Submitted the online nomination form a few weeks ago for informing Qantas as to my nominee for complimentary WP status. Form indicates it can take several business days, but as of yesterday, I had not received any updates and my nominee's status had not changed. Decided to call the Frequent Flyer Service line (i.e. Manila) to find out what was going on and try to get it resolved given upcoming travel plans.
Spoke to a pleasant and friendly agent who attempted to resolve over the phone but was unable to do so as my nominee had "multiple QFF accounts" and this was blocking it (and apparently was why it had not been able to be processed). They needed to speak to the nominee to get approval to close/merge the duplicate account, after which time they can set up the link for complimentary WP. Nominee wasn't available to talk at the time, so I was advised to call back later on when the nominee was available and it could be addressed then. Fair enough.
Rang back 45 mins later and got a different agent. Provided them with a clear explanation of the story, why I was calling back and that I had my nominee there with me to resolve the duplicate account issue. Agent advises she'll try to process the nomination. Sure enough, comes back and confirms she's unable to do so because there is a duplicate account and the nominee will need to contact Qantas to get that resolved.
I reminded the agent that this was exactly what I'd just explained to her and that I had the nominee standing next to me and ready to talk with them in order to resolve the duplicate account issue. Agent then advises that she understands but that unfortunately she cannot process the WP nomination and that the nominee will need to call Qantas to resolve the duplicate account issue.
Seriously?!? What part of what we've just been discussing for the last 5 minutes or so is unclear??? 
Explained that the previous agent explicitly advised me to call back when my nominee was there with me and available to discuss the duplicate account situation so that it could be resolved, i.e. I'm doing exactly what I was advised to do by Qantas. Reiterated that the nominee was standing right next to me, ready and willing to talk with Qantas to resolve the duplicate account situation. Agent then asks me if the nominee is with me and can talk with them?
Shock horror, the answer was "Yes - just like I've told you at least 3 times now."
Eventually the agent gets to talking with my nominee (who knows nothing about a duplicate account). Authenticates their current FF account without issue, but is then asked to authenticate the account to be closed/merged.... you know, the one about which they have no knowledge??
To cut a long story short, turns out the nominee
did in fact have a duplicate account (and was eventually able to authenticate it by using random combinations of personal data they may (or may not) have used at that point in time). An account that was created almost a decade ago but has never been used, let alone logged into. An account that
failed for the nominee on original setup/creation process, which is why they were forced to create and use their now "active" account. At no time did Qantas inform the nominee via phone/email/mail about their "duplicate" account, so it's basically been sitting there dormant for the best part of a decade collecting dust and just waiting for someone to try and link them to a complimentary WP nomination.
Anyway, after finally getting to the bottom of that, the duplicate account has now been submitted for deletion/merging - a process that apparently takes
3-5 BUSINESS DAYS!!!! Of course, whilst we're waiting for that to happen, the complimentary WP nomination cannot be processed. What a
show!!
So on one hand, this has been a total cluster(you-know-what) and reminded me why I shudder at the thought of speaking with some (but admittedly not all) of the agents in Qantas' Manila call centre(s). On the other hand, it's given me an even greater appreciation for the times I've spoken with very competent agents from those call centres, let alone when I get to speak with some of the better agents who know what they're doing (especially my limited interactions with the VIP team thus far).
