Can the Airline Customer Advocate actually help with my complaint?
What the Airline Customer Advocate can and cannot do with a Qantas, Jetstar or Virgin complaint, how to complain first, and where to get a binding ruling.
Only partly. The Airline Customer Advocate (ACA) still takes complaints about Qantas, Jetstar and Virgin Australia in October 2026, but it only forwards your complaint to the airline and chases a response within 20 working days; it cannot order a refund. Your refund rights come from the Australian Consumer Law, and if the airline refuses, a state tribunal such as NCAT decides, not the ACA.
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Can the Airline Customer Advocate get you a refund?
Not on its own. The ACA is a scheme funded by the airlines that forwards your complaint to the airline and asks for a reply. It cannot decide your case or order the airline to pay.
Your real rights come from the Australian Consumer Law, Schedule 2 of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010, which guarantees that services are supplied with due care and skill and within a reasonable time (sections 60 to 62). The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) enforces that law but does not resolve individual complaints.
The ACA says it plainly on its About Us page: it "does not have independent power to make decisions that affect the participating airline's response to your complaint." What it does do is hold the airline to a written answer, usually within 20 working days.
The ACA covers three airlines: Qantas, Jetstar and Virgin Australia.
You must lodge within 12 months of the event, and only after the airline has answered your complaint and reviewed that answer.
The ACA aims to finalise your complaint within 20 working days of lodgement, paused while it waits on you for information.
Where you stand depends on why the trip went wrong:
- The airline cancelled or badly delayed your flight for a reason within its control. The ACCC's guidance is that if the replacement flight was not within a reasonable time, the airline must give you your choice of another flight or a refund, and an airline policy cannot take that right away. The ACA can press for it; only a tribunal can order it.
- The cause was outside the airline's control, such as weather, air traffic control or a government restriction. The ACCC says your fare conditions and the airline's compensation policy then decide what you get. The ACA can still facilitate, but the law gives you less to stand on.
- You changed your mind or missed the flight. No consumer guarantee applies. The ACA will forward the complaint, but expect the airline to point to the fare rules.
- You flew with any other airline, Australian or foreign. The ACA cannot take it. Complain to the airline, then go to your state consumer agency and tribunal. The Australian Consumer Law still applies to domestic flights, to international flights departing Australia, and to inbound flights booked on the airline's Australian website.
- You have already filed in a court or tribunal, or complained to a government body. The ACA will not look at the same matter.
The ACA is on its way out. The Aviation Consumer Protection Bill 2026 passed the House of Representatives on 29 June 2026 and is before the Senate. It creates an Aviation Consumer Ombuds Scheme with power to resolve complaints about airlines and airports, and an Aviation Consumer Protection Charter setting minimum standards. The Department of Infrastructure expects the scheme to start in 2026/27; its key provisions commence on proclamation or 12 months after Royal Assent, whichever comes first. Until then an interim ombudsperson (1800 075 001) can only give information and referrals, and the department says to keep using the ACA. Watch for the Senate vote and the commencement date.
What should you do before going to the ACA?
Step 1: Complain to the airline and get a case number
The ACA will not accept your complaint without it. Use the airline's own channel: Qantas's complaints process acknowledges within 3 business days and aims to resolve within 15 business days; Jetstar works through Live Chat, gives you a case number and aims for an outcome or update within 7 business days; Virgin Australia's Guest Charter promises a detailed response within 10 business days of its feedback form.
Keep the booking reference, the cancellation notice, the reason the airline gave, and receipts for anything you had to buy.
Step 2: Ask in writing and set a deadline
Say what went wrong, cite the law, name the remedy and give the airline 14 days. Send it through the complaints form or by reply to your case email so it sits on the file the ACA will later read.
Subject: Case [case number]: refund request for flight [flight number], [date], booking [reference]
You cancelled flight [flight number] on [date]. The reason you gave was [reason], which was within your control. The replacement you offered departed [hours/days] later, which was not a reasonable time for me.
Under the Australian Consumer Law (sections 60 to 62) services must be supplied within a reasonable time. Where they are not, I am entitled to my choice of a replacement flight or a refund to my original payment method. I do not accept a credit.
Please refund $[amount] within 14 days of this email. If you refuse, please treat this message as my request for an internal review. I will then lodge with the Airline Customer Advocate and, if needed, my state consumer tribunal.
Step 3: Ask for the internal review
If the answer is no, reply to the response email and ask for a review. Qantas, Jetstar and Virgin all run one, and the ACA's eligibility rules require you to have "sought a review of the response" before it will take the complaint.
