Easy Jet Advisory - Travelers Digest

If you have a EasyJet horror story, send it to mikesmith@travelersdigest.com

EasyJet - Complaint - by Mike Smith
20 Sept 2005

I am the Editor for Travelers Digest and travel the globe consistently and at times have to carry excessive filming and computer equipment, which was the case on the day we were to board a EasyJet flight from Dortmund to Budapest. We showed up at the ticket counter to get our tickets and the two girls, not women, working the counter were very rude and condescending, one talking on the cell phone and the other ignoring us for several minutes, which started the tension. I asked several times, as there was no one else waiting in line, if they could get our tickets, as the plane was due to leave shortly. My statement obviously upset her because after that there was nothing I could do or say that would matter. Placing our bags on the scale, she callously and sneeringly making loud claims that I had to pay over 300 euros for the bags. I did get upset and asked her how the extra weight could possibly cost more than both our tickets? That's when she became hysterical, she was loud and ugly, repeating over and over that I could either pay the money or leave the bags in the trash as for as she cared. I was really unaware of their ridiculous weight limit and simply said that in the USA there were no such low limits. That really set her off and she yelled like a spoiled child that "Maybe I should have just stayed in America." Then she called her supervisor whom immediately sided with his "girls" and got directly in my face in a very threatening matter and yelled like a pig, never allowing me to say a word. Under these circumstances, even if I had got belligerent it would have been justified. After his outburst, which everyone in the airport heard, he told me that he would authorize the refund of the ticket cost and that we should leave...so we did. After that experience, we decided to rent a car and drive to Budapest. I did stop and apply on-line for the refund I was promised...that was just another lie. I received an emailed reply that I was not entitled to a refund. Am I suppose to accept this behavior and this so-called supervisor's lies and is he not a representative of their airlines? Obviously he is, and therefore when I received their negative response I got the answer I expected. If their company hires and protects these individuals than the management must share their behavior and contempt for their customers. It has been since July and I have not received anything but contemptuous replies and total disrespect. EasyJet...is not so easy and their staff are sheer morons.!

Below are more stories that will leave you in shock and scrambling to stay away from this cattle herding airlines!

EASYJET...THE NOT TOO FRIENDLY WAY TO FLY!

EasyJet
I wanted to report a matter that I believe is unacceptable. Unfortunately, as a simple citizen, there is not much I can do against a big corporation. I was thinking that maybe an organization like yours will take the time to get involved so that this type of incidents do not happen again to any customers in the future and that the company responsible for it will be reprimanded for its unacceptable behavior, lack of respect, lack of professionalism and lack of responsibility to solve this issue in a decent manner.

In short, my mother and I were refused boarding from Barcelona to Paris by EASYJET agents, supposedly because we had invalid IDs. My mother had her French residency card which is delivered by the French Government. France does not provide national ID cards to non French citizens but only residency cards. The residency card is considered by the French Government as their national ID and therefore do not provide non French residents with any other ID than their residency cards. I had my French Driving License. I had checked EASYJET website for information on the documents necessary to check in and the requirements listed on their website are "We require all passengers to provide a valid form of photographic ID at check-in on all flights, including domestic services". Since we know that a residency card and a driver license are valid photographic IDs in France, we assumed EASYJET will follow each government rules. The only paragraph in EASYJET website about people with residency cards that also need their passports, concerns people who are not citizens of a country in the Schengen zone. Since my mother is Spanish, this paragraph was not appropriate for her situation. Despite their website rules and policies, EASYJET agents refused us boarding. After arguing with the agents, I decided to file for a complain. The EASYJET agents did not have their badges to identify themselves and refused to provide their names or any ID number. The EASYJET counters did not have the rules and policies visible to the public or available upon request and they refused to check their website to see the requirements listed in it.

