Sooo annoyed with Jet Blue!!

[Nermel9]

Hi everyone!

So I booked my return flight home on October 8 with Jet Blue in February, (or even March) for the last flight out of MCO to Bradley, at 7:55 pm. I was hoping to do a park that day til maybe 4 or 5 and then drive to MCO.

Today I find out that they changed our flight to 6:35 pm! I knew Jet Blue randomly changed their flight times, but 90 minutes is a bit excessive. So I called today and asked if I could cancel my flight and get my money back, and the lovely Jet Blue girl (no sarcasm there, she really was very nice) told me that they can't give you a refund unless they change the flight time changes is a 2 hour difference. She then said I could change to a different flight the next day or take Jet Blue credit. I have no use for Jet Blue credit if I have to use it within the year of the purchase date, and I can't go home the next day!

I really wish there was a way I could do something about this, but I guess not, right? There's no way they will give me my money back and cancel my flight? I'd consider getting credit, but it's pointless unless I can use the credits in May, which I'm guessing I can't if I bought my tickets in Feb/March.

What are the chances they will change this flight to an even earlier time??? If they make it any earlier, I might lose my mind!

 

[jlewisinsyr]

I find JetBlue's policies to be one of the more customer friendly and although they are under no requirement to refund (or even change you to a different flight), they have specific policies that they follow and they are pretty lenient and fair overall.

Credits are usually good for one year from the date the credit is given (this is different from SWA, which is one year from the date of original purchase). And the credit only has to be used, the flight does not need to occur. So if you received a credit in June 22, 2011 you just have to book a flight by June 21 2012.

As for if another change will occur, your guess is as good as anyones.

 

[Nermel9]

I find JetBlue's policies to be one of the more customer friendly and although they are under no requirement to refund (or even change you to a different flight), they have specific policies that they follow and they are pretty lenient and fair overall.

Credits are usually good for one year from the date the credit is given (this is different from SWA, which is one year from the date of original purchase). And the credit only has to be used, the flight does not need to occur. So if you received a credit in June 22, 2011 you just have to book a flight by June 21 2012.

As for if another change will occur, your guess is as good as anyones.

Yes, the woman that I talked to was very nice, and she seemed to want to help me out, it was just frustrating that I couldn't get a refund!

However, if what you're saying is true...I might just call up and get those credits, if I can use them within a year of getting them! I have SW credits too, $188 worth, and I keep forgetting you have to use them within the year of purchase! So those would have to be used by Feb. of next year too! Hmmm...gotta do some investigating! Thanks for the tip!

 

[Girlie1]

i don't know what your situation is meaning where you live or if you are parking at the airport but I think they would also let you switch airports. I fly out of HPN (White Plains) and BDL and I always go with whichever one has the times I like. Just a thought but I understand it may not be a suitable option for you depending on your circumstances. Good luck

 

[n2mm]

I repeat and say that yes you can get credit and it is good for 1 year from the day you get it and (it gets better), you don't have to fly by that one year, you just have to use your credit by one year. So if you do it tomorrow you credit will be good until June 23rd and all you have to do is buy your ticket by that day, even if your trip doesn't start for several months afterwards. JB's credit is so much better than SW and if you are flying with family and you purchased everyone's ticket, you can get the entire credit in your account alone, which makes for a bigger chunk of change. I get JB credits throughout the year. First off you need to have a trueblue account because that is where they put your credit, then once you get it, you can double check on it by going to the credit section to make sure all is there. Using it is even easier, because once you buy tickets, if will tell you you have xxx amount in your credit and do you want to use this first?

 

[TJA]

I know it's a gamble, but Oct 8 happens to be an exact date I've been watching daily on Jet Blue (different airport than you, though) and I will say that the direct flight times keep changing, a lot. And not by just an hour or so either. I was about to book one day and then surprisingly the very next day the flight had changed from a late evening flight home to an early morning flight home and I was VERY relieved that I didn't book it. I guess what I'm saying is that maybe Jet Blue will end up changing your time yet again.....my particular flight actually ended up adding another direct flight so now I have another option to fall back on.

 

[DebbieB]

I would call back and ask for a superviser. Tell them the new time is not acceptable and ask for a refund. But before you do that, be sure to have an alternate plan with another airline. Looks like Delta has a 6:55pm but that only gives you 20 more minutes. Southwest has a 6:50pm. So it looks like you will not get much better.

