We booked with Jetstar to fly out on 2 Nov 2014 from Gold Coast to Tokyo, this was one of those specials so we had to book, this was back in March 2014.
All was looking good, the four of us (2 adults to young children) were to sit together in the middle row on an Airbus A330, this is our usual arrangement as I would help my wife look after our 6 year old daughter so she can look after our 3 year old.
Until May, we received an email to notify us that our flight schedule has changed, and then another email in July to say it changed again.
Not only that the flight schedule was changed, but the plane itself changed from an Airbus A330 to a 787 Dreamliner. Here's the thing, this type of plane only has three seats in the middle row, and for us to even choose our seats (thanks to Jetstar rescheduling) we needed to fork out an additional $35 to do so. Needless to say we were not happy and I called to customer service and asked for a refund.
After a lot of frustration from waiting in their call queues, I finally got through to their call center. I had explained to them that I was not happy with the changes and wanted to get a refund. The girl on the line said that there's nothing that Jetstar could do. I asked to speak to her manager but she said the only way I can get through is to use the online form on their website, and that I would hear back within 72 hours.
So on the 28th July, I lodged a complaint, and I got this email:
"Dear Richard,
Thank you for letting us know about your Jetstar experience.
If you’ve elected to receive a response, one of our dedicated Customer Care analysts will investigate and respond to you within 15 business days.
If your feedback or query relates to imminent travel, please contact our Telephone Reservations team through our Contact Us page
for immediate assistance or alternatively, our Telephone Reservations team can complete a request for our Customer Care team to call you within 5 business days.
To help us identify and respond to this specific issue, please clearly quote your Case ID ( CAS-1087220-JTDBTD ) in any future communications with us.
You can also email us online through our Customer Service page General Enquiry or Feedback Eform if you have any further information to provide.
Kind Regards,
Jetstar Customer Care"
Ok, so not really 72 hours but 15 working days. I called them back and asked what was going on hear, and the customer service staff said "I apologize that you received the wrong information but it 15 days of wait time"
Anxiously I waited and waited, but nothing until 17 Aug (exactly 15 working days later), I got this email:
"
Dear Mr Nguyen,
Thank you for contacting Jetstar.
Please be assured that we recognise the importance of your concern and that we are looking into this for you.
Due to the nature of your concern, I do ask for your patience while we investigate this matter.
Thank you for following this up with us. Please be assured that we will be in touch soon.
Yours sincerely,
Martin – Jetstar Customer Care"
I called them back and asked what was going on, and what date I would expect a resolution. They said they can't commit to any date. I said when will I hear back, they said it depends on the case. All they can tell me is that they were "working on it"
So there you have it folks, 72 hours is really 15 days which is really really whenever they feel like it.
I've had a couple of family members and a few friends who were planning to fly with Jetstar but changed to other airlines since they heard the story from me and seeing the horror stories on this website. I'll be telling more people about this website and warn them of what a bad airline these guys are.
Will try ACCC now and see if I can get any response from these guys, as I still have not heard any progress yet. It's been 21 WORKING DAYS!
I would not be caught dead booking flights with Jetstar again! Worst airline ever!