Guest Compensation Policy

1. Purpose of this Policy

 Our priority as a business is to get you to your destination safely and on time, having experienced our exceptional service. The safety of our passengers and crew is our paramount concern.

The nature of flying is inherently uncertain, and there are many factors involved in getting a flight safely into the air, some of which are within our control but some which are outside of our control. For these reasons, there are occasions when we need to make changes to our flight schedules. Our schedules and flight times are estimates; we do not guarantee schedules or flight times and they do not form part of your contract with us. This Policy sets out the compensation and assistance we will provide to you where your flight has been delayed or cancelled.

The compensation and assistance outlined in this Policy is not intended to be an exhaustive statement of your rights in the event we need to make changes to or cancel your booking. You may have additional legal rights to a refund and/or other compensation (including under the Consumer Guarantees in the Australian Consumer Law and relevant international conventions) where we delay your flight or cancel your booking and we cannot provide you with a new service within a reasonable time. The Consumer Guarantees give consumers certain rights in relation to the products and services we supply which we cannot exclude, restrict or modify. Please see our Consumer Guarantees page for more information on your rights under the Australian Consumer Law.
 

2. When does this Policy apply?

You may be entitled to the assistance set out in this Policy where you have a confirmed and/or ticketed reservation on a Virgin Australia flight (with a “VA” flight number) and we need to make a change to your reservation before or on your day of travel.

This Policy may not apply if your flight is delayed or cancelled due to the occurrence of significant events which are outside of our control (such as natural disasters, epidemics or pandemics, or border closures). In these circumstances, we will communicate these details of any assistance we will provide to you. You may also still be entitled to remedies or compensation under the Australian Consumer Law or other laws applicable to your booking.
 

3. What happens if VA cancels or changes the timing of my flight prior to the day of travel?

• If we need to change or cancel your flight prior to your travel date, we will either contact you or your travel agent will contact you using the contact details provided in your booking (which may be by phone, text or email) to advise you or your nominated booking contact of the change to your flight details.
• If the new flight time is not suitable to you:
  • You can contact our Guest Contact Centre or your nominated travel agent to request a different flight time. We will use our best efforts to move you to another suitable Virgin Australia service without charge.
  •  If we cannot make suitable alternative arrangements, you may request a travel credit or a refund of the price you paid for your impacted flight by contacting our Guest Contact Centre or your travel agent. Travel credits will be valid for 12 months from the date of issue (excluding USA flight bookings). For bookings with a flight into, out of or within the USA, you can request this refund online by following the prompts in the email or SMS you receive about the change or cancellation (or via your travel agent if this is how you booked). Travel credits for bookings with a USA flight will be valid, for five years from the date of issue. All travel credits will be subject to additional terms and conditions.
• You may be entitled to claim compensation for reasonable costs you incur as outlined in section 8 or under the Australian Consumer Law. 
• If you are booked to travel on a flight operated by Qatar Airways for Virgin Australia between Australia and Doha, Qatar with a Virgin Australia flight number VA1 to VA29 (inclusive), the above entitlements will not be applicable to your booking, and you will instead be eligible for the options set out in section 9 of this Policy.

