Jet2 Holidays Complaint (Help Needed)

Antony09

Hi,

I am wondering if someone can offer any advice re a complaint we are going to be making to Jet 2 Holidays.

We booked a package holiday with Jet 2 Holidays between 16-23 to Sharm El Sheikh.

On the 23rd, we were due to be picked up from our hotel at 1945hrs as our flight was due to leave at 2210hrs from Sharm. At 1945hrs the rep arrived but to tell us that the flight had been delayed for 3 hours so we were going to be picked up at 2245hrs. As we were all inclusive the hotel were happy with us having food and drinks until we left.

At 2245hrs the rep again arrived, only to tell us that the flight was now delayed until 0400hrs (Egypt Time). We asked him why we were being picked up 5 hours prior to our departure and he told us it was because of check-ins being open but could not tell us if we were going to be given food or drinks for free at the airport, as we were telling him it seemed silly us leaving the Hotel (where we were all inclusive) to the airport where we would have to pay for everything (and we did not have much money left)

We arrived at the airport at 2315hrs and the Jet 2 Holidays Rep Mohammed who had been our rep from the beginning told us to check our bags in, fill in the forms and he would be waiting for us in the departure area and would find out more info re free drinks and food due to lengthily delay. Once we had done all this, we soon realised that Mohammed had made a quick escape and now we joined the other 170 or so people in the departure lounge.

There were no Jet2 represenatives at the airport and the check in staff were just airport staff.

The board was showing our flight leaving 0400+ and our flight back to the UK was the only one delayed (other flights going back to UK such as Monarch were leaving on time).

Myself and a few other people from the hotel who had also booked with Jet 2 Holidays spoke to the Airport Information Staff who said they were going to find out more information regarding free drinks/food, they came back to us and we were told "we have spoken to Jet 2 back in the UK who have told us we will not be giving you anything" and refused to let anyone speak to this 'person'. They did not offer any further support in the next 5 hours we were waiting, even when we asked for bottles of water we were told to buy them.

At around 0400hrs we got on the aircraft and left at around 0430hrs, we got on the plane, the only explanation we were given was due to a delay the aircraft had when it was in Spain earlier that day due to ATC strikes.

To make matters better, we were then told that we had to fly via Prague due to crew times and would need a crew change there, the Captain had been told by staff at Sharm Airport that we were all told... only when they realised the reaction when we were told we had to fly via Prague and that we had no Jet 2 Rep at the airport to tell us anything, the Cabin Crew went over the tannoy and asked if we had been told anything, to which the whole aircraft replied no... did he admittantly say over the tanoy 'I cannot believe how you have been treated and find it appauling'.

Again whilst on the aircraft, we were not even given anything such as a free drink to compensate and we had even booked meals, and were refused a cup of water 'due to it only being a hot drink allowed with the pre-booked meals'.

We eventually arrived home at 1000hrs Manchester time, we had been due to arrive at Manchester for 0200hrs so were around 8 hours delayed, through the whole time we were not even offered a glass of water.

On arrival at Manchester me and my girlfriend went to the Jet 2 desk who basically told us it wasn't Jet 2's fault and they had no responsibility to make sure that we were fed and watered due to it being an ATC strike but agreed that there should have been a Jet2 Rep there (and said they do have them in Sharm) to tell us about what was happening and found it bad that we had not been told anything whatsoever.

Can anyone offer any advice if Jet 2 were supposed to do anything for us? People were quoting laws to the staff whilst in Sharm and entitlements we had.. but they were having none of it and refused to let us speak to anyone in Jet 2.

Is it worth a complaint?

Thanks for the help and sorry if I have rambled on a bit!!!

Antony

apt

Here is the relevant EU regulation. http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2004:046:0001:0007:EN:PDF
Jet2 had a duty of care to you as laid out in article 9. It should have provided drink and 2 phone calls. It could argue, I suppose, that it need not have provided a meal as people do not normally dine between 10.30pm and 4.30 am. I don't think you have cause to complain about being diverted via Prague as that arrangement probably prevented an even longer delay. You were more fortunate with your hotel. Many stop the All Inclusive service as soon as you check out of your room.

Antony09

Hi Pal,

Thanks a lot for your reply. I am sure I read somewhere you drafted a letter to send to the company, just for reference when I type up my complaint to the company?

Thanks, Antony

apt

I would be surprised if you qualified for compensation if the delay was unavoidable given the French ATC strikes given the regulation states:

(14) As under the Montreal Convention, obligations on operating
air carriers should be limited or excluded in cases
where an event has been caused by extraordinary
circumstances which could not have been avoided even
if all reasonable measures had been taken. Such circumstances
may, in particular, occur in cases of political
instability, meteorological conditions incompatible with
the operation of the flight concerned, security risks,
unexpected flight safety shortcomings and strikes that
affect the operation of an operating air carrier.
(15) Extraordinary circumstances should be deemed to exist
where the impact of an air traffic management decision
in relation to a particular aircraft on a particular day
gives rise to a long delay, an overnight delay, or the
cancellation of one or more flights by that aircraft, even
though all reasonable measures had been taken by the
air carrier concerned to avoid the delays or cancellations.

Alias_Omega

You could carry out a little bit more research into the aircraft route for that day to work out where they delay came from.

Its probably not just your flight that was delayed, but also those who had flown out on your aircraft, then the people that had flown from Spain back to the Uk, then also the people that had flown out to Spain in the morning of that day.

Somewhere along the chain, there will be a delay and unforntunately it would have to be passed on along the day. Though you could of been in a worse position if the Captain or F/O had declared themselves out of hours, then you could of had a working aircraft, with working cabin crew, but only 1 of the 2 pilots required to fly and 8-10hr wait on the ground, if another Jet2 pilot could be located.

GlennTheBaker

On the day in question, the aircraft flew to Spain in the morning and was delayed both outbound and inbound by the French ATC strike. The crew on the Sharm flight due to go out that afternoon would have gone out of hours so a standby crew was flown out to Prague to take over on the way back.

GlennTheBaker

Cityboy wrote: »

So if what you are saying is correct, the airline did not take all reasonable measures to avoid the delay, such measures might have included a different aircraft/different crew to fly to/from Sharm.

The French ATC was hardly sprung on anyone as it had been widely predicted several days beforehand and contingency measures could have been put in place.

Yes of course - it would have been easy to plan for every single possible eventuality.