The Spanish Police came to certify to the EASYJET agents that our IDs were valid French IDs delivered by the French Government and that as far as the police was concerned, the IDs we had were valid IDs. The EASYJET agents refused to hear anything and refused to give us our boarding passes for the flight tickets we had already purchased. They also refused to reimburse them. That's how EASYJET makes money!! But this is nothing compared to what follows.

Later on, while I was writing a complaint against EASYJET at the cafeteria of the airport using AENA forms, the Spanish Organization available for complaints at the Airport, the EASYJET supervisor came to the cafeteria and assaulted me in the middle of the Barcelona cafeteria Airport. The police came, took my statement, some witnesses statement and I was sent to the medical department of the airport. EASYJET not only does not care about it, but after several email exchanges, decided to ignore this second incident even if I have a police report, a witness who came forward to testify to the police and a medical report.

That's why I need your help. I feel that I cannot let a company get away with all that without getting blamed somehow for it. It's too easy to sell tickets and refuse passengers for reasons that are not clear to start with. Which rights does EASYJET have when the Police of both countries accept the documents? EASYJET probably sold my tickets to some other people, which means that basically, they sold twice the same tickets, make twice the profits. If they do that for several passengers in each plane, they are making a lot of profits that should not be considered legal.
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EasyJet - by John Richmond

20 April 2005

Easyjet baggage system at London Luton Airport has been in total disarray ever since Easyjet Ground Handling took over responsibility from Aviance Ground Handling at the end of January 2005. The baggage system is now totally overwhelmed as there is no longer any dedicated staff trained in reuniting passengers with their lost luggage, the situation has now become so acute that Easyjet are storing several hundred lost bags in two storerooms at the airport. Easyjet have arranged for a private company to take the bags away next Tuesday for disposal and the contents distributed to charity shops, even though the the bags have only been missing for a maximum of two and a half months! One Easyjet manager was overheard telling staff that they could have items from the luggage. Many of the bags have address labels attached yet no effort has been made to trace the owners. Should Easyjet be allowed to get away with not making every effort to locate the rightful owners and reunite them with their luggage.

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EasyJet - by Ross Macdonald
13 September 2005

Easyjet claim to board all passengers using their boarding procedure i.e., by families with small children first then in sequential order as per their arrival at checking in. Recently flew with my 8 month old child and was unable to sit with my wife and child because the children Easyjet employees were unwilling to enforce this policy. Boarding was an uncoordinated free for all and the staff were surly and unhelpful. I had flown with Easyjet on numerous occasions throughout the year for business and have found the company to become increasingly heavy handed in their approach to customer service and customers in general, but their ability to handle the most mundane of tasks ie, ensuring parents sit with babies has convinced me that they are not concerned about the passenger, merely the money.
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EasyJet - by Max G Schmitt
31 August 2005

GVA-AMS-GVA. As Swiss frequently uses EMB145s to Amsterdam that fill up in no time, I once again had to resort to using EZjet, even though I hate them with a passion, mainly because of the totally disorganised boarding with unobserved boarding priorities and severely lacking punctuality. Getting there early is useless, as they will call the boarding card number ins batches, but nobody checks at the gates, so the more rude you are, the faster you get on. And what's with 10 head families with kids. Families should be 1 or 2 parents plus the kids. Period. Both outbound and inbound flights were fine, airplanes ARE looking much nicer inside than the mostly sad looking , worn out LX interiors. I only had carryon luggage, as the returning flight from AMS arrives at Geneva just barely in time for me to catch the very last train home to Berne. But who was I kidding? As usual with evening EZjet flights (I have been on 5+ EZS/EZY flights after 7:00 pm and not one was less than 60 minutes delayed), this particular flt was very delayed, the reason given was weather in Geneva (so they have a weather problem with glaring sun, no wind and 25+ degrees?). They could at least be honest and admit that their consistent evening delays are caused by too short turnarounds, aggravated by chaotic boarding. Other LCLF carriers (e.g.: Air Berlin) can issue seat number, why can't EZjet? The notion that boarding is faster without seat numbers on boarding cards has been proven wrong numerous times, as the early boarders tend to crowd the aisles in front of the aircraft. As a result of the delay, I missed my connection home and had to layover in Geneva, which more than wiped out the price difference between EZjet and LX. Never again until they change boarding procedures and get their act together regarding on-time performance. (Has anyone noticed, that the previously very prominently featured on-time percentage has disappeared completely from their website?)

