- Report: #256369
Complaint Review: Spirit Airlines - Miramar Florida
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Spirit Airlines
2800 Executive Avenue Miramar, 33021 Florida, U.S.A.
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Spirit Airlines Airport customer service Ripoff Miramar Florida
THIS IS COPY OF THE LETTER SENT TO SPIRITAIR IN FEBRUARY -2007
On Monday Feb.5th my partner and I were flying on Spiritair from Tampa, Fl to Cancun, Mexico. In Tampa , we were told that they couldn't check in us and our baggage to Cancun since we had two different reservations: one from Tampa to Ft. Laudardale and the other one from Ft.Lauderdale to Cancun. Instead we were told that we would need to pick up our baggage upon arrival in Ft.Lauderdale and check in again for our flight to Cancun. I asked why it was not possible for our luggage to be transferred from one flight to the next seeing as how we were not changing airlines. The supervisor (Cindy) replied "the computer won't let us do it". I again questioned why it was not possible for our luggage to be transferred to our second flight because after all it was the same airline and she said "but if you pay us $50 we can make the change".
At that time another employee approached and said "It is $75.00 per person to be charged for checking you and baggage to Cancun or you will need to de-plane in Ft. Lauderdale, collect your luggage, and check-in again for your next flight". We replied, "No Thank you" When we arrived at Ft. Laudardale we picked up the baggage and went to check in. We arrived at the agent 45 minutes prior to the flight departure time and were told that international flights closed the check in with 1 hour prior to flight time. We were told that we could not make the flight. I asked why we had not been informed in Tampa that we were not going to make the conection on time since their was a one hour cut of time to check-in and re-board the plane? We received no answer at all.
We asked if it was possible to let us check in and send the baggage on the next flight but they said they wouldn't do that. We called the 800 number and they told us that they could send us on the next flight which will be Tuesday (Feb. 6th) and change the return flight for Saturday (Feb. 10th) for a cost of $350.00. I said "No thanks". As a result, I had to cancel our hotel reservation in Cancun. I was charged a $120.00 fee for this cancellation.
I called the airlines and requested a return flight to Tampa and they was informed that everything was booked for Monday and for Tuesday. The only seats available were in Business class and I couldn't afford to spend more money so we rented a car and come back home (Tampa) after a nightmare experience courtesy of Spirit Airlines. On Tuesday February 6, my partner called the 800 number to request a credit or a voucher. He was told that missing flight is referred to as a "lost ticket". Upon explaining the circumstances of why we were not aboard the plane (not permitted to board) the customer services representative said rudely "No, missing a flight is a lost ticket". When he (my partner)asked why we weren't told in Tampa when we informed the representatives there that when we arrived in Ft. Lauderdale we were going to de-plane, collect our baggage, check-in, and re-board and checking -in that we would not have enough time to do this the customer service representative hung up the phone.
My partner called the 800 number once again and was told by a lady that she couldn't do anything. She stated "We lost the ticket and we didn't get "any money back"". After reading the agreement I have with them and the emails they sent us with the confirmation for the flight, I can find nothing that states "the computer won't let check in to final destination when you have two different reservations but if you pay $75 per person it is possible".
Also, there is no place on the email or agreement before paying for the ticket that it states the international flights close 1 hour prior to the flight. If I was aware of this I would have either paid the $150.00 for both of us (I would have been forced to pay this fee because we had 1 hour 10 minutes between flights and it is impossible to de-plane, collect your luggage, check-in, and replane in 10 minutes. Keep in mind that we only had 10 minutes not 1 hour 10 minutes as the check-in station for international flights closed 1 hour prior to the flight AND WE WERE NEVER TOLD THIS!) or I would have made other travel arrangements.
Spiritair caused a mess of what was supposed to be a wonderful 2 year anniversary celebration. It is so needless and that is my frustration. If their Customer service representatives had informed us at the outset than none of this need happened. But no. We were met over and over by rude people that ignored us, were unwilling to accomodate us or help us or even talk to us. We were even hung up on by their 1-800 number representative!
As a result of SpiritAir, we had to cancel our hotel reservation in Cancun and pay a $110.00 fee, pay Spiritair flight money totaling $496.00, and pay $76.00 for a rental car and drive 5 hours to return home to Tampa. Many aggravations, frustration with Spiritair agents and customer service employees for two days were experienced and no one has ever helped us. We have had to pay $550.00 for another last minute vacation to have some relaxing time. Spiritair wont reimburse us or give us any voucher at all.
