If Australia Had This, Passengers Could Be Paid For Cancelled Flights

Why Australia needs an aviation ombudsman.

The financial difficulties of Rex Airlines, coming so soon after the bankruptcy of Bonza, have brought into sharp focus one of the federal government’s key priorities for aviation: enhancing passenger rights.

In each case, passengers were left with tickets for flights that did not fly. In the case of Rex, tickets were honoured by rivals Virgin Australia and Qantas, possibly trying to recapture the small toehold Rex had established in the Brisbane-Sydney-Melbourne golden triangle.

The Bonza story was more complex as the fledgling airline, which collapsed in May, had sought to exploit under-serviced routes to smaller leisure-based cities including Maroochydore and Port Macquarie.

In many cases, passengers were left out-of-pocket and stranded.

Passenger rights have been brought into sharp focus after the recent financial difficulties of Rex Airlines and Bonza.

Support for an ombudsman

These failures will have emboldened the federal government’s plans to introduce stronger passenger protections and an airline ombudsman.

The release of its policy white paper is imminent. The paper covers aviation issues including competition between airports and airlines, the sector’s environmental impact and better mechanisms for consultation.

After years of opposition, Qantas and Virgin quietly fell in behind the idea in May, signalling a deal is close to being announced.

The ombudsman is designed to protect consumer rights in what is often monopolistic or quasi-monopolistic operating environments. With the exception of residents of southeast Queensland and the western suburbs of Melbourne, most Australians only have one airport from which to fly.

This, coupled with an effective airline duopoly, can lead to higher prices and poorer service for consumers, the Australian Consumer and Competition Commission (ACCC) has argued.

People boarding Bonza flight — Bonza suspended all flights and entered voluntary administration on 30 April.

The ACCC has been calling for better passenger rights for more than a decade. But its calls grew louder after it fined Qantas A$120 million for selling “ghost" flights in May.

Passengers did receive refunds, but the process was not easy compared to many overseas jurisdictions where compensation is automatic and based on distance travelled.

Australia is rare among developed countries for not having automatic compensation if a flight is cancelled or delayed.

The EU model

The leader in air passenger rights, as in many areas of consumer protection, is the European Union. The EU Passenger Rights regulation is 20 years old and now also applies to rail and bus passengers.

The regulation favours the passenger and awards compensation of up to €600 (almost A$1,000) for delays or cancellations. There are clauses for when a delay is unavoidable, but generally airlines have now built the scheme into their costs of doing business.

The scheme is well publicised and in 2022, about eight million passengers were eligible for refunds.

Air passenger rights in the UK continued in the EU mould after Brexit and were even strengthened.

But in a 2023 review into the UK scheme, some airlines argued “private insurance was a better option for some passengers", particularly those with disabilities.

The same reasoning led to the removal of Australia’s previous consumer protection scheme for airline passengers, the Travel Compensation Fund, which refunded customers when airlines or travel agencies went bankrupt.

Rex flight on ground — Australia’s Travel Compensation Scheme was abolished in 2014. (Image: Josh Withers)

The scheme was ended under the Abbott government in June 2014, with travellers told instead to take out their own travel insurance.

Labor is expected to reintroduce an element of corporate responsibility for airline delays, not least since Brazil, Canada and Türkiye have also followed the EU’s lead.

Brazil’s scheme is particularly generous, with up to R7,500 (A$1,950) available to passengers who have to pay for last minute accommodation if their flight is cancelled.

Lawmakers there countered claims by airlines that low cost airline passengers could stay in cheaper hotels, by applying the compensation uniformly, regardless of travel class.

Popular with voters

Air passenger rights can be a vote winner, too. Before he withdrew his bid for reelection, US President Joe Biden trumpeted the automatic airline compensation scheme the US Department for Transportation will bring in this year.

Until now, airline compensation was mandated by the states without coordinated processes meaning some airlines used vouchers, some credits and a few cash to compensate customers.

Despite this, about US$3 billion (A$4.6 billion) in refunds have been issued to US passengers since 2020, including more than US$600 million to Southwest Airlines passengers alone.

This was due to a serious scheduling crisis which forced the low-cost carrier to cancel almost 60% of its flights in the 2022 summer.

By contrast, in Australia, air passengers have only had basic protections under consumer rights law since deregulation in 2002.