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EasyJet - by Debbie Wren
29 August 2005

Used Easyjet for the first time for flights to Balcanola. Family of 5, two children so were given priority boarding. I agree with others that have made comments about EasyJet boarding methods but if this is the way they are going to do things then their staff have to be properly trained in mannerism and there herding methods only creates chaos as they don't allow people to board in the order given. We saw families split up and very young children being separated from their parents because people were allowed to board out of order.
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EasyJet - by Caroline Stevenson
24 August 2005

I have never flown EasyJet before until 12th Aug and was led to believe they offered good service... that was until they lost my bag! The way I have been treated since is appaling - I am totally disgusted that my personal belongings were lost, and then found at Cork airport and then lost again by Easy Jet and not one person seems to care! I have spent a fortune trying to get through to various different companies (EasyJet, ServisAir, Global Baggage) and when I do I am being told different things everytime. I just want my bag back! The worst of it is that when you do speak to Easy Jet they tell you that you have to put everything in writing and when you do they tell you that it will take them at least 10 days to get to it! In the meantime, I am without shoes, clothes, make up etc - may be just another lost bag to them but to me, they are my belongings! Seeing as not one person has ever returned my telephone call/correspondence so far I have decided to give up and see what happens - what other choice do they give you!
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EasyJet - by Nick Edwards
4 August 2005

AMS-LIV. Flight delayed due to technical fault. I arrived in Liverpool 17 hours late. Easyjet staff very rude and extremely unhelpful to everyone. The attitude of the staff was in fact unbelievable - It was Easyjet's fault the flight was delayed, not the passengers. We were offered a meer 5 euros compensation. I Applied for refund six weeks ago - and not a word since. On the phone to EJ I was placed on hold for an hour and never did get to talk to anyone that even offered to help, just another stonewall job! "Customer Services" seems to be an oxymoron in this case. Totally pathetic excuse for an airline - it wasn't like this in the old days before the budget cowboys. Paid £210 for my return ticket - which is not even a discount and next time I'll be flying with BA and it will be money well spent.

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EasyJet - by Jonathan Wollny
28 July 2005

My Barcelona flight was cancelled after waiting 5 hours. When things don't go to plan Easyjet is extremely lacking. Minimal information was given to the passengers and in the end it was one of the ground staff who looks after the baggage who eventually took a moment to inform us. All the customer service managers simply disappeared when the plane was cancelled leaving one harassed junior employee to field all the complaints. I got the impression that the staff were ill-prepared and would literally tell you anything to get rid of you. For instance we were told that Easyjet would refund the holiday in full because the flight was cancelled. On the basis of this we didn't take up the offer of a late afternoon flight the next day because it would have literally meant one less full day in Barcelona. We were not given any written confirmation for this and were simply told to 'go to the website' for the refund. I have since found out that they will only refund the cost of the flight so I am now 500 pounds out of pocket and with no holiday to boot. Terrible service all round. I have now come to the opinion these budget airlines are a false economy. For starters they fly from out of the way airports i.e. Luton, and at ridiculous hours. You end up spending almost the same money as 'proper' airlines when you take into account extra time off work, taxis, trains etc. So I will not be using them ever again based on my terrifying experiences. The cancellation even if it had been unavoidable could have been handled much better. There was a woman who was crying because she was going to miss her daughters wedding and the staff didn't give a damn and were maiing sick jokes about it while walking away. It gives real meaning to the label cattle-class because indeed they do treat you like animals.
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EasyJet - by Graham Jeffery

