A cancer patient has hit out at Qantas for twice refusing to refund him more than $1,000 after he was unable to fly following his shock diagnosis.
Former pilot Neil Ross, 62, was forced to cancel his holiday to Cairns, in far north Queensland, after he was diagnosed with cancer two weeks after booking the flight.
The Brisbane bus driver had initially booked a plane ticket through the Flight Center to travel to Tasmania to attend his flight instructor’s funeral several years ago.
After the Covid pandemic broke out, his flight was canceled and he received a $1,100 credit that expired on April 22 of this year.
Mr Ross then used those credits to book a flight for himself and his wife to Cairns.
Neil Ross, 62, was twice denied a refund from Qantas after he was unable to fly due to a cancer diagnosis which forced him to undergo surgery and weeks of chemotherapy.
He was forced to cancel following his cancer diagnosis and provided the airline with two medical certificates explaining why he could not fly and requested a refund.
However, Qantas ruled that his application “did not meet the compassionate requirements”.
This despite Ross undergoing a 13-hour surgery to remove a tumor from the right side of his face and requiring six weeks of almost daily chemotherapy.
“Like I said to the girl at the Flight Center, ‘look at my face, do you think I want my money back just for the sake of it?’ “I’d rather be healthy and go on vacation,” she said. news.com.au.
‘The medical certificate said that for medical reasons I cannot fly; Then Qantas rejected it.’
Ross submitted two medical certificates, the first on 20 March and a more detailed report from the Princess Alexandra Hospital on 9 April.
Both were rejected for not meeting the guidelines on compassionate grounds.
Ross said his fight for a refund is about standing up for the “smaller people” who don’t have the means to take over the airline.
Ross said his fight for a refund is about standing up for “smaller people” who can’t afford the airline (pictured, people boarding a Qantas plane in Sydney).
The bus driver has not yet been declared cancer-free and is still attending rehabilitation and ENT appointments due to complications in his ear canal.
He will have to undergo plastic surgery to reconstruct the right side of his face.
It is understood that after being contacted by the publication, Qantas gave Mr Ross a full refund.
“We apologize to Mr. Ross for this experience and inform him that we are processing a refund for him,” a spokesperson said.
It is understood that an error was made in the processing of the supplementary material by not attaching it to a previous application.
Daily Mail Australia has contacted Qantas for comment.