Spirit Airlines has issued refunds to most customers who had flights booked with the airline, representatives of the bankrupt company said Monday, meaning passengers who paid by credit or debit card.
Travelers who booked Spirit flights with points or vouchers will likely face an uphill road to getting a refund, after the airline abruptly grounded all of its planes and halted all operations over the weekend.
Meanwhile, travelers were still working to return home on Monday and other airlines began to appear with new routesfilling a void left by the Spirit -after transporting its workers and passengers during the weekend.
And about 17,000 former Spirit employees began the new week without work.
Here’s the latest you need to know about the biggest U.S. airline collapse in a generation.
Spirit Airlines Refund Status
For months, as rumors circulated about Spirit’s financial problems, one big question lingered: What would happen to consumers’ money if they booked a flight and then the airline went out of business?
That question seems to have been answered.
Spirit confirmed Monday that it had automatically processed the vast majority of refunds for passengers who had booked their flights using a credit or debit card.
However, because those refunds were processed over the weekend, the defunct airline’s website said it “may take time” for refunds to appear on card statements.
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Several TPG staff members who had future Spirit flights booked for the spring and summer have yet to receive refunds.
If days (and weeks) go by without your refund being processed, it might be time to consider backup options through your credit card company.
Read more:
Baggage and other additional fees
The airline says it will also process refunds for additional items such as luggage, seats and in-flight Wi-Fi paid for before May 2.
Bad news about points and vouchers.
Unfortunately, the news is much less promising for passengers who booked flights with vouchers or made reservations with Free Spirit points.
spirit officer online guidance He said decisions about compensating clients for those reserves would be determined at a later date through the bankruptcy court process.
But according to sources familiar with the process, it is highly unlikely that those customers will receive a refund.
That’s bad news for both award redemptions and voucher bookings, as well as for customers who earned Spirit points through flights and spending with the airline’s co-branded credit card.
Ahead of Spirit’s shutdown of operations this weekend, TPG valued your points at approximately 1.1 cents each.
Passengers struggle to get home
While Spirit executed what it called an “orderly shutdown” of its operations over the weekend, passengers in the middle of their journeys faced chaotic conditions as they attempted to return home.
Vanessa Jimenez had flown with her family from Texas to Florida for a dance competition, only to learn early Saturday morning that her return flight had been abruptly canceled, along with all other Spirit departures.
He had thought about driving home to the Houston area before learning that other carriers offered salvage rates to help stranded travelers return home.
“I got on United and got a one-way flight for $200 each,” Jimenez said. “A little more than we planned to spend and a little more than Spirit charged us, but it was the easiest way to get home instead of having to drive a 15-hour trip.”
She is not alone.
In the first 12 hours after Spirit shut down early Saturday, United Airlines, for example, said it helped the budget airline’s passengers book 14,000 tickets.
A host of other US carriers offered backup options with limited pricealso.
Long-term concerns
Even after all Spirit passengers and employees return home, the implications for consumers remain, with the loss of a low-cost airline that long helped keep fares in check across the industry.
“Spirit’s big front seat was the best deal in the sky,” shared Alex, a reader of our TPG Lounge on Facebook, calling Spirit’s demise, and that of its popular first-class product, a “huge, huge loss.”
Another reader, Seth, recalled how the airline’s affordable last-minute fares helped him fly during Hurricane Sandy in 2012 and again when his daughter was born.
“They allowed so many people to travel who otherwise wouldn’t be able to on other US airlines,” shared a third reader, Greg.
Jiménez, for her part, wasn’t optimistic about getting a refund – “probably not,” she said – but what stood out to her most was the end of an airline that, despite all its extra fees, was the ticket to heaven for many.
“I think it was affordable for a lot of people and a lot of families,” he said. “I’m sad and angry for myself, but I think I’m sadder for the thousands of people who are losing their jobs.”
TPG’s Complete Coverage of Spirit Airlines Closing:
