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Putting a Price on JetBlue Plane Pain

By

Jen Chung

Published Feb 20, 2007

Modified Mar 7, 2008

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By

Jen Chung

Published Feb 20, 2007

Modified Mar 7, 2008

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Queens based discount carrier JetBlue is starting to reimburse passengers who were affected by the implosion of JetBlue operations late last week after an icy storm. According to the NY Times, passenger woes will be addressed in a variety of ways, from "$25 toward a future flight to a round-trip ticket," depending on how bad the passengers had it. The Times and CNN received different numbers, so WABC 7 tried to consolidate all the figures in "broad strokes":

For arriving flights (waiting to get off plane):
30 minute or more delay = $25 off a future flight.
Two hour or more delay = full credit for return flight.

For departing flights (waiting to get onto plane):
One hour or more delay = $25 off a future flight.
Two hour or more delay = $50 off a future flight.
Six hour or more delay = round-trip ticket for future flight equal in value to the delayed flight.

For departing flights waiting on the tarmac, away from the terminal:
Three hour or more delay = $100 off a future flight.
Four hours delay = Round-trip ticket for future flight
Five hour delay = Return to terminal, unless takeoff is imminent.

And JetBlue may have to invest another $30 million in infrastructure and procedures to avoid another scenario that has its customers stranded in plans for half a day and hundreds of its flights canceled. The airline says it will release a "customer bill of rights" today to help customers understand "what customers can expect of JetBlue." JetBlue spokeswoman Alison Eshelman told Newsday says the bill of rights will be "industry leading."

So far, JetBlue hasn't released the bill of rights but it has put a video of founder and CEO David Neeleman on YouTube explaining how JetBlue is working to get things going.

Will JetBlue's very public mea culpas and measures to improve customer experience help? And there are still many bags "looking for owners."

Update: The JetBlue Customer Bill of Rights has been added and it outlines the compensation mentioned earlier if your flight is delayed or doesn't deplane. You probably want to read the JetBlue legalese before expecting anything, but a friend who flew JetBlue from Chicago to New York on February 12 was given a $10 coupon because the DirecTV wasn't working very well. That is what you call customer service in overdrive.

And JetBlue seems to have returned to normal today, but there are reports of a "disturbance" on a JetBlue plane at LaGuardia, so who knows?

Tagged

chicago

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Jen Chung

Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.

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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations

Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations

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