I just need to know about Spiritair's business practices. They advertise wonderful rates and than catch you like this. They need to be straightforward and others need to be warned about them. I would appreciate anything you could do to look further into this situation. Other airlines issue vouchers and I understand if a penalty is assessed but Spiritair is very sneaky and slipshod and definitely needs to be investigated regarding their business practices. Thank you.
Hugo
Tampa, Florida
U.S.A.
On Monday Feb.5th my partner and I were flying on Spiritair from Tampa, Fl to Cancun, Mexico. In Tampa , we were told that they couldn't check in us and our baggage to Cancun since we had two different reservations: one from Tampa to Ft. Laudardale and the other one from Ft.Lauderdale to Cancun. Instead we were told that we would need to pick up our baggage upon arrival in Ft.Lauderdale and check in again for our flight to Cancun. I asked why it was not possible for our luggage to be transferred from one flight to the next seeing as how we were not changing airlines. The supervisor (Cindy) replied "the computer won't let us do it". I again questioned why it was not possible for our luggage to be transferred to our second flight because after all it was the same airline and she said "but if you pay us $50 we can make the change".
At that time another employee approached and said "It is $75.00 per person to be charged for checking you and baggage to Cancun or you will need to de-plane in Ft. Lauderdale, collect your luggage, and check-in again for your next flight". We replied, "No Thank you" When we arrived at Ft. Laudardale we picked up the baggage and went to check in. We arrived at the agent 45 minutes prior to the flight departure time and were told that international flights closed the check in with 1 hour prior to flight time. We were told that we could not make the flight. I asked why we had not been informed in Tampa that we were not going to make the conection on time since their was a one hour cut of time to check-in and re-board the plane? We received no answer at all.
We asked if it was possible to let us check in and send the baggage on the next flight but they said they wouldn't do that. We called the 800 number and they told us that they could send us on the next flight which will be Tuesday (Feb. 6th) and change the return flight for Saturday (Feb. 10th) for a cost of $350.00. I said "No thanks". As a result, I had to cancel our hotel reservation in Cancun. I was charged a $120.00 fee for this cancellation.
I called the airlines and requested a return flight to Tampa and they was informed that everything was booked for Monday and for Tuesday. The only seats available were in Business class and I couldn't afford to spend more money so we rented a car and come back home (Tampa) after a nightmare experience courtesy of Spirit Airlines. On Tuesday February 6, my partner called the 800 number to request a credit or a voucher. He was told that missing flight is referred to as a "lost ticket". Upon explaining the circumstances of why we were not aboard the plane (not permitted to board) the customer services representative said rudely "No, missing a flight is a lost ticket". When he (my partner)asked why we weren't told in Tampa when we informed the representatives there that when we arrived in Ft. Lauderdale we were going to de-plane, collect our baggage, check-in, and re-board and checking -in that we would not have enough time to do this the customer service representative hung up the phone.
My partner called the 800 number once again and was told by a lady that she couldn't do anything. She stated "We lost the ticket and we didn't get "any money back"". After reading the agreement I have with them and the emails they sent us with the confirmation for the flight, I can find nothing that states "the computer won't let check in to final destination when you have two different reservations but if you pay $75 per person it is possible".
Also, there is no place on the email or agreement before paying for the ticket that it states the international flights close 1 hour prior to the flight. If I was aware of this I would have either paid the $150.00 for both of us (I would have been forced to pay this fee because we had 1 hour 10 minutes between flights and it is impossible to de-plane, collect your luggage, check-in, and replane in 10 minutes. Keep in mind that we only had 10 minutes not 1 hour 10 minutes as the check-in station for international flights closed 1 hour prior to the flight AND WE WERE NEVER TOLD THIS!) or I would have made other travel arrangements.
Spiritair caused a mess of what was supposed to be a wonderful 2 year anniversary celebration. It is so needless and that is my frustration. If their Customer service representatives had informed us at the outset than none of this need happened. But no. We were met over and over by rude people that ignored us, were unwilling to accomodate us or help us or even talk to us. We were even hung up on by their 1-800 number representative!
As a result of SpiritAir, we had to cancel our hotel reservation in Cancun and pay a $110.00 fee, pay Spiritair flight money totaling $496.00, and pay $76.00 for a rental car and drive 5 hours to return home to Tampa. Many aggravations, frustration with Spiritair agents and customer service employees for two days were experienced and no one has ever helped us. We have had to pay $550.00 for another last minute vacation to have some relaxing time. Spiritair wont reimburse us or give us any voucher at all.
