Qantas introduces buy now, pay later to sell more airline seats

Qantas is hoping to sell more seats on its aeroplanes by giving passengers the option of paying for their flight after the event.

Qantas is introducing a ‘buy now, pay later’ option for travellers booking domestic or international flights in a first for the airline. Picture: David Gray/Getty Images

Qantas is introducing a “buy now, pay later” option for travellers booking domestic or international flights in a first for the airline.

The partnership with Zip is designed to help people “make up for lost time” and travel more, and comes with the added sweetener of extra frequent flyer points,

Travellers using Zip to pay for Qantas flights will get 3000 points on their first transaction after signing up and linking their frequent flyer account, and 1 point for every $3 spent on eligible flights.

Qantas Loyalty CEO Olivia Wirth said the partnership would give customers more choice in how to pay for their flights.

“With Zip they can spread the cost over time choosing flexible repayments and also earn Qantas points on the payments as well as the flight itself,” said Ms Wirth.

She said financial services, such as credit cards, were one of the most popular ways for frequent flyers to earn points, and they expected “buy now, pay later” would appeal to many members.

“We know that Australians love Qantas Points, so we’re continuing to develop new partnerships like this one with Zip to give our frequent flyers more ways to earn points,” Ms Wirth said.

“It helps keep members engaged in the program and ultimately drives value for our business.”

Under the partnership, travellers making a flight booking through the Qantas website can choose to pay with Zip rather than with a credit or debit card.

In this event, Zip pays Qantas the cost of the flight and then the traveller repays Zip over an agreed time frame.

A $7.95 monthly account fee applies unless the closing balance is paid in full before the due date.

In the event of a flight cancellation by Qantas, the passenger’s Zip account would be credited in the same way as a credit card or bank account.

Zip ANZ managing director Cynthia Scott said the company was thrilled to partner with Qantas to “transform the way Australians paid for travel”.

“By giving customers access to Zip’s fair, flexible and transparent payment solutions, travellers can sit back and enjoy their trip knowing they’re in control of their finances when they get home,” Ms Scott said.

“We are also giving freedom and choice back to customers by giving them the option to pay for their trip before they go or when they get back.”

Zip currently had over 3 million customers, with research showing 75 per cent intended to travel in the next 12-months.

“It means a lot to us that we can give Zip users the option to pay for their next trip with Zip,” said Ms Scott.

Qantas is not the first airline to offer the “buy now pay later” option, with low fares partner Jetstar teaming up with Afterpay in 2017 to increase payment choices.

Virgin has been offering buy now, pay later since 2018 in a partnership with Zip.

Originally published as Qantas introduces buy now, pay later to sell more airline seats