Ben Baldanza
CEO
Spirit Airlines
2800 Executive Way,
Miramar, FL 33025

Dear Mr. Baldanza:

Like many others, I am an avid traveler, both for business and pleasure. Having this lifestyle has taught me a lot about flexibility and patience along with the value of customer service. My background is in business and I have learned that those companies that place high importance on customer service are the ones left standing when others fail.

I recently chose to experience Spirit Airlines for the first time. I was impressed by your ultra low cost carrier model and the flight routes. However, I am now convinced that the hassle, tears and utter disrespect caused by your company were not worth the cheap fare.

My younger sister and I chose to travel to Puerto Rico via Spirit Airlines. I flew from Boston with two layovers while she flew from Detroit with one layover. The trouble for her began when she forgot her phone in the car. Our mother ran it in to Spirit over 90 minutes prior to takeoff and spoke with a representative who said she would take it straight to my sister at her gate. The woman never appeared, nor was my sister paged. When I tried to contact Spirit customer service, I spoke with Paul, a manager in Bangalore about connecting me with Spirit baggage claim in Detroit. He was completely powerless to give out a phone number accessible to anyone with online access or a phonebook! His recommendation was to look it up online myself – which I would have been happy to do if Spirit had not put me on a five hour layover! My mother tried calling from her end. It took over two hours and eight frustrating calls to find someone competent enough to find the phone.

The trouble on my end started when I boarded my first flight. There was insufficient space provided for carry-on luggage, even though the airline encourages only having carry-on. A flight attendant took my bag from me and asked my seat number, saying that she would take my bag and bring me a ticket. I assumed that she was placing my bag at the front of the plane. However, when she did not give me a ticket after takeoff, I became worried and asked what she had done with it. She had checked it, but she was not sure where it would turn up, nor did she have a tracking ticket for me. Her solution: Just de-board the plane during our layover, exit the terminal, find my bag at the luggage pickup, go through security again, and get back on the next flight, hopefully in time and having more space to store my bag. When I exited the plane, I spoke with seven staff members and was appalled by the lack of customer service and of empowerment to help resolve the issue. I did end up going to baggage claim and speaking with ONE kind and helpful person in the Fort Lauderdale Spirit Baggage Claim. Unfortunately, he could not find my bag. Thus, I rushed back through security and boarded my plane, now worried that Spirit had managed to lose my carry-on bag. When we landed in Puerto Rico, we waited for an hour and thankfully, magically, my bag did appear – without a tag and with my outer clip stolen. As I am on the road for nine months and the bag was 50% of my belongings, I was grateful.

Losing a bag is common among all airlines so I let my anger go. However, I was soon to discover that the incompetent staff, rude attitudes and complete disrespect for clients run deep in the culture of Spirit Airlines.

On our way home we arrived at the terminal in Puerto Rico almost two hours early to check-in in for my sister’s flight home. She was to depart San Juan at 3:15am and my flight was around 6:58am. When we arrived we soon discovered that her flight to Fort Lauderdale had been cancelled. How did we discover this? By waiting in line for over four hours and hearing rumors. Not once did the Spirit staff find the decency to explain what was going on. When we finally made it to the front of the line, I watched, appalled, while Jose, a Spirit Customer Service Representative, allowed a friend of his to cut in front of us and check in, even though they had just arrived. (They gave each other a high-five while I asked why he was not serving us.) Why the long wait? Why the total lack of communication? Why the rude behavior? It certainly was not because they were short staffed. I counted five people standing around talking about their holidays behind the counter, while we waited.

When we did finally speak with someone, she was going to put my sister, who graduated high school the week prior, on a tentative flight out of the country after me. I explained that we are family and that she must fly out before me or on the same flight, but not after because 1) she does not speak Spanish and 2) I had seen enough to know not to trust the competence of the Spirit staff. When I called the customer service number, their only response was that they would fly her out within two days without making sure she was safe in a hotel and that all other information was up to the staff in the departing terminal. Wow. Spirit told me to leave my little sister alone in a country where she does not know the language and does not own a credit card. What a brilliant idea.

