Landing Fees

[turboplanner]

3 hours ago, skippydiesel said:

Turbs,

Do you have any legal insight/comment on, what I believe is a requirement under Australian Consumer Law, to post (advertise, etc) the fees that may be levied/charged by an airfield management, should you use their facility??😈

This is the link to the NSW Fair Trading Act 1987, There might be something in this.

 

https://www.austlii.edu.au/cgi-bin/viewdb/au/legis/nsw/consol_act/fta1987117/

[onetrack]

This what I get from a search regarding Avdata actions, in case of non-payment of airstrip/aerodrome fees; -

 

"Avdata operates as a billing agent for airport and aerodrome owners and does not generally take direct legal action itself.

Instead, they manage accounts for up to 90 days, after which unpaid debts and enforcement - such as legal action, or aircraft detention - are referred back to the respective airport owner or local council.

 

The Avdata Australia Privacy Policy notes they may provide operator information to debt recovery agencies, if instructed by the aerodrome owner.

For specific legal actions or outstanding debts, the matter is pursued by the local council or airport authority, whose facilities were utilised.

 

Key Points on Dispute Resolution:

 

Debt Handover: If an invoice is unpaid for an extended period, Avdata typically refers the debt back to the asset owner (like a council) to integrate into their own sundry debt recovery process.

 

Dispute Process: Facility conditions (such as the Bendigo Airport Conditions of Use) mandate that operators must exhaust formal dispute resolution procedures, before any court proceedings are commenced by the airport operator.

 

Collection Tactics: While direct lawsuits from Avdata are rare, facility owners often enforce charges by pursuing debts through local civil procedures, refusing future access to aerodromes, or enforcing aircraft liens."

 

Burnies advice about requesting the list of fees and charges in a reasonable advance period, sounds sensible and practical to me. I see no reason why an airport operator would fail to answer that query, even if it is only to direct the inquirer to the appropriate page of their website. Many councils bury their regularly-sought-after basic information in an obtuse manner on their sites.

 

The bottom line comes back to whether the outstanding amount is worth pursuing. For amounts under, say $150, I'd have to opine no airstrip/aerodrome operator would bother expending time, effort, and funds in trying to recover small amounts.

Over an amount, such as the aforementioned amount, I'm sure they would pursue it through legal recourse, and then you would likely end up receiving a court summons, and incurring other costs, which including your lost time in responding, would certainly add up.

 

Edited 1 hour ago by onetrack