The early days of COVID-19 might seem like a distant memory, but many Australians still have unused flight credits from Qantas, Jetstar and Virgin after pandemic-era border closures caused flight cancellations.
In fact, as of late August, Qantas revealed it was holding around $500 million in unredeemed credits – and many customers have said using them or getting a refund is no easy task.
Here's what you need to know about redeeming your flight credits.
Qantas
Australians who have a slice of the approximately $370 million of unredeemed Qantas credits can either request a refund or use it to book a future flight.
While the airline has removed the expiry date on travel credits, meaning they will last indefinitely (they were previously due to expire at the end of 2023), they can only be used to book a flight until December 31, 2023, due to what Qantas says is a system limitation.
After then, customers will only be able to claim a cash refund.
Anyone who had a flight cancelled can find their credit by using the "Find my credit" tool on Qantas's website.
To claim a refund, you need to call 1300 668 885.
Jetstar
Owned by the Qantas Group, Jetstar vouchers also no longer have an expiry date.
The airline, as of late August, was holding about $100 million in unclaimed flight credits.
There's a catch though: credits for the budget carrier have conditions that are almost the complete opposite of its parent company.
Jetstar won't provide a cash refund, but the vouchers can be used to book flights "indefinitely".
The airline says its credits "can be redeemed on all Jetstar fares, including sale and Club Jetstar fares, and on domestic or international trips".
It also says customers need to contact them in order for their vouchers to be extended past their previous expiry dates.
Virgin Australia
Virgin Australia flight credits are a slightly more complicated matter, as the company went into voluntary administration in April 2020.
If you have flight credits for a flight booking made on or before April 20, 2020, then the company says it cannot offer you a refund, as you're considered to be an unsecured creditor.
If you made the booking after that date, the airline says it can offer a cash refund as long as you booked a type of fare that permitted refunds.
Regardless of whether you booked before, during or after April 2020, Virgin has a strict expiry date for its flight credits: not only must they be used by December 31, 2023, they also can only be used to book flights that take place before December 31.
However, non-pandemic-era flight credits issued from August 2022 onwards have an expiry date of 12 months from when they were issued, and can be used on flights on any date.
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There are also only a limited number of seats on each Virgin flight that can be booked using credits.
"There are seats available for booking using future flight credits on all Virgin Australia-operated flights," the airline says.
"However, the number of seats is limited and may sell out quickly so we encourage you to book as early as possible to avoid disappointment."
To book a flight using travel credits, Virgin says you need to select "Future Flight Credit fares" under "special fares" when making your booking, log into your Travel Bank account, then use the Travel Bank balance on the payment screen.
