Jetstar's $800 fee for simple booking change leaves family 'gobsmacked'
The Jetstar passengers couldn't believe how much the airline was charging to change the name of one of the passengers travelling with the group to Brisbane.
A family of football fans were astounded when Jetstar said it would cost them $800 to change the name of a passenger.
Abby Woodruff's family intended to travel from their home in Melbourne to Brisbane to watch their team Carlton face the Brisbane Lions in the AFL elimination final this Saturday night. But after realising that one of the group, Abby's father, wasn't able to make it, they let their eight-year-old daughter know that instead, she would be able to go.
"My dad doesn't like big crowds and said he didn't want to come so we decided to tell our eight-year-old daughter she was going on a holiday to Brisbane too," Amy told Yahoo News.
Family 'gobsmacked' by Jetstar request
To get their "ducks in a row", Woodruff's husband Kade phoned Jetstar to request the change. "They said it would incur an $800 fee," Abby said pointing out the seat only cost them $550.
Desperate to find a solution, they looked into the cost of buying another ticket, but the prices had gone up exponentially to $1,250. "That wasn't really an option," she explained.
Abby knew there would be a fee for the change, which she says they were "happy to pay".
"But when they said $800, we were gobsmacked!"
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Jetstar help out family on 'compassionate' grounds
After Yahoo reached out to Jetstar regarding the family's ordeal, the airline was able to transfer the ticket without charge.
“After speaking with Mr Woodruff to get a better understanding of the family’s specific circumstances, on compassionate grounds we have transferred their grandfather’s fare into the name of another passenger," a Jetstar spokesperson told Yahoo.
Yahoo understands that to transfer a ticket into a new name, Jetstar charges a change fee to any passenger looking to change a name on their ticket. On top of this, for 'Starter' fares, another fee known as 'fare difference' will be charged.
The fare difference means paying the difference between the fare paid and the advertised fare for the same flight at the time of making the name change request. The point of the policy is to avoid creating incentives for people to buy cheap fares they could later sell at a higher price.
Name change fees are clearly outlined in the terms and conditions.
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