Thriving Under Fire Blog

The saga with JetStar, the new budget airline operating in New Zealand continues. Over the weekend a number of passengers were turned away from the check-in counter because they arrived less the 30 minutes before take-off. Some who were shut out said they arrived earlier but the queues were too slow.
JetStar want to set their rules very clearly. They want people to know that this 30 minute cut-off time is absolute. This is their right and it’s probably a good way to run a budget airline.

Jetstar, the budget airline has begun operating in New Zealand with budget style customer service. The DomPost reported that when passengers turned up one minute late for the 30 minute check-in they were not allowed to board the plane. Fair enough except the staff did not know how to break the bad news to their customers. "They were so unhelpful - the man who took my ticket just said, 'Yeah, we've shut it'. I wouldn't have minded if they were apologetic". And that is the rub. Even when you have to deliver bad news to your customers, if you are at least apologetic the damage won't be so bad. By being apologetic you recognise that the customer is having a hard time with your decision and that helps keep the relationship positive to some degree.