- Report: #1277822
Complaint Review: Spirit Airlines - Nationwide
Reported By:
Denied Boarding (wasn't late) -
Humble, Texas, USA
Submitted:
Updated:
-
Author Not Confirmed
Why?
Spirit Airlines
Nationwide, USA
Phone:
(954) 447-7920
Web:
N/A
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Business Rating:
(0)
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Spirit Airlines Denied Boarding Atlanta, Georgia Nationwide
We were denied boarding and no we were not late arrivals. On January 1, 2016 we were scheduled to board flight 363 at 3:52 departing Atl. We arrived at the airport nearly 1 1/2 hours prior to the boarding time. We were all checked in and went through security. After some walking around and dining, we arrived to the gate at 3:36 PM. We were told that we could not board our flights because the flight was closed. We could not understand what was going on so we requested to speak with the supervisor. The supervisor came out at 3:45 telling us that he came out at 3:40 PM and no one was out there. This was a flat out LIE. Not only was this a lie, we sat at the gate from 3:36-until 3:48 while the airplane was still on the tarmac with our empty seats. The flight departed at 3:48 PM but was scheduled to leave at 3:52PM. We spoke with the representative working the gate for nearly ten minutes before Donald 31643 even came out to speak with us. The supervisor Donald 31643 was very rude and disinterested in the fact that he denied us boarding priviledges that we paid for and could care less that we needed to get home that evening. He told us that he'd already given the paperwork to the pilot and that he wasn't changing it. We were at the gate 15 minutes prior to boarding so he had to put the paperwork in before then. Donald 31643 eventually agreed to give us a full refund because the next flight to Houston wasn't until Tuesday, January 5. We had to go downstairs to ticketing for our refund in which we were initially denied by Sierra 32201. Once she spoke with Donald 31643 she came back to the register very rude and stated, "Donald said that he is only refunding you because we don't have a flight until Tuesday." Very unprofessional! The denial of our boarding caused us to rent a car and drive 11 hours to Houston, TX. We had to pay for gas and a rental car. Since this incident, we have spoken to many dissatisfied customers of Spirit Airlines. I intend to write reviews on the web. I intend to write to the media. I intend to blog on social media about my experience and I will encourage the other dissatisfied customers to do the same. This type of service should not be encouraged.
2 Updates & Rebuttals
Thank You
#2Author of original report
Tue, January 05, 2016
Thank you for your response. I would debate with you however, you are not a factor in this issue so have a great day.
Robert
Irvine,California,
USA
Typical....
#3Consumer Comment
Tue, January 05, 2016
You are the stereotypical Spirit passenger, someone who expects Luxury 5-Star service on a Dollar Store Budget, and yes these are the ones who make most of the complaints.
The fact of the matter is that you can keep saying you weren't late, but that doesn't make it so. You know they start boarding 30 minutes before, and amazingly enough EVERY other passenger got there on-time. They weren't out strolling around the airport figuring that the plane would wait for them. NO...they got to the gate with plenty of time to spare so they don't have to worry about being denied boarding. If it was that important for you to get on the flight, you should have made sure you did the same thing. Oh and how do I know that every other passenger got there..because you would have made a very big point if there were other passengers other than your group who were denied boarding. So even if you try to add it now, it would only be seen as BS in trying to make your story sound more legitimate.
I find it very interesting how you knew you got here at exactly 3:36PM, getting you there 16 minutes before. So here is a thought what if instead of getting there at 3:36, it was actually 3:38....14 minutes before the flight. Ding..Ding..Ding...we have a winner. The only thing that caused your denial of boarding and having to rent a car was your lack of responsibility to make sure you are at the gate when you are supposed to be.
Do you want to know another kicker? It is recomended to arrive at least 2 hours before the flight. You arrived barely 90 minutes before. Had you arrived 2 hours before and did the exact same thing, you would have been right on-time to catch your flight.
There are these times for a reason. Air Travel isn't what it used to be. Airlines have very tight timelines, especially at an airport such as ATL they may have a very specific take-off time. Where if they miss that not only do they end up having to wait but the airport may even "fine" them for the delay. NO airline is going to take a fine and the extra costs because one group decides to take their own sweet time. Not only that but there are also reporting procedures that have to be done and they can't keep adding people after a flight has "closed".
They did refund your tickets, and I really wonder what the price difference was. That is how much was the cost if you flew, vs. the cost of renting a car. You didn't say how many there were in your group, but I would not be surprised that if there were more than a couple that it may have actually been cheaper to rent a car.
Look, in the end let me tell you that I will not fly Spirit for many reasons, but this would not be one of them. People who fly Spirit know what they are getting into, an airline that will "nickle and dime" you every step of the way. But to some people they are okay with that and that is why Spirit is still thriving. However, EVERY airline has guidelines when you are supposed to be there. YOU failed to make that time and it really doesn't matter what airline you are with, I can just about guarantee you that any other airline would have done the exact same thing.