 

[MAH4546]

Call back. You are certainly owed a refund if you desire it.

 

[seashoreCM]

In this very specific case I think it is worth keeping that flight.

Make rope drop at the park, grab breakfast and lunch instead of sit down, and you should have plenty of time to enjoy the park.

Now if they change your flight again I say you have an excellent argument to measure the two hours from the time of the original flight, not the time of the last change.

Also keep checking back to see if a later flight opens up, and ask for a change to that.

 

[jlewisinsyr]

Call back. You are certainly owed a refund if you desire it.

No one is owed a refund due to a flight change if it still gets you to point A to point B on the same day as originally scheduled. Now airlines do have various policies in place to give passengers alternative options from refunds to selecting new flights, but they do this more for goodwill then because they owe passengers something.

 

[MAH4546]

No one is owed a refund due to a flight change if it still gets you to point A to point B on the same day as originally scheduled. Now airlines do have various policies in place to give passengers alternative options from refunds to selecting new flights, but they do this more for goodwill then because they owe passengers something.

Absolutely not.

Anything more than the smallest change, and the passenger is owed a refund, just like how if a flight is delayed, the passenger can request a refund at the airport and leave. Airlines know this. Take it up with a supervisor is an agent won't refund. If that doesn't work, ask for the address to the legal department since you'd like to file a case in small claims court. Just the threat if that works, because airlines know they would lose.

This is a significant change and the passenger is owed a refund if she pleases. Of course, that doesn't meant she is going to find a good fare on another carrier.

I learned a lot working at an airline in corporate. One of those things is that airlines, like all major companies, do their darndest to convince people that one thing is the law, when it's anything but. Many airline COC go against the most basic of contract law principles, and in a court, co tract law wins. But nobody bothers taking an airline to court for something so trivial. And the few who try simply get everything settled in their favor, in terms of a refund.

 

[jlewisinsyr]

Absolutely not.

Anything more than the smallest change, and the passenger is owed a refund, just like how if a flight is delayed, the passenger can request a refund at the airport and leave. Airlines know this. Take it up with a supervisor is an agent won't refund. If that doesn't work, ask for the address to the legal department since you'd like to file a case in small claims court. Just the threat if that works, because airlines know they would lose.

This is a significant change and the passenger is owed a refund if she pleases. Of course, that doesn't meant she is going to find a good fare on another carrier.

Absolutely not to you, there is nothing legally requiring them to offer you a refund, the terms and conditions one agrees to when buying a ticket allows airlines to change flight times with no requirement that there is passenger compensation ahead of scheduled departure date. It is very different then day of departure delays (which are most often not compensated, only cancellations are).

 

[MAH4546]

Absolutely not to you, there is nothing legally requiring them to offer you a refund, the terms and conditions one agrees to when buying a ticket allows airlines to change flight times with no requirement that there is passenger compensation ahead of scheduled departure date. It is very different then day of departure delays (which are most often not compensated, only cancellations are).

I'm not going to argue with you non this any further. I have worked at a major airline's corporate headquarters, and you haven't.

She is owed a refund if she pleases.

On a day of departure delay, you are not owed compensation, obviously, but if a flight is delayed even by five minutes, you are owed a refund if you request it. For business travelers on a tight schedule, it happens all the time.

 

[goofy4tink]

Call back. You are certainly owed a refund if you desire it.

Absolutely not.

Anything more than the smallest change, and the passenger is owed a refund, just like how if a flight is delayed, the passenger can request a refund at the airport and leave. Airlines know this. Take it up with a supervisor is an agent won't refund. If that doesn't work, ask for the address to the legal department since you'd like to file a case in small claims court. Just the threat if that works, because airlines know they would lose.

This is a significant change and the passenger is owed a refund if she pleases. Of course, that doesn't meant she is going to find a good fare on another carrier.

I learned a lot working at an airline in corporate. One of those things is that airlines, like all major companies, do their darndest to convince people that one thing is the law, when it's anything but. Many airline COC go against the most basic of contract law principles, and in a court, co tract law wins. But nobody bothers taking an airline to court for something so trivial. And the few who try simply get everything settled in their favor, in terms of a refund.

I'm not going to argue with you non this any further. I have worked at a major airline's corporate headquarters, and you haven't.

She is owed a refund if she pleases.

On a day of departure delay, you are not owed compensation, obviously, but if a flight is delayed even by five minutes, you are owed a refund if you request it. For business travelers on a tight schedule, it happens all the time.

