Help! JetBlue Stranded Our Boy Scout Troop in New York City

Dear Tripped Up,

I used to be considered one of three adults who led a backpacking journey to the Colorado Rockies this previous June with six teenage Boy Scouts from Troop 876 of Savannah, Ga. After seven nights tenting, our eighth evening — June 26 — was to be aboard a redeye to Kennedy Airport, adopted by a morning flight to Savannah, each on JetBlue Airways. But our Denver departure was delayed over two hours and we missed the connection. We waited for 3 hours in line, solely to politely be informed the subsequent flight out there was 5 days later, even after we provided to fly to Atlanta, Charleston, S.C., or Jacksonville, Fla., as a substitute. JetBlue wouldn’t present a lodge. So we opted for a refund (plus $12 meal vouchers), rented two vehicles and drove 14 hours house, racking up about $1,200 in journey bills. But when our refunds from JetBlue got here by way of, they totaled $261 for 9 of us, solely 18 p.c of the unique price. A customer support consultant later defined to me by cellphone that we had been reimbursed for less than the New York to Savannah leg. We imagine JetBlue ought to have gotten us on an earlier flight on a distinct airline or a minimum of reimbursed us for the 9 fares and costs totaling $1,458, and maybe chipped in for the bills to get house. Can you assist? Spencer, Savannah, Ga.

Dear Spencer,

Phew! I assumed you have been going to ask me find out how to feed six rising Boy Scouts on $12 meal vouchers at an airport meals courtroom.

You had each proper to obtain a full flight refund from JetBlue Airways. The Transportation Department requires airways to supply refunds if flights are “significantly delayed,” no matter purpose, and the federal coverage incorporates no detectable clause permitting JetBlue to reimburse a laughably tiny proportion of the unique price. Derek Dombrowski, a spokesman for the airline, admitted that JetBlue erred right here, and informed me that somebody would attain out to you. You reported again {that a} consultant referred to as and apologetically agreed to credit score you the complete $1,458, throwing in 9 $100 vouchers for future journey.

As Mr. Dombrowski later defined to me in an electronic mail: “Our policy in this circumstance — where a customer is not rebooked after a canceled flight or due to a missed connection out of the customer’s control — is a full refund provided to the original form of payment for the entire one-way journey.”

“We apologize for this error,” he wrote.

But it sounds extra like two errors to me. When you initially noticed the paltry reimbursement, you referred to as JetBlue they usually doubled down with the sketchy single-leg clarification. (And even then, how was a single leg price solely $29?) I do hope that JetBlue will adhere extra intently to its coverage sooner or later.

The airline seems to be proper on the remainder. You weren’t seemingly entitled to these lodge rooms and even to an earlier flight on a distinct airline.

That is as a result of on June 26, thunderstorms brought on 1000’s of delays and cancellations within the Northeast. Earlier within the day, in keeping with knowledge from Flightaware.com, the plane that you’d ultimately take from Denver spent over eight hours on the J.F.Ok. tarmac, seemingly grounded by storms. It took off two hours late for a flight to Denver that night, in flip delaying your flight. That meant your flight delay was “uncontrollable,” confirmed Mr. Dombrowski, that means it was not the fault of the airline — a class that additionally contains security-line backups, air visitors management issues and different points.

If the delay had been the results of, say, an airline staffing scarcity or mechanical subject, that may rely as a “controllable delay,” and you’ll have been provided a lodge keep.

Massive storms are one factor. But typically simply how “uncontrollable” a delay is can get murky. Many a frequent flier can recount a time when an airline knowledgeable passengers of a “weather-related delay” on an ideal day for picnicking at each the airport of origin and vacation spot. That is as a result of with some planes flying a half-dozen or extra legs each day with self-imposed tight turnaround occasions, climate anyplace could cause a delay anyplace else. And guess who will get to determine whether or not the delay was controllable? The airways themselves.

I crunched some numbers from the Transportation Department’s month-to-month Air Travel Consumer Reports and located that of all of the delays within the first 4 months of 2023, the most recent knowledge out there, simply one-third — 157,485 of 471,608 — have been deemed “air carrier delays,” outlined as “due to circumstances within the airline’s control.”

“It is not always easy for the consumer to know whether an airline is to blame for a flight delay or cancellation,” wrote Ethan Alpern, a spokesman for the Transportation Department, in an in depth electronic mail answering my questions on how airways decide delays. Extreme climate, nationwide aviation system points and safety delays are just some official classes.

The tables of statistics that the federal government publishes in these reviews is fairly complicated. For instance, airways usually declare a delay is the results of “late arriving aircraft,” which suggests it isn’t formally an “air carrier delay,” though, in keeping with Mr. Alpern, half of these delays are the fault of the airline.

There is potential good news on the horizon: One month earlier than your journey, the Transportation Department introduced a rule-making course of that may higher make clear what counts as a controllable delay. There isn’t any exact timeline when that’s rolling out, however within the meantime, anybody who suspects an airline might have referred to as a delay uncontrollable when it was truly the airline’s fault are inspired to register a criticism, stated Mr. Alpern. (The division appears to be like into each criticism and contacts the airline when obligatory, he famous.)

Information on simply what airways will present within the case of controllable delays can now be discovered simply with the Transportation Department’s “Cancellation and Delay Dashboard,” on which 10 of the biggest carriers within the United States make specific their commitments for rebooking, lodging, floor transportation and so forth for caught passengers. The dashboard additionally hyperlinks to specifics for every airline.

For controllable delays, JetBlue is considered one of 5 of these 10 airways that has dedicated to guide passengers on a associate airline when obligatory. According to your story, JetBlue officers did try to guide your group on American Airlines, despite the fact that they didn’t must in these circumstances, so kudos to them. Alas, JetBlue’s code-share settlement with American ended on July 21, so future Boy Scout troops (and different passengers) won’t be afforded the identical largess.

This brings up yet one more murky subject: There isn’t any official or public checklist of airline partnerships, in keeping with Mr. Alpern. Mr. Dombrowski of JetBlue declined to reply my query about whether or not the service has another agreements with airways that may enable rebooking for controllable (and typically uncontrollable) delays.

Finally, these $100 vouchers have been additionally a pleasant contact, however I think about you’ll a lot somewhat want reimbursements on your automotive rental and associated bills. Well, let’s put it this manner: N.B.A. gamers usually tend to discover ample leg room in coach than delayed passengers are to be reimbursed for bills that aren’t preapproved in writing. Most airways make that clear within the contract of carriage you comply with once you guide a flight.

The solely factor that would have saved you right here is (tepid drum roll please) — journey insurance coverage.

That is why I had you verify which bank card you had used to guide the journey, hoping it was one of many fancier ones, just like the Chase Sapphire Preferred or American Express Platinum playing cards, that embody a visit delay profit. It was not. For future journeys, you may wish to think about shopping for trip-delay protection. Just learn my latest column on journey insurance coverage for extra dangerous news earlier than you do.

If you want recommendation a few best-laid journey plan that went awry, ship an electronic mail to TrippedUp@nytimes.com.

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