After waiting for another two hours, we stood by the gate and prayed that she could get on standby for my flight. The staff did nothing to make sure she was moved to the front of the list as to not separate family. Thankfully, she was one of the last people to make it on.

Once in Fort Lauderdale, we tried to speak with a customer service representative again to find out what our options were. Strangely, there was no one who would take the time to help! We exited the terminal and went to the ticket counter where one person was kind enough to give us some advice.

My flight back to Boston was delayed. Her flight to Detroit was delayed by over 45 minutes. My sister sat down on her confirmed seat to Detroit after a seven hour layover (please keep in mind that we cut our trip short in order for her to be back home in time for an event that evening, which she was forced to miss). Moments later, another person appeared with the same seat assignment! My sister was pushed to tears for the third time that day. They escorted her off the plane and told her she was not even in the computer, even though Spirit had given her a ticket and told her she was good to go. Thankfully, a seat opened and she was able to go home. What would have happened if the flight was full? I am terrified to even think about it.

As a working professional and as a family person, I am utterly disgusted by the behavior and the deplorable treatment of customers exhibited by the vast majority of the Spirit staff. As one who regularly provides travel advice to many people, I am positive of only one thing when it comes to Spirit Airlines: This is the worst company (not just airline) that I have ever come in contact with and whatever a customer might “save” monetarily will be lost through the airline wasting their customer's time and treating them with less dignity than a piece of expendable furniture.

It is my hope that you as the CEO will take this letter seriously and begin to change the culture of the organization. Great airlines are needed and you have some of the infrastructure in place. Now act like you care for continued business.

Sincerely,

Erika

As I was about to complete my reservation for tickets to Costa Rica the spiritair website presented me with an option to lower my fare by $40 by applying for a credit card. I then applied for the card during the same session; after completing the transaction, NO discount was applied to my final cost. I then got an email saying I was approved for the card but still no discount. I complained to two different people at SpiritAir over the phone but both gave me different answers. One says that I get the discount on my next flight and the other says that there must of been something in the fine print that I did not see. I told them both that the website explicitly states I will get the discount for the CURRENT flight I was booking but neither could give me an answer and neither allowed me to speak to a manager.

Flew out on spirit to fla for easter/passover vacation with my family out of laguardia flight was delayed for 1 hour terminal has 1 jetway you wait there with other passengers from earlier flights because all there flights are NEVER on time you are treated like a piece of cattle Flight home was even worse I called to check if plane was on time from my house in fla I was told plane was on time went to airport at 2pm for a 4, 20 pm flight went to curbside checkin the porter told me my luggage weighed 55 pounds I decided to go to the counter inside the terminal were the attendent told me my luggage weighed 63 pounds I told the women I weighed it at home and I know for a fact that it only weighed 48 pounds and now it weighs 55 pounds outside and 63 pounds inside i refused to pay asked to see a certificate from the dept of weights and measures to see if their scales were calibrated, but they could not prove to me that they were calibrated . Wonder how many people they are ripping off for excess weight now for the fun part the flight was delayed for 7 hours asked why the delay i recieved 5 different reasons for the delay with none being the truth they lied to all their customers found out the truth from the pilot who was going to fly the plane back to ny who was waiting with us .when we arrived back in NY my luggage was not on the plane i waited for one hour for my luggage had to file a lost luggage report got my luggage the next day late afternoon I know spirit did this on purpose because of the complaint I had with the scales at fort lauderdale was at the airport for 7 hours and my luggage was the only one missing I filed a complaint with the corporate offices and they wanted to give me a $25 voucher for another flight on this crackerjack airline Iwould never fly on this bootleg airline again YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR the worst airline never on time and the worst customer service in the business Ihope they go out of business or bankrupt.

Booked a flight on Spirit Airlines 2 months ago from Atlantic City to Myrtle Beach nonstop.Last week received a email from Spirit Airlines that the flight will not run in April.They booked me from Atlantic City to Ft Lauderdale and then back to Myrtle Beach what B.S.(9 hours)
They have a $9.00 fare club but have cancelled all special $9.00 fares from AC to MYR.

I signed up for the $9.00 club and have yet to received any e-mail concerning any airlines fares. thank you maurine boyd. my membership number is 126740714