There is no guarantee of a seat or even flight the consumer purchased. This has led consumer advocates including Choice to support calls for an airline ombudsman and automatic delay and cancellation compensation. The Conversation

Rex flight in air — Australia offers weak consumer protection in a market with little competition. (Image: David Syphers)

Justin Wastnage, Adjunct Industry Fellow, Griffith Institute for Tourism, Griffith University.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

The Great Ocean Road has captured the hearts of Australians with its astounding scenery since 1932, but going off-course can enrich your experience with untouched nature, foodie delights and charming towns.

It’s a chilly 16 degrees. My husband pulls on a steamer and jogs – as all seasoned surfers do – into the water. We’re at Bells Beach, the legendary break on Victoria’s Surf Coast that’s home to the Rip Curl Pro, the world’s longest-running event in competitive surfing. Each year, over the Easter long weekend, up to 40,000 people descend on the region for the event. Today, though, we have the beach almost to ourselves, and the less-than-favourable temperature doesn’t deter my husband from surfing this famous break.

Torquay to Anglesea and Aireys Inlet

The red dome of Split Point Lighthouse in Aireys Inlet. (Image: Tourism Australia)

The nearby surf town of Torquay marks the starting point for the Great Ocean Road. Unfolding our map, which we have marked out with a highlighted route for our children to follow, we set off for lesser-known Anglesea, a chilled-out town 20 minutes south of here. Its wide, sandy beach is a gentler swimming option for our young family. Groms can learn to surf here with Go Ride a Wave, which also runs stand-up paddle boarding on the Anglesea River.

Split point lookout — The lighthouse overlooks the Shipwreck Coast. (Image: Tourism Australia)

After a couple of nights in Anglesea, we hit the road again, first stopping at Aireys Inlet. Here we stretch our legs at Split Point Lighthouse, which was made famous by the 1990s television series Round the Twist, before driving under the Memorial Arch that welcomes us, officially, to the Great Ocean Road.

This 243-kilometre coastal road was built by returned First World War servicemen and serves as a permanent memorial to those who fought and died during the war. Carved into rock using hand tools and horse-drawn carts, it was a huge engineering feat and provided much-needed access to isolated coastal communities.

Lorne to Birregurra

Lorne is a delightful beachside stop for lunch and browsing boutique stores. It’s also the gateway to Great Otway National Park, which comprises a varied landscape of old-growth forests, cool-temperate rainforests, heathy woodlands and rugged coast. With the highest rainfall in Victoria, the region is home to many waterfalls – 10 of which are within 10 kilometres of Lorne.

Turning slightly off the main drag, we wind along a gum-shaded road to Erskine Falls. Here, our son leads the way through the hyper-green rainforest and down 200-plus stairs to the cascade that drops 30 metres into a lush fern gully. We hop over large boulders to get closer to the falls, enjoying the entire place to ourselves; it’s worth the return climb.

From Sheoak Falls Picnic Area, there are walking trails to Henderson Falls, Phantom Falls, Won Wondah Falls and Kalimna Falls, some of which follow an old timber tramway from forest-logging days, which only came to an end in 2008.

You can follow your appetite north to the town of Birregurra, which is part of the Otway Harvest Trail that connects farm gates, markets, wineries, breweries and distilleries. It’s home to three-hatted modern Australian restaurant Brae, helmed by celebrated chef Dan Hunter, set among native gardens and an organic farm, and Otways Distillery, which produces small-batch spirits using local produce and botanicals.

Brae restaurant — Brae is a three-hatted restaurant in Birregurra. (Image: Tourism Australia)

Apollo Bay to The Otways

Back on track, the cliff-hugging stretch between Lorne and Apollo Bay is breathtaking. At Teddys Lookout, we overlook the winding road ahead and St George River spilling into the ocean. We spend languid days in Apollo Bay, a buzzy seaside town that boasts a three-kilometre-long, crescent-shaped beach with a backdrop of rolling green hills. One evening, as the sun sets, we take the steep 10-minute walk to Marriners Lookout, which affords panoramic views of the ocean, hinterland and town.

A 15-minute drive along the road, Maits Rest is a lush rainforest gully that has been protected since the early 20th century. Wandering along the 800-metre boardwalk, we inspect the delicate moss-covered forest floor and the gnarled roots of 300-year-old myrtle beech trees, then crane our necks to see their canopies, some 50 metres above us. It’s therapy in nature.

