Benefits for Velocity Members Flying Alitalia?

Since Airberlin went broke last year, Alitalia has been the only Virgin Australia partner airline operating flights within Europe. The Italian flag carrier, which also has ongoing financial difficulties, has been a partner of Virgin Australia and Velocity Frequent Flyer since April 2016. With hubs in Rome and Milan, Alitalia operates many short-haul flights within … Continued

Virgin Overcharges, Threatens Membership Termination

A Virgin Australia customer was recently overcharged by more than $4,000. But, despite acknowledging the error, Virgin initially refused to refund any of the money. This customer claims that an airline representative even threatened to cancel their Velocity Frequent Flyer membership and revoke their Platinum status if they submitted a credit card chargeback claim. The … Continued

Trivago Sued for Misleading Advertising

The ACCC is suing hotel booking website Trivago in the Federal Court for misleading advertising. It alleges that Trivago misleads customers into believing they are getting the best hotel price when this is not always the case. Trivago, which is owned by Expedia, is an aggregator website that compares the cost of hotel rooms on … Continued

Singapore Airlines Call Centre Frustration

Singapore Airlines is renowned for consistently good service in the air. In fact, it just won the Skytrax award for world’s best airline! Unfortunately, this quality customer service doesn’t extend to the Singapore Airlines call centre. AFF member bean has had some very frustrating experiences with the Singapore Airlines and KrisFlyer call centres lately. Most of … Continued

The Tricks Airlines Use to Deny EU261 Compensation

Unlike in Australia, Europe has a government-mandated compensation scheme that forces airlines to compensate passengers affected by delayed, cancelled and overbooked flights. European airlines – and non-European airlines flying from Europe – are legally required to pay compensation to passengers delayed over two hours. In theory, this is a very consumer-friendly system that prevents airlines … Continued