Step 4: Lodge with the ACA
Lodge online at airlinecustomeradvocate.com.au within 12 months of the event. You will need the airline's case number, its written response and your receipts. If you cannot lodge online, call 1800 813 129 for a paper form. Expect a response within 20 working days.
What if the airline still says no?
The ACA is one rung on the ladder, and not the one that decides. Work through it in this order:
- Internal review at the airline. Costs nothing and takes days to a few weeks. The ACA will not take your complaint until you have asked for it.
- Airline Customer Advocate. Qantas, Jetstar and Virgin Australia only. No cost. Lodge within 12 months of the event; the ACA aims to close it within 20 working days. It forwards and chases, and tells you about other avenues if you are unhappy with the airline's answer. It cannot bind the airline.
- Chargeback through your bank. If you paid by credit or debit card and the service was not provided, ask your bank to reverse the payment. ASIC's Moneysmart guidance is to contact your bank, which "may be able to give you a chargeback". Ask promptly, because card scheme time limits apply, and if the bank refuses you can take that refusal to the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA).
- Your state or territory consumer protection agency. NSW Fair Trading, Consumer Affairs Victoria and their equivalents, listed on the ACCC's where to go for help page. No cost. They can explain your rights and may negotiate with the airline, but they cannot order it to pay.
- State or territory tribunal. The binding route. In New South Wales, NCAT hears consumer claims up to $100,000, can order a refund or payment, and you must apply within 3 years. Other states have their own tribunals and caps. There is an application fee, and the ACA will not take a matter you have already filed, so use it before you file, not after.
Foreign airlines. The ACA does not cover them. The Australian Consumer Law still applies to a flight departing Australia, or an inbound flight booked on the airline's Australian site, so the state agency and tribunal route is open to you. For international travel the Montreal Convention may also apply, and the Department of Infrastructure suggests the overseas regulator for issues that arose overseas.
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What doesn't work
- Going to the ACA first. It rejects complaints that do not carry an airline case number and a completed review.
- Waiting more than 12 months. The ACA's own charter rules out anything older, whatever the merits.
- Accepting a credit before asking for a refund in writing. The airline will treat the credit as your choice.
- Treating the ACA as an ombudsman. It cannot order a refund; only a tribunal can, so plan for that step from the start.
- Filing at the tribunal and then lodging with the ACA. Once you have filed, the ACA will not look at the same matter.
- Reporting to the ACCC and waiting. The ACCC logs reports for enforcement and does not resolve individual complaints.
Common questions
Is the Airline Customer Advocate an ombudsman?
No, the ACA is not an ombudsman. It is an industry scheme funded by Qantas, Jetstar and Virgin Australia that forwards complaints and chases a reply. It says itself that it has no independent power to make decisions, so it cannot order a refund or compensation the way a tribunal can.
Does the ACA cover Rex, Bonza, Emirates or Air New Zealand?
No, the ACA takes complaints only about Qantas, Jetstar and Virgin Australia. It lists only Qantas, Jetstar and Virgin Australia as participating airlines. For any other carrier, complain to the airline, then go to your state consumer protection agency and, for a binding order, your state tribunal. The Australian Consumer Law still applies to flights departing Australia.
How long does the ACA take?
The ACA aims to respond within 20 working days of lodgement. That clock pauses while it waits on you for documents or clarification, so attach the airline's response, your case number and receipts when you lodge to avoid delays.
When does the new Aviation Consumer Ombuds Scheme start?
The new scheme has not started and has no firm date. The Aviation Consumer Protection Bill 2026 passed the House on 29 June 2026 and is before the Senate. The department expects it to begin in 2026/27 once the law passes. Until then the interim ombudsperson cannot resolve complaints and the ACA remains the only airline scheme.
I booked through a travel agent or booking site. Can I still use the ACA?
Yes, if the complaint is about Qantas, Jetstar or Virgin Australia's service. The ACCC says both the agent's and the airline's terms apply, and the agent may only pass on the remedy the airline offers, so raise the complaint with the airline directly and get its case number before you lodge.
Can I skip the ACA and go straight to the tribunal?
Yes, you can go straight to your state tribunal. The tribunal is the only step that can bind the airline, and nothing requires you to use the ACA first. Just do not do it the other way round: the ACA will not take a matter you have already filed in a court or tribunal.
- Airline Customer Advocate, About Us
- Airline Customer Advocate, Eligibility
- Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications, Sport and the Arts, Making a complaint
- Parliament of Australia, Aviation Consumer Protection Bill 2026
- ACCC, Travel delays and cancellations
- ACCC, Jetstar, Tigerair, Qantas and Virgin Australia to fix refund policies
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