According to New Zealand media, Emirates was required to reimburse a passenger for NZ$13,555 (about US$8,500) after a business class flight fell short of expectations.
A New Zealand court has found in favor of a man who booked business class tickets on Emirates for himself and his wife to travel to London. However, when they arrived at the airport, they discovered that the cabin product did not correspond to what Emirates had advertised in New Zealand.
One particularly problematic issue was the absence of lie-flat seats on the Boeing 777-300 used by Emirates on their flight from New Zealand, which are standard on other types of aircraft with more modern interiors.
In addition, the older IFE system, which the two passengers claimed malfunctioned during the trip, and the lack of a mini-bar on board left them feeling unsatisfied. During another leg of the journey, the couple ultimately purchased first class tickets to ensure they had access to such amenities.
According to the airline, the terms and conditions of the tickets permit modifications in the type of aircraft based on the operational needs in effect at the time of the trip. The judge, who believed the aircraft allocation to be a frequent event rather than an unusual one, was unconvinced by this, however.
The Fair Trade Act of 1986 forbids misleading and deceptive behavior in commerce, according to the New Zealand media quote of Disputes Tribunal referee Laura Mueller. Advertising for a service that Emirates knew would probably not be provided is fraudulent and misleading.
Although a search of scheduled databases reveals that, as of March 2023, this flight is typically operated by Airbus A380 aircraft, Emirates operates a daily nonstop flight between Dubai (DXB) and Auckland (AKL), one of the longest in the world (with the return leg from Auckland to Dubai taking around 17h 30min).
