JetBlue cancelled a flight just 10 minutes before boarding, leaving a passenger stranded in New York. The airline and Booking.com are now at odds over the refund.
Flight Cancelled at the Last Minute
Andrew Gilpin, Deputy Editor in Chief, was at JFK Airport in New York, ready to board a flight home to London. An email arrived: 'your flight has been cancelled'. A follow-up email offered a rebooking via Boston, but not for four days. Gilpin, due in the office the next day, joined a long queue at the customer service desk, where staff appeared to be in panic mode.
He found a Virgin/Delta flight for £218 leaving the next day. He booked it and immediately requested a full refund from JetBlue for the cancelled flight. He also booked a last-minute hotel room in Times Square for £145, expecting the refund to cover the costs.
Refund Request Denied
After waiting the regulatory seven days, no refund arrived. A phone call to JetBlue seemed positive: the airline said it had processed the refund, and Booking.com, the booking agent, needed only to direct the money to the card. However, Booking.com emailed Gilpin, stating: 'We would like to inform you that we have contacted the airline regarding the refund request for the referenced booking. The airline has advised that they were contacted directly by the passenger, and based on the passenger's confirmation, the tickets were reissued. As the booking has already been reissued, the airline has confirmed that a refund is no longer applicable for this reservation. We regret that we are unable to process the refund.'
JetBlue then told Gilpin it could not refund the money because he paid in cash, meaning the airline had no card to repay. Gilpin noted he had not paid Booking.com in cash. JetBlue offered a travel voucher for £136 instead.
Companies at Odds, Passenger Stuck
Booking.com told Gilpin: 'Thank you for your waiting, Andrew. I see that you contacted us on the 11th to request a refund. However, according to the airline's response, your ticket has already been reissued, so a refund is no longer applicable. Furthermore, as the scheduled flight date has long since passed, we are currently unable to access or reopen your ticket. If you wish to pursue a refund, please contact the airline directly regarding your request.' When pushed, they added: 'If the airline agrees to issue a refund, please ask them to provide a confirmation email or an email stating that they agree to review your refund request. We cannot proceed without an official notification from the airline.'
JetBlue said on the phone it was not policy to issue such emails. Gilpin is left out of pocket for a day of work, a flight home, and a hotel, trying to resolve the dispute between the two companies.
Statements and Advice
JetBlue said: 'Thank you for reaching out. We understand the customer’s frustration and apologize for the inconvenience caused by the cancellation. Because the ticket was purchased through a third-party travel agency, JetBlue does not hold the original form of payment and cannot process the refund directly. We have left this matter open for the issuing agency to process any refund due and encourage the customer to continue working with their booking provider.'
A Booking.com spokesperson added: 'We were sorry to hear about this customer’s experience. After receiving the request, we promptly contacted the airline regarding a refund for the cancelled flight. The airline confirmed that it had reissued the ticket under a new ticket number, and advised that any enquiries for this new ticket be handled directly by them with the customer. We appreciate the wait the customer has experienced, and will make sure the refund for the original flight is processed as soon as it is received by the airline.'