Every passenger needs to read the CoC for each airline they fly. If they have a problem with that, then they should choose another airline. You may have worked at an airline's corporate headquarters but that doesn't change what the airlines have on their websites or what they are bound by. If it were to be true that any little change can result in a refund, then things would be a lot different. How the heck do you think airlines have been getting away with the current policy for so long??? Do you truly think the flying public are all idiots??? We have current airline employees (yes, at the corporate level) who post here regularly. And no, they do not spout the company line..they give very good, grounded advice. I'm pretty sure if you were able to get a refund for a small change in your flight times, we would have known about it before now.

Have yet to see a business traveler (and we have a ton of 'em here) tell us that they have gotten any kind of refund for a 5 min delay. Airlines would be out a ton of money if they did this on a regular basis. Airlines just don't work on a tight and accurate schedule...there are delays and changes all the time.

 

[LittleStinkerbelle]

Sorry to hear that - I'm a little frustrated with them too right now so I feel your pain. They changed the flight times between HPN and MCO this week and now my 6:30 a.m. flight is an 8 a.m. flight. This is the first time we've had such a big change with JetBlue. Really disappointing and we don't leave until October so now it's the waiting game to see if they make it even later, which I'm really nervous about.

 

[goofy4tink]

Sorry to hear that - I'm a little frustrated with them too right now so I feel your pain. They changed the flight times between HPN and MCO this week and now my 6:30 a.m. flight is an 8 a.m. flight. This is the first time we've had such a big change with JetBlue. Really disappointing and we don't leave until October so now it's the waiting game to see if they make it even later, which I'm really nervous about.

I'm flying JB in Dec. There are three flights within a two hour period, one of which I'm booked on..the middle one if I remember correctly. I'm pretty sure one of those fllights is going to be cancelled and combined with another one. It will most likely be my flight that gets cancelled...that's always happening to me.

 

[Hoopfamily]

One of the perks to booking flights way in advance can be great prices, however one of the drawbacks is that there will almost certainly be a change is times. Usually if you call the airline and are calm cool and collected they will try to be accommodating. If not you can ask for a refund, whether or not you get is up to them at that point.

 

[jlewisinsyr]

I'm not going to argue with you non this any further. I have worked at a major airline's corporate headquarters, and you haven't.

She is owed a refund if she pleases.

On a day of departure delay, you are not owed compensation, obviously, but if a flight is delayed even by five minutes, you are owed a refund if you request it. For business travelers on a tight schedule, it happens all the time.

And you know where I have worked and where I work, you know my history of travel? I think you are very mistaken in your stance, I have said so before. Regarding your stance, I'm sure members of FlyerTalk would love to hear your opinion.

 

[focusondisney]

Well, OP, don't give up hope on your flight going back to close to the original time. We are booked on direct flights to & from Buffalo in Sept. Noticed in April our seat assignments had been changed. JB had changed both flights to smaller planes. The return flight was full & not even showing up online anymore. Also that had been moved up about 25 mins. We were eventually notified by email one & phone twice of that time change. They even called last Thursday to confirm this change.

Cut to Monday, just 4 days later. Go to JB website to check current prices. Guess what? There is the direct flight back home, which hasn't shown up since April. And the flight has now been moved back 20 mins, putting it only 5 mins before our original time! Check our seats, yep changed again. JB has now returned to the larger plane! Of course they did! Still waiting for them to "notify" us, but I'm sure they will.

This year is seems to be a challenge for both the airlines & passengers. Try to stay calm & don't give up hope. Things may go your way yet. I'm just gonna keep an eye on my times & seats. Hopefully they won't change things too close to our trip so we can get our towncar service set.

Good Luck!

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

Anything more than the smallest change, and the passenger is owed a refund, just like how if a flight is delayed, the passenger can request a refund at the airport and leave.

I'm not going to argue with you non this any further. I have worked at a major airline's corporate headquarters, and you haven't.
She is owed a refund if she pleases.

On a day of departure delay, you are not owed compensation, obviously, but if a flight is delayed even by five minutes, you are owed a refund if you request it. For business travelers on a tight schedule, it happens all the time.

Sorry, but this is absolute nonsense. Yes, you may request a refund, but you aren't going to get one!

I'm sure members of FlyerTalk would love to hear your opinion.

That would be a very amusing thread!