Jetstar cost me an
EXTRA
$771.00 for compassion flight.
Existing flight to Singapore already booked and paid. (NFQNXH 29.12.12)
Received news wife’s father is dying.
o The compassionate reasons for the flight changes were mentioned.
o Changed date of flight Darwin to Singapore and booked and paid for onward flight to China.
o Paid extra for change of flight because did not want to wait for Jetstar 72 hour reaction to ‘compassionate reasons’.
Received news wife’s father is dead (in fact mistranslated - almost dead) come asap.
Changed flights Darwin to Singapore to China; again.
o The compassionate reasons for the flight changes were mentioned. Again I am advised about 72 hour reaction time and again I decided to rebook the flights so emotional stress and time was not wasted trying to save a dollar or two.
o To finally be assured I had booked the flights I connected with Jetstar 4 times. Three Jetstar direct Skype calls and one direct to Jetstar by mobile phone call.
o First Skype call was connected to a service representative whose level of English was so bad and inadequate to the job he (according to the 4th service representative I spoke with on the telephone) booked me, not my wife, to Singapore, and not onward to China as requested. That booking was changed and no evidence exists of that mistake. Which proves changes can be made; so can mistakes.
o This should just have been new dates for existing flights.
o Somewhere in the second or third Skype connection I managed to book and pay for the flights but received no confirmation because of the lost connection.
o Fourth connection (via mobile) I was able to learn of the mistakes made during the first connection. Corrections were made and flights confirmed. But I had already paid for flights which my wife could not use.
The next day I sent a ‘compassionate reasons’ request for action and a ‘customer service comment’ via the Jetstar internet connection.
It took Jetstar 20 days (not 72 hours) to get back to me about my ‘compassionate reasons’ request. They insisted I prove reasons so I sent them a copy of my father in-law’s death certificate and certified sequence of events.
They made me an offer of about $260 plus a $200 voucher which I primarily rejected because it was made by phone. I requested their offer be sent to my email address. I am still waiting for their offer to be made in writing.
I paid Jetstar $1,017.54 (credit card details 15.3.13). In the end the additional cost of my wife’s ‘compassionate reasons’ flight to China was $771.16 over and above the one way cost of Darwin to China.
This is yet another example of being ripped-off at the checkout only this time I have no way of contacting Jetstar except by email; which they now ignore. Even the phone number they use to call me just goes back to bookings.