pre-COVID, but we still have some rules in place".
According to the airline, most customers who qualify for a flight credit have until the end of 2023 to take their flights.
Qantas share price snapshot
After a bumpy year, the Qantas share price has climbed almost 17% in the last 12 months. This year to date, Qantas is up 6%, after climbing 6.14% over the past month.
