# Labor’s bid to bolster Australian airline passenger rights may prove weaker than existing law, Choice warns

Consumer advocacy group says draft charter should include the right to a replacement or a refund when a flight is cancelled or significantly delayed

**Elias Visontay**  
Transport and urban affairs reporter

**Tue 11 Mar 2025 10.00 EDT**  
Last modified on Tue 11 Mar 2025 17.16 EDT

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Labor’s proposal to bolster airline customers’ rights to empower them when confronted with poor service and disruptions offers weaker protections than those Australians are entitled to under consumer law, Choice has warned.

The consumer advocacy group also criticised the use of timeframe “targets” instead of “deadlines” as being more likely to let airlines off the hook more easily.

It issued a range of warnings about the draft version of the aviation customer rights charter – an initiative that emerged from the Albanese government’s year-long white paper process for the industry.

The draft charter revealed that the government had bowed to pressure from Qantas and other airlines advocating against laws that would force them to pay cash compensation to passengers whose flights were delayed or cancelled – similar to a scheme that exists in the EU – after carriers said such rules would force them to pre-empt costs and bake them into higher base air fares.



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