Jetstar is facing a class action lawsuit over allegations that it failed to refund customers for flights canceled due to COVID-19.

Jetstar is facing a class action lawsuit over allegations that it failed to refund customers whose flights were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Echo Law has initiated the case in federal court on behalf of hundreds of thousands of customers, claiming that the budget airline benefited financially at their expense.

The law firm alleges that between 2020 and 2022, Jetstar provided travel credits to affected customers instead of issuing refunds, despite being legally obligated to do so. These credits were reportedly of “much lower value to customers than the refunds to which they were entitled” and came with various restrictions.

Echo Law partner Andrew Paull asserted that Jetstar pushed customers into accepting credits, even though this was not what the terms and conditions had promised. “Many Jetstar customers ended up paying more than their original booking to use their credits on new fares, as they were led to believe they had little choice but to do that or risk losing the value of the flights they paid for,” he said.