4. What happens if VA cancels or changes the timing of my flight on the day of travel?

• If we need to change or cancel your flight on your day of travel, we will notify you of the disruption as follows:
  • For delays within 2 hours (domestic flights) and 4 hours (international flights) of your original scheduled time of departure, the airport will make an announcement that your service has been delayed. This information will also appear on our Flight Information Display (FID) screens at the airport.
  • For delays more than 2 hours (domestic flights) and 4 hours (international flights) from your original scheduled time of departure, we will contact you by text message or email using the contact details you have provided.
  • For flight cancellations, we will contact you by text message, phone call or email using the contact details you have provided to advise you of your new service details.
• In the event we need to cancel your scheduled service, we will move you to the next available Virgin Australia service in the same cabin to the same destination without charge.
  • There may be some circumstances where we may transfer you to a service to the same destination operated by another carrier, if this is suitable to you.
  • If we cannot make suitable alternative arrangements, you may request a travel credit or a refund of the price you paid for your impacted flight by contacting our Guest Contact Centre or your travel agent. Travel credits will be valid for 12 months from the date of issue (excluding USA flight bookings). For bookings with a flight into, out of or within the USA, you can request this refund online by following the prompts in the email or SMS you receive about the change or cancellation (or via your travel agent if this is how you booked). Travel credits for bookings with a USA flight will be valid for five years from the date of issue. All travel credits will be subject to additional terms and conditions.
• In the event we need to delay your scheduled service and your new flight time is not suitable to you:
  • There may be some circumstances where we will seek to transfer you to a service operated by another carrier to the same destination if this is suitable to you.
  • If the delay is for 2 hours or more, we may try to move you to next available Virgin Australia service to the same destination without charge
  •  If we cannot make suitable alternative arrangements, you may request a travel credit or a refund of the price you paid for your impacted flight by contacting our Guest Contact Centre or your travel agent. Travel credits will be valid for 12 months from the date of issue (excluding USA flight bookings). For bookings with a flight into, out of or within the USA, where your flight is delayed for more than six hours (whether late departure or late arrival), you can request this refund online by following the prompts in the email or SMS you receive about the change or cancellation (or via your travel agent if this is how you booked). Travel credits for bookings with a USA flight will be valid for five years from the date of issue. All travel credits will be subject to additional terms and conditions.
• Where we have delayed or cancelled your service to conduct unscheduled aircraft maintenance, because of a crew shortage or some other event that is within our control, we will use our best efforts to provide you with meal vouchers at 2-hour intervals while you wait at the airport.
• For bookings with a flight into, out of or within the USA, you may also be eligible for a refund where a change has been made to your itinerary which results in a change of origin or destination port, or a change from direct to connecting flights. You can request this refund online by following the prompts in the email or SMS you receive about the change or cancellation (or via your travel agent if this is how you booked), or by contacting the Guest Contact Centre or your travel agent.
• You may be entitled to claim compensation for reasonable costs you incur as outlined in section 8 or under the Australian Consumer Law.
• If you are booked to travel on a flight operated by Qatar Airways for Virgin Australia between Australia and Doha, Qatar with a Virgin Australia flight number VA1 to VA29 (inclusive), the above entitlements will not be applicable to your booking, and you will instead be eligible for the options set out in section 9 of this Policy.

5. What happens if VA denies me boarding (for reasons other than my conduct)?

• In some circumstances, we may request that volunteers choose to move, or we may need to involuntarily move you, to a later flight to the same destination.
• As outlined in section 4, if you are denied boarding, we will move you to the next available Virgin Australia service to the same destination without charge. If the new flight time is not suitable, you may request a travel credit or refund of the price you paid for your impacted flight by contacting our Guest Contact Centre or your travel agent (if applicable).
• If you are moved to the next available Virgin Australia flight which is scheduled to depart more than two hours from your original scheduled departure time, and you choose to fly on this flight, we will also provide you with compensation in the form of a travel credit for your inconvenience.
• You may also be entitled to claim compensation for reasonable costs you incur as outlined in section 8 or under the Australian Consumer Law. 
   

6. What happens if VA downgrades me from the cabin class I originally purchased?

In the rare event we downgrade you from the cabin class you originally purchased to a lower cabin class, the difference between the fare class you paid for and the fare class you travelled in will be automatically refunded. The Fare difference will be calculated based on the price of the equivalent fare at the time you made your booking.

In addition, for bookings with a flight into, out of or within the USA, if you choose not to travel, you can request a refund online by following the prompts in the email or SMS you receive about the change or cancellation (or via your travel agent if this is how you booked), or by contacting the Guest Contact Centre or your travel agent.