I just need to know about Spiritair's business practices. They advertise wonderful rates and than catch you like this. They need to be straightforward and others need to be warned about them. I would appreciate anything you could do to look further into this situation. Other airlines issue vouchers and I understand if a penalty is assessed but Spiritair is very sneaky and slipshod and definitely needs to be investigated regarding their business practices. Thank you.
Hugo
Tampa, Florida
U.S.A.
2 Updates & Rebuttals
Hugo
Tampa,Florida,
U.S.A.
RESPOND FROM SPIRITAIR BUT NOT GOOD AT ALL
#2Author of original report
Sat, June 23, 2007
Due to the overwhelming feedback we have been receiving, I apologize we did not respond to your correspondence sooner. Thank you for taking the time to write to us and to bring your concerns to our attention. I apologize for any inconvenience you may have experienced on your resent travel. Our records indicate you purchased two separate reservations to receive a lower airfare. Failure to comply with applicable fare restrictions, circumventing those restrictions, or misrepresenting your intended itinerary are all breaches of our Contract of Carriage. In particular, the following ticketing practices are prohibited: Back-to-back ticketing combining multiple overlapping round-trip tickets to circumvent advance purchase requirements Throw-away ticketing use of discounted round-trip fares for one-way travel Point-beyond ticketing use of a fare published for travel to a point beyond your actual intended destination or from a point before your actual intended origin. These specific examples are not exclusive. Using a fare without complying with the fare rules of your ticket violates our Contract of Carriage. In such cases, we reserve the right to: Cancel the remainder of the itinerary and consider any unused segments as forfeited Refuse to board the passenger or check baggage Charge the passenger for the difference between the fare paid and the fare for the passenger's traveled itinerary Our check-in policy states Check-in begins three (3) hours prior to departure at the Spirit Airlines ticket counter. Spirit reserves the right to cancel the reservation or seat assignment of any passenger who does not have a boarding pass at least 30 minutes prior to scheduled or posted departure; 45 minutes for Las Vegas; and 60 minutes for all international flights." Due to additional TSA screening requirements and/or international security procedures, customers wanting to check baggage are required to do so at the ticket counter at least 30 minutes before departure; 45 minutes for Las Vegas; and 60 minutes for international flights. Customers presenting themselves at the boarding gate less than fifteen (15) minutes before the departure (30 minutes for international flights) may lose their reservation and become ineligible for denied boarding compensation. Once again I apologize for the inconvenience you experienced; however we are unable to honor your request. We strive to provide safe, reliable transportation and to serve our customers with courtesy and efficiency. Sincerely, Anna Marie Palazzolo Corporate Customer Relations Spirit Airlines
Hugo
Tampa,Florida,
U.S.A.
Second answer to SpiritAir
#3Author of original report
Sat, June 23, 2007
Good Morning Ms. Palazzolo, It has been couple months since we received your answer. We have read over and over your email/letter and there are things that we can't still understand, it looks like we made a mistake buying two different reservations to save money I don't know what is wrong with that we all need to save some money don't you think? Second when we bought the tickets and we accepted the agreement it doesn't say anything that you can't buy two different reservations, there was a sale and the purpose for any sale is to save money and that's what we did. Another think we can't understand is that at Tampa airport the person/supervisor in charged that morning (Cindy) she didn't even know these rules because she offered us to pay $50.00 so we can have the baggage checked to Cancun and another employee told her that it was $75 dollars, so if we did something wrong when we bought the tickets why she offered us that? and when we denied the offered why she didn't say if you don't pay the extra money you wont' have time to pick up and check the baggage at Ft. Lauderdale since the international flight needs 1 hour? that's why we didn't pay any extra money because really we though we had time. All the employees at Ft. Lauderdale airport that morning were very, very rude to us, I know dealing with public is not an easy job but you have to understand our frustration that morning when we worked hard to save money for a vacation time and in couple hours all money is gone. Ms. Palazzolo these are the questions that we still have and don't find any answers, also after loosing over $700 dollars if feels really bad. We are a working class people that we save some money so we can have some vacations at least once a year and that's why we choose Spiritair Airlines instead of any other airlines because of the good deals. I hope you can find the answers to our questions. Regards,