14 July 2005

Currently doing endless to-ing and fro-ing Stansted to Glasgow on Easyjet. But the cattle style boarding system is really annoying, particularly in Glasgow where you end up checking in in one building, walking through to another then hanging around in a cramped shed. Not good. BA is much swifter, more efficient, free food/drink etc, reserved seats but twice the price - for convenience for the part of London I work in...STN is much better. However boarding procedures are a pain in the neck.
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EasyJet - by Alex Thornton

11 May 2005

I am not a fan of Easyjet and I will definitely not travel with them again. I had the chance to travel LGW-ATH-LGW recently on fairly full flights. The cramped A319 configuration is not a good one for a 3h30min and 3h50min flights on this route. It is definitely much worth paying a bit more to travel on a frills carrier for longer than 2 hour flights or flying via another point in Europe instead of enduring a very uncomfortable journey, sheer madness while boarding and ridulously undisciplined staff.
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EasyJet - by Susan Paterson

12 April 2005

Cheap, perhaps,and there is a but- where they scrimp on costs they could be improving their customer service. Their ground staff are brusque and unhelpful, and one particular member of the A319 cabin crew based at Gatwick is obviously in the wrong job, fancying himself more as a successor to Julian Clary's camp comedy throne. I have seen crew giggling their way through safety demonstrations and been snapped at by a Luton employee who assumed that because I was Scottish, I was looking for a place to buy alcohol- I had merely asked her when the Duty Free shop would open for an outbound flight. The only other drawback is that easyJet offers next to no international destinations from Scotland, meaning cumbersome double check-in at Gatwick, Stansted, Bristol or Luton- and therefore any excess baggage is charged twice. I'm generally a fan of the low-cost, no nonsense approach to air travel but also a great believer in customer service, which is unfortunately where easyJet falls way short.
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EasyJet - by Ruth Liddle

6 April 2005

EDI-LGW March 2005. We used Easyjet to connect with a long haul flight. No problems on outward journey. The journey home was on a very busy day. Easyjet policy is not to start checking in until two hours before the flight departs. That day they opened the check in desks late, although staff were sitting chatting at the desks still resplendant with closed signs. Gatwick had big problems that day with long queues at security and the late check in made us anxious that we would not arrive on time at the gate- and we all know what happens when Easyjet customers do that. For no good reason one check in desk shut midway through the procedure, leaving two queues to merge. Eventually we managed to complete the procedure but were called back to the desk. The conveyor belt was broken and we had to haul our cases off the belt again and "put them in the cages". I had no idea how to do this and were met with blank looks from Easyjet staff and a vague wave of the hand to where there were unattended baggage cages and perplexed Easyjet passengers. Eventually we found someone to help- a Gatwick employee. Easyjet weren't interested. This guy told us Easyjet had not told him that they would be needing cages, but to aid us he went off and returned with a colleague to help. Meanwhile unattended baggage was piling up. The flight itself was slightly late and uneventful but the sloppy attitude to security really does make me wonder about the standard of this outfit. I can live with discomfort and aircrew who liken school kids (some very unpleasant) but they really need to look at their check in procedures and security generally. BA often works out cheaper between Edinburgh and London and BMI usually does. I chose Easyjet on that day because of the posted, but unkept, connection times. Next time I will have lunch at the airport and fly with another airline.
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Website devoted to easyjet complaints,

Links to EasyJet complaints.
http://www.liebreich.com/LDC/HTML/Various/Easyjet1.html

Their email address. michaell@easynet.co.uk <michaell@easynet.co.uk>

Easyjet main contact information in London.

EasyGroup (UK) Ltd
The Rotunda
42/43 Gloucester Crescent
London
NW1 7DL

Tel: +44 (0)20 7241 9000
Fax: +44 (0)20 482 2857

Easyjet's Board of Directors.

Stelios Haji-Ioannou, Founder

Liz Savage, Director of Business Development

Mike Szucs, Director of Operations

Stephen Connock, People Director

Jeff Carr, Group Finance Director