7. What happens if an ancillary product or service I’ve purchased is not available (for example Economy X)?

In the event we do not provide you with the product or service you paid for and this failure is not due to your act or omission, you may request a refund of the amount you paid for the product or service in accordance with the procedure outlined in the terms and conditions for that product or service. If any failure to provide you with the product or service you paid for is due to your act or omission, you will not be entitled to receive a refund. For example, if you breach the terms and conditions applicable to the product or service (which we have given you notice of) which results in us failing to provide you with the product or service.

8. Claims for reasonable costs

The types of costs you may be entitled to claim in the event of a disruption to your booking are outlined in this section 8. You may also be entitled to reimbursement of additional costs if we have not complied with the Consumer Guarantees page under the Australian Consumer Law. Please see our Consumer Guarantees page for more information.

If Virgin Australia delays or cancels your flight due to factors within its control and as a result you are delayed overnight while you wait for your new Virgin Australia service, you may submit a claim for the following costs:

• The reasonable cost of hotel accommodation (if you are not at your home port and if we do not organise accommodation for you) up to $200 per room per night;
• The reasonable cost of airport transfers (for example, taxi, Uber, train, ferry or bus);
• Reasonable meal costs (up to $30 per night per person if you are not at your home port); and
• Cost incurred for reasonable personal items (if you are not at your home port).

In addition, if you are delayed for 2 hours or more at the airport, we will provide reasonable meal costs for the duration of your delay at the airport (if we do not provide you with meal/refreshment vouchers).

Virgin Australia considers the following matters to be within its control:

• Crew shortages;
• Unscheduled aircraft maintenance or other engineering issues;
• Malfunction of Virgin Australia IT infrastructure (other than malicious attacks);
• An aircraft has been overbooked;
• You are denied boarding (either voluntarily or involuntarily) for reasons other than your conduct on your day of travel;
• You miss your connecting Virgin Australia flight because we delayed or cancelled a flight for one of the above reasons; or
• We decide to stop operating services on a specific route for commercial reasons. 

Your claim should be submitted to our Guest Relations team using our Online Feedback Form. Please keep receipts for all amounts you are claiming, and upload with your claim. We will not be able to reimburse you for any costs if you are not able to provide us with evidence to our reasonable satisfaction that you incurred these costs. Where possible, you should take steps to mitigate costs or expenses you incur.

9. Flights operated by Qatar Airways for Virgin Australia between Australia and Doha, Qatar, with Virgin Australia flight numbers VA1 to VA29 (inclusive)

These flights are subject to regulatory approval. If your flight is cancelled because final regulatory approvals are not received at the time your flight is due to depart: 

• If we need to cancel your flight, either we will contact you, or your travel agent will contact you, using the contact details provided in your booking (which may be by phone, text or email) to advise you or your nominated booking contact of the cancellation.
• We will move you to the next available Virgin Australia or Qatar Airways service in the same cabin from the same origin and destination without charge, and ensure that all ongoing flights on your itinerary (domestic and international) are updated accordingly.
• If this option is not suitable to you, we may transfer you to a service in the same cabin from the same origin and destination operated by another carrier without charge, if this is suitable to you. All ongoing flights on your itinerary (domestic and international) will be updated accordingly.
• If we cannot make suitable alternative flight arrangements, you may request a refund of the price you paid for your impacted flight to their original payment method (where possible) by contacting our Guest Contact Centre or your travel agent.
• You can claim compensation for reasonably foreseeable costs that you incur because the flight has been cancelled, as outlined in section 8 or under the Australian Consumer Law. Examples of reasonably foreseeable costs might include:
  • any reasonable additional amounts incurred by you when you book an alternative comparable flight, if you elect to receive a refund in accordance with the above;
  • costs for non-refundable accommodation, onward flight connections, transport, or tour bookings which you can no longer use because of the cancelled flight; or
  • non-refundable visa fees you have incurred for a visa that you can no longer use because of the cancelled flight.