How will I know my flight is delayed or cancelled?
Disruptions outside Jetstar’s control
Disruptions within Jetstar's control
Significant delays and overnight accommodation
How do I submit an expense claim?
While we do everything we can to get you to your destination as scheduled, sometimes a flight will need to be delayed or cancelled. In these instances, we want you to know what you’re entitled to and what we’ll do to help.
The below details your rights and what Jetstar commits to for domestic flights within New Zealand.
How will I know if my flight has been delayed or cancelled?
We’ll always get in touch with you as soon as possible to let you know of any changes to your flight. We’ll provide these flight updates using one or more of the following:
- emails
- text messages
- app notifications
- Manage booking notifications
- airport announcements and displays
If you’ve booked through a third party, such as a travel agent, and they have not provided your contact details to us, we’ll notify the agent directly.
Why is my flight delayed or cancelled?
There are many reasons that could result in a delay or cancellation of a flight, which can be broken down into two categories:
- Disruptions outside of Jetstar’s control^
- Disruptions within Jetstar's control~
Disruptions outside of Jetstar’s control
Sometimes there’s nothing we can do to prevent a flight being disrupted. According to New Zealand law, situations beyond Jetstar’s control include:
- weather events or natural disasters, such as volcano eruptions, floods, fires or earthquakes
- instructions from air traffic control
- instructions from authorities or the Government
- actions made to save a life
What am I entitled to for disruptions outside of Jetstar’s control?
You can request a credit voucher for the value of your flight if we’re unable to rebook you on a suitable flight and the purpose of your travel is void. You can contact us directly or, if you booked through a travel agent, your agent can request a voucher for you.
Disruptions within Jetstar’s control
A delay or cancellation that’s within our control covers instances such as certain engineering requirements or crew limitations.
Where your domestic flight has been delayed or cancelled for reasons within Jetstar’s control, you may have rights under the Civil Aviation Act 1990 (“CAA”). Different laws apply to international travel. You may also have rights under consumer laws such as the Consumer Guarantees Act 1993.
What am I entitled to for disruptions within Jetstar’s control?
If you flight is delayed more than 3 hours or is cancelled, we’ll provide alternative options for you to choose from at no additional cost to you.
Our priority is getting you to your destination as soon as possible, so your alternative option will typically be the next available flight with Jetstar. In rare occasions, alternative transport options may be provided.
If we can’t provide you a reasonable alternative and you choose not to travel, we’ll give you a refund to the form of payment for your booking for the value of your flight and any in-flight extras you may have purchased.
You may also be entitled to additional compensation, which we explain below.
Significant delays and overnight accommodation
If your flight is disrupted and is within Jetstar’s control, you may be entitled to additional compensation or reimbursement for reasonable expenses if the disruption means you incur damages. Below are some examples of damages that may be incurred.
Delays 3+ hours within Jetstar’s control
A refreshment voucher is provided to each passenger.
Delayed overnight within Jetstar’s control
If your flight has been delayed or cancelled and you’re required to stay away from home overnight, we’ll provide additional assistance to cover reasonable expenses.
If you’re at the airport, our priority is helping you secure accommodation with our chosen providers. If you’re not at the airport, or availability with our chosen providers is limited, you’ll need to secure your own accommodation. When securing your own accommodation, keep hold of your receipts as you’ll need these to request reimbursement.
What are ‘reasonable expenses’?
As a guide, we typically recommend passengers who are 50km or more from home to stay in hotel accommodation. We suggest NZD $200 per room for overnight accommodation and NZD $30 per person for meals. We also consider reasonable transport costs.
All claims are considered on a case-by-case basis to determine reasonable expenses. This means you may be able to claim higher amounts, such as higher accommodation costs that were unavoidable (eg due to limited availability). You may also be able to claim other types of expenses if they’re reasonably incurred and can be proven to be as a result of your impacted flight.
Under the CAA, the maximum you can claim for disruptions to your domestic flight is 10 times the amount you paid for your fare. However, you must have taken reasonable steps to minimise your losses, such as cancelling pre-booked accommodation or activities that you’re unable to use due to the disruption. All claims must have receipts or other forms of reasonable proof to be considered. Jetstar will also not be liable for damages under the CAA if Jetstar took all reasonable measures to avoid the damage or if it was not possible for Jetstar to take such measures.
For the complete text of the CAA, see the New Zealand Civil Aviation Act.
You may also be entitled to a remedy under the New Zealand Consumer Guarantees Act 1993.
What is not covered by Jetstar?
Even when a delay or cancellation is within Jetstar’s control, Jetstar will not be liable under the CAA for all types of damage.
Under the CAA, you may not be able to claim:
- Any damages that cannot be supported with proof (such as receipts)
- Damages that are not directly caused by the delay or cancellation of your flight
- Damages where you have declined Jetstar’s offer of a reasonable alternative flight
- Compensation for any inconvenience or loss of time
- Damages where you have not taken reasonable steps to limit your losses
- Unreasonable expenses (such as purchasing extravagant accommodation when reasonable alternatives were available)
How do I submit to expense claim?
To submit a claim, you’ll need to have all of your receipts ready to submit to our team. We typically recommend you submit all of your receipts in the one claim. To submit a claim, get in touch with us via Live Chat. We’ll request copies of all relevant receipts.
^Event Beyond Our Control means weather events, air traffic control issues, industrial action by a third party, security issues or any other unusual and unforeseen circumstance which we cannot control and the consequences of which we could not have avoided.
~Event Within Our Control means engineering issues, Jetstar IT system outages, delayed delivery of baggage to the carousel due to resourcing issues, late cleaning/loading of catering to the aircraft, crew/staffing issues or any other circumstance which we can reasonably control.