Cape Otway to the Twelve Apostles

The southernmost tip of Cape Otway is a delightful detour, home to the 1848-built Cape Otway Lightstation, the oldest surviving lighthouse on mainland Australia. We climb the narrow winding staircase to the gallery deck, explore the keepers’ quarters and telegraph station, and enjoy a coffee and some ‘famous’ scones at the charming onsite cafe.

It’s a pinch-me moment to finally see the Twelve Apostles in person. This unmistakable cluster of limestone stacks rising abruptly from the sea were never 12, however. When coined this in the 1890s as a marketing ploy, there were only nine; today, only seven remain after two collapsed in 2005 and 2009. We admire these Aussie icons from the viewing platform, in awe of Mother Nature’s ever-evolving artwork.

The Grotto is another natural attraction within Port Campbell National Park. (Image: Carmen Zammit)

Edging the wild Southern Ocean, this part of the coast – dubbed Shipwreck Coast – is made up of many sea-carved natural wonders including London Bridge, The Grotto and Gibson Steps. After exploring the lookout trails of Loch Ard Gorge/Poombeeyt Kontapool – its English name taken from the site of the 1878 shipwreck – we nestle into the sandy beach encircled by towering sandstone cliffs, as our children splash about on the water’s edge, and soak it all in.

Port Campbell to Timboon

Timboon Fine Ice Cream is part of a regional foodie trail. (Image: C McConville)

Just north of Port Campbell National Park, the region of Timboon is part of the 12 Apostles Food Artisans Trail, filled with purveyors of delicious foodstuffs such as Timboon Fine Ice Cream, Timboon Railway Shed Distillery and Apostle Whey Cheese. As an antidote to the indulgence, the 20-kilometre Poorpa Yanyeen Meerreeng Trail is a self-guided ride or walk between Port Campbell and Timboon through tall forests, over historic bridges and past sparkling lakes and farmland with grazing cattle.

Warrnambool to Port Fairy

Warrnambool building — A 19th-century building in Warrnambool. (Image: Peter Foster)

In Warrnambool, a town rich in maritime history, we take the four-kilometre Thunder Point Walk that traces the coast. The kids squeal when an echidna shuffles out from beneath the wooden boardwalk, and we stop to admire a seal lazing on a rock at the port.

Further along, the streets of quaint fishing village Port Fairy are lined with 19th-century cottages, old stone churches and Norfolk pines. Follow the historic walking trail to see some of the 60-plus National Trust buildings. Port Fairy is also home to Port Fairy Folk Festival (6-9 March), one of the country’s longest-running music and cultural festivals. You could time your road trip with the event for a fittingly celebratory end to any journey.

The Great Ocean Road can easily be done in three days, but we’ve spent a week on the road. The highlighted line on our now creased and well-worn map doesn’t follow the famous route precisely. It has sprouted branches in many directions, leading us to untouched rainforest and charming rural towns filled with culinary delights, and where we experienced some of our most memorable moments on the Great Ocean Road.

A traveller’s checklist

Staying there

The Monty is a highly anticipated, newly refurbished motel with a chic Palm Springs-inspired aesthetic set across the road from the Anglesea River. Basalt Winery in Port Fairy grows cool-climate wines such as pinot noir and Riesling in rich volcanic soil. Stay among the vines in its tiny home, complete with a kitchen, lounge area and outdoor firepit.

The Oak & Anchor Hotel has been a Port Fairy institution since 1857. Cosy up by the bar in winter or bask in the sunshine of the Lawn Bar in summer. The rooms are beautifully boutique with considered details, such as luxe baths for sinking into post-road trip.

Eating there

The Coast in Anglesea is a modern Australian restaurant focused on local ingredients. Grand Pacific Hotel has been a local landmark in Lorne since 1879 and recently underwent a restoration. It serves a mix of traditional pub and Italian fare alongside ocean views.

Graze is a cosy 40-seat dining room in Apollo Bay with a modern Australian menu complemented by regional wines. Apollo Bay Distillery offers tasting flights, a gin blending masterclass and serves woodfired pizzas.

If Australia had this, passengers could be paid for cancelled flights