Qantas would immediately refund passengers for canceled flights and out-of-pocket expenses caused by Chief Executive Alan Joyce's unilateral decision to ground all crew and flights on Saturday until Monday noon. However, to get immediate refunds, ticket holders must contact Qantas's call centre.

Affected passengers who submit their requests for refund online may have to wait for six to eight weeks as allowance for processing, a Qantas spokesman said. Out-of-pocket expenses claims for accommodation, phone calls and foods may even take beyond eight weeks, the spokesman added.

Almost 100,000 passengers affected by the grounding of Qantas jets are expected to file for refunds. The deluge would be the main reason behind the longer period it would take for Qantas to settle the claims.

Consumer group Choice said that Qantas's apology for the inconvenience and delayed refunds is not sufficient. Choice spokesman Christopher Zinn said the embattled air carrier must pay more than just the ticket price and out-of-pocket expenses, but must include credit card interest charged on new tickets that bumped off travelers had to purchase.

Although Qantas returned to full service by Wednesday and flew 348 domestic and 105 international flights, passengers from three Los Angeles flights had no regular meals during their entire trip. They were compensated with $50 vouchers given in LA and snacks on board. Some planes flew below capacity because the trips were supplementary services to clear the backlog of passengers in LA caused by the recent labor row.

It is not only displaced passengers who are seeking payouts from Qantas. The Transport Workers Union (TWU) said on Wednesday that it may initiate legal action against the air carrier for causing economic damage to baggage handlers, ground crew and catering staff with the grounding of planes and crew.

It would be a separate lawsuit from the legal challenge that TWU will make over the Fair Work Australia decision that forced workers to stop their strike and required Qantas to lift the grounding, TWU National Secretary Tony Sheldon said.

A Qantas spokesman said in response to the TWU threat of economic damage that the grounded employees were still paid their wages despite not working. Mr Sheldon pointed out that they did not receive entitlements such as loading and overtime payments because of the Qantas decision.

TWU and the pilots union will begin negotiations with Qantas on Monday.

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