Qantas Club Access Denied

[leftrudder]

So, let me get this straight ... I book two award flights Melbourne to Bali through Qantas, pay for a fare for our child and get our award tickets duly enclosed in a Qantas-branded cover. We are told that we will flying the MEL-SYD leg on Qantas, then the SYD-DEN leg on Australian Airlines - but relax sir, it's our (Qantas') airline that we use for leisure flights to Bali ...

We are, as usual, grateful that both adults are members of the Qantas Club - you know how it it with pre-dawn departures and hot 3 hour waits at Denpasar with a child in tow ...

And now we find out that we are not permitted to enter the Club during our trip, because it it not a "Qantas" flight.

Rule 10. Access to lounges

10.1 Qantas Club Members and their guests are entitled to access The Qantas Club lounge in the departure port when their next onward flight on that day is with Qantas or a Qantas subsidiary.

What is going on? Are Quantas actually going to claim that they are so much at arm's length from AA that they will happily take our QC fees, book us on a flight they they themselves do not service and then refuse us entry?!

Perhaps someone can explain the thinking here?

[straitman]

And now we find out that we are not permitted to enter the Club during our trip, because it it not a "Qantas" flight.

Have you tried for a more detailed explaination from QF and QF club? Certainly follow this up and don't give up the first time you don't get the correct answer

[ejh]

Although the company is part of qantas the Qc rules say that you are not admitted to the club if you fly with Australian and also you do not get frequent flyer points for non award flights.

[leftrudder]

The problem is two sets of conflicting rules ... travel on a Qantas 'subsidiary' and you are OK; travel on AA and you aren't.

In this case, Qantas appears to be trying to claim that AA is a *separate* company, but it seems to me that AA is in fact a wholly owned subsidiary of Qantas.

You can't accept bookings for a third party company, give a client Qantas-branded tickets, tell the client that "it's our company" ... then turn around and claim total independence to justify denial of access. That, to me, is opportunistic and petty.

Basically, anyone travelling to Bali using Qantas (and who is bumped to AA) will be denied access to QC using this logic, so presumably any code-share flights will suffer the same fate.

[sully]

Leftrudder, I can understand your annoyance at being treated in such a high-handed manner. To identify the corporate identity of AA I had a look at the ASIC site which provides some free information on the status of Australian companies. It lists AA separately and refers to it as a public company, but such a status also applies to subsidiaries of public companies. A review of documents lodged with them has a detail of the Annual Notice by Wholly owned Entities and to confirm this a look at the ASX site does not provide you with any reference to it as a separate listed company.

More damning is a review of the Qantas webite where it is stated that AA is indeed a subsidiary. By your reading of the T&Cs it is clear you were dudded.

Good luck in your pursuits but my only concern for you is what you actually expect from them by way of compensation. Access to lounges that you already have?

Originally Posted by sully

More damning is a review of the Qantas webite where it is stated that AA is indeed a subsidiary. By your reading of the T&Cs it is clear you were dudded.

Good luck in your pursuits but my only concern for you is what you actually expect from them by way of compensation. Access to lounges that you already have?

Somewhat less damning is the following:

http://www.qantas.com.au/info/flying...nditions#jump9

Specifically sections 4 & 10, and the subsections contained therein.

Interestingly the August QF inflight magazine's blurb on the QF club makes it clear that QF Club Members will not be permitted access if flying on AO (not AA - which is in fact American Airlines).

Under the current T&C, there's nothing saying that QF Club members flying on AO (award or otherwise), are permitted to use the QF Club. The only exception would naturally be Platinum members, who may use the lounge at any time, even when not flying.

[redrat]

Originally Posted by shillard

...The only exception would naturally be Platinum members, who may use the lounge at any time, even when not flying.

Hear, hear for PLAT.

[icemann]

Leftrudder, write to them and complain. I've found that if you receive bad service from anywhere, and have a valid case, if the company has actually got it's head screwed on the right way (re : customer service), they will usually do something to ease the pain a little bit.

Originally Posted by icemann

Leftrudder, write to them and complain. I've found that if you receive bad service from anywhere, and have a valid case, if the company has actually got it's head screwed on the right way (re : customer service), they will usually do something to ease the pain a little bit.

But in this case, why should they?

Clearly QF didn't shaft the customer - the customer's expectations were merely unrealistic. If every company tried to accomodate every unrealistic expectation from a customer, nobody would be in business.

[thadocta]

Originally Posted by icemann

Leftrudder, write to them and complain. I've found that if you receive bad service from anywhere, and have a valid case, if the company has actually got it's head screwed on the right way (re : customer service), they will usually do something to ease the pain a little bit.

Except he wasn't entitled to lounge access since he was flying on AO, so he hasn't really received bad service.

Dave