WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — It's been more than a week since Southwest Airlines canceled thousands of flights, stranding many passengers for days, and now affected travelers are wondering when they'll be reimbursed for extra travel expenses.
"Started to call Southwest, was on hold for a long time," WPTV digital executive producer Peter Burke said.
Burke is one of the hundreds of Southwest customers who was stranded Dec. 26 when the airline canceled more than 60% of its flights.
"When you looked at Southwest availability, I think the earliest we could get a flight out was on Friday,” Burke said. "I was on the phone for two hours and something-or-other minutes."
Burke was forced to book a flight on another airline to get home. He landed in Fort Lauderdale four days and hundreds of dollars later.
"Probably $800 for the four of us to go back on a JetBlue flight, but also when we got back, our car had been at the airport longer than we had anticipated," Burke said. "So when we finally picked up the car, it had been over a week, so it was like $100-plus."
Southwest Airlines has now started issuing customers 25,000 reward points as a gesture of goodwill, but many travelers are wondering when they'll get reimbursement for flights on other airlines and other expenses.
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"Just looking at what Southwest put out, it's not really clear exactly when they may reimburse you," Meghan Walch, with InsureMyTrip, told WPTV.
The airline released instructions for travelers to file a claim for extra expenses. That includes hotel rooms, rental cars, airport parking and other airline tickets.
Travelers need to email receipts to Southwest through Southwest.com.
However, right now, there's no timeline for when that money will be distributed.
"There was some ambiguity around that," Walch said.
Walch is encouraging travelers to purchase travel insurance in the future in case anything like this happens again.
"Just because that covers you from, you know, when you're leaving to when you return home and, you know, all the stuff in between," Walch said.
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In a statement sent to WPTV on Thursday, officials with the Southwest Airlines public relations team said:
"We don't have a specific timeline to share but there are several high priority efforts underway to assist our impacted customers, including processing refunds from cancelled flights, reimbursing customers for expenses incidental to the irregular operations, and reuniting customers with their baggage. It's important to point out that the Rapid Rewards gesture is in addition to customers' reimbursements and refunds on flights and incidental expenses related to their recent disruption in travel.
We have a long and proud 51-year record of delivering on our customers’ expectations and connecting them to important moments in their lives. But we aren’t perfect, and when we fall short, we aim to do the right thing. We truly hope customers will accept this gesture in the spirit intended—along with our sincerest apologies, as we are committed to delivering on their expectations and regaining their trust in Southwest Airlines.
Unlike other forms of compensation, Rapid Rewards points don’t expire and can be used on any flight for any seat that is available for sale. Additionally, they can be redeemed (at varying rates) for merchandise, gift cards and non-Southwest travel, like a hotel stay. Joining Rapid Rewards is a free and easy process, but should a customer wish to not join … we will evaluate their situation on a case-by-case basis."
So for travelers like Burke, it's still a waiting game.
"I mean, obviously, the points are nice," Burke said. "But we also would still like to get the money back. ... I mean, it all adds up."
