JetBlue Compensation for Delay, Cancellation, Broken Seat, Broken IFE

How Do You Claim JetBlue Compensation for a Delayed or Cancelled Flight, or Broken Seat or IFE? In general we've had very good experiences in JetBlue, especially JetBlue Mint on transcon flights, but also economy on shorter flights. JetBlue as a rule does not overbook its flights, and somehow cabin crew, on average, seem to be friendlier than on other U.S. domestic flights.

Still, as with all airlines, flight cancellations, delays, broken seats and broken in-flight entertainment systems sometimes happen. Here's how to file a complaint and request compensation, followed by the compensation amounts you can expect.

How to File a JetBlue Complaint and Claim Compensation

My top recommendation with JetBlue is to use Twitter, as that will provide the fastest response. In fact, I was able to be offered compensation for my broken IFE within minutes of tweeting and a few DMs with my confirmation number, flight number, and the problem. Go to JetBlue on Twitter to tweet your concern.

Otherwise, you can file your complaint via the JetBlue Web site:

1. Go to the JetBlue Contact Form

2. Select the Main Topic and Sub Topic of Your Complaint

Main topics include jetblue.com, Airports, Inflight, Baggage, TrueBlue, JetBlue Vacations, Delays/Cancellations/Diversions, Special Assistance and Other. Subtopics are either Crewmember specific or General Concerns.

3. Provide Your Contact Details and TrueBlue Number

On the next screen, provide your contact details and your TrueBlue number.

4. Provide Your Flight Details

Next, provide your flight number and the confirmation number for your ticket, along with your date of travel, departure city and destination city.

5. Describe Your Complaint

On the final screen, write out your complaint. Aim to stick to the one or two critical issues and be as factual and concise as possible. A long, rambling complaint of a bunch of different issues will just make you seem like someone who complains about every little thing, and possibly delay a response as customer service tries to sort through which issues deserve some compensation and which don't.

JetBlue Compensation Amounts for Flight Cancellations and Delays

JetBlue helpfully provides standard amounts of compensation (issued in the form of JetBlue travel credits) in the JetBlue Contract of Carriage, the contract that you agree to when buying a JetBlue ticket:

Flight Cancellations

As with other U.S. airlines, in the event of a flight cancellation, JetBlue offers either a refund of the ticket price paid, or rebooking on the next available JetBlue flight (in the same class of service). Keep in mind that during busy periods, the next JetBlue flight or flights could be fully booked, so there is no guarantee of when the rebooked flight will operate. Also note that for a round trip ticket, if the outbound has been flown and the cancellation is of the return flight, the refund will be half the cost of the round trip fare.

Only if the cancellation is due to a “controllable irregularity” (such as insufficient crew to operate the flight or a mechanical issue, but not weather or a natural disaster) AND if JetBlue is unable to provide alternative transportation with scheduled departure within one hour of the originally booked flight, JetBlue will offer:

$50 JetBlue travel credit, where JetBlue notifies passengers 4 hours or fewer before scheduled departure
$100 JetBlue travel credit, where JetBlue cancels the flight after the originally scheduled departure

Flight Delays

It's helpful to understand the different types of delays defined in the JetBlue Contract of Carriage.

Departure Delay: a Delay that occurs BEFORE the airplane pushes back from the gate

Departure Ground Delay: a flight delay that occurs after the airplane pushes back from the gate but before it takes off. Does NOT includes flights that were diverted or forced to make an unscheduled stop.

Arrival Ground Delay: a flight delay that occurs after the airplane lands at its destination, but before it arrives at the gate. As above, does not include any flight diversions/unscheduled stops.

For Departure Delays that are caused by Controllable Irregularities (again, does not include weather-related/force majeure events), passengers receive:

$75 JetBlue travel credit for flights delayed 3 hours – 3 hours 59 minutes after scheduled departure time
$100 JetBlue travel credit for flights delayed 4 hours – 4 hours 59 minutes after scheduled departure time
$150 JetBlue travel credit for flights delayed 5 hours – 5 hours 59 minutes after scheduled departure time
$250 JetBlue travel credit for flights delayed 6 hours or more after scheduled departure time

For Ground Delays on departure, with any cause (including weather) EXCEPT for a security-related event, passengers receive:

$100 JetBlue travel credit for flights with a ground delay of 3 hours – 4 hours 59 minutes after scheduled departure time
$175 JetBlue travel credit for flights with a ground delay 5 hours – 5 hours 59 minutes after scheduled departure time
$250 JetBlue travel credit for flights with a ground delay of 6 hours or more after scheduled departure time

For Ground Delays on arrival, with any cause (including weather) EXCEPT for a security-related event, passengers receive:

$50 JetBlue travel credit for flights with a ground delay of 1 hour – 1 hour 59 minutes after scheduled arrival time
$125 JetBlue travel credit for flights with a ground delay of 2 hours – 2 hours 59 minutes after scheduled arrival time
$200 JetBlue travel credit for flights with a ground delay of 3 hours or more after scheduled arrival time

JetBlue Broken Seats

Knock on wood, I've not had a broken seat issue yet on JetBlue, nor have my clients encountered a broken seat. If you suffered a broken seat on JetBlue, complained, and received some compensation, please comment below with the amount you were offered, as well as the flight you were on and class of service.

JetBlue Broken IFE

Typically I've seen $15 offered for a broken IFE system in a regular economy seat. Recently I was in JetBlue Mint and my IFE didn't work, so I tweeted my disappointment and within minutes, via Direct Message, had provided my confirmation number, flight number and the IFE issue. I was pleasantly surprised to receive $100 as a JetBlue travel credit, presumably because this was a paid JetBlue Mint ticket, not just regular economy.