Qantas compo depends on class of seat
According to a report in The Sydney Morning Herald, terrified passengers who were thrown around and injured or shocked when QF72 suddenly plunged have been offered compensation by Qantas, depending on whether they were travelling business or economy class.
The airline has pledged to give each passenger on the turbulent flight from Singapore to Perth a voucher – ranging in value from $2,000 for economy travellers to about $6,000 for those in business class.
It will also refund all tickets and pay medical expenses resulting from the incident on Tuesday.
But the airline could still face a series of compensation claims, lawyers say.
As transport safety officials continue to investigate the computer malfunction that appears to have contributed to the A330’s sudden fall, law firm Slater and Gordon said injured passengers had a good chance of obtaining further compensation under federal legislation.
“The Civil Aviation (Carriers’ Liability) Act provides for compensation for persons suffering injury or death by accident in the course of an international flight,” lawyer Phil Gleeson said.
“Injured passengers don’t necessarily need to prove fault or carelessness on the part of the airline but simply that there was an injury arising from an accident.
“If there’s been any aberration in the normal functioning of the aircraft that has caused this, and people have been injured as a result, that would fall, on any commonsense analysis, within the normal definition of the act.”
He said most claims did not go to court but were dealt with on a case-by-case basis by the airline after passengers logged a claim.
A Qantas spokeswoman today confirmed that the airline was talking to passengers about paying for expenses associated with injuries that occurred on the flight and “any other needs”.
She said the airline would refund the cost of all travel on their current itineraries as well as giving each passenger a “voucher equivalent to a return flight from Australia to London”.
Each compensation claim would be dealt with on a case-by-case basis she said.
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