Online Booking denied

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I recently tried to book two Jetstar tickets Adelaide to Sunshine Coast for July 2022. The online price was $175 each ticket so I booked adding a bundle, filled in passenger details, choose seats and paid using two Jetstar vouchers. The balance owing read $0 when a message appeared on the screen ‘Flight no longer available’.

A 40 minute conversation with Jetstar where ridiculous explanations were made including ‘only a limited number of tickets are issued at that price’ I explained that if I had gone totally through the booking process surely I was entitled to the tickets at $175. She informed me that the new ticket price was $475 but as a Jetstar member I would have a discount on baggage and seating selection!

Does this happen often and unless you have a screen shot of the final booking process you do not have any evidence of Jetstar’s outrageous actions?

 

[benjy]

The most plausible explanation is that someone booked tickets at the same time as you for the same flight $175/seat before you purchased your ticket. $175 was in a particular fare bucket. Only a certain amount of seats are in a fare bucket and once they are exhausted, the prices go up to a new fare bucket. You sadly missed out on the cheap seats.

 

[AIRwin]

I can't believe the next fare bucket is $475!

 

[drron]

I had a similiar experience with a sale fare pre covid.
So now if that is so I would just buy the ticket and add the bundle later.This is allowed and in fact did it yesterday for today's JQ flight to LST even though the ticket had been purchased by a corporate TA.
First in,best dressed.

 

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The most plausible explanation is that someone booked tickets at the same time as you for the same flight $175/seat before you purchased your ticket. $175 was in a particular fare bucket. Only a certain amount of seats are in a fare bucket and once they are exhausted, the prices go up to a new fare bucket. You sadly missed out on the cheap seats.

Benjy is it as simple as that? Under the sale of goods act Jetstar offer tickets at $175, when I accept that offer agreeing to buy 2 tickets and then complete my details and pay has a contract not been conducted? In the event that only 2 tickets are available at $175 and 2 people request the 2 tickets is it not the first to request them and the second loses out or are both permitted to complete booking with the last to pay to be the winner? Jetstar could modify their system so that both parties are permitted to purchase successfully in rare cases like this when only seconds separate the 2 requests.

 

[Carrots]

One could say that what occurred is actually a blessing.....

Have you checked VA for the same/similar dates?

 

[Dr Ralph]

I can't believe the next fare bucket is $475!

I can.

 

[Ade]

The balance owing read $0 when a message appeared on the screen ‘Flight no longer available’.

I can only think the below and it is similar to what @benjy mentioned. Mine is just a detailed explanation, if it helps.

You paid for the tickets using voucher and the money was taken from your voucher, so the value on the voucher was set to $0, HOWEVER, there is usually a time lag between the split second the customer clicks on "Buy" and for the ticket/fare to be released from the bucket and allocated to the said customer.

Sometimes, this time lag could be larger, due to, say, any number of issues - server slowness, internet speed, availability of the tickets in that particular fare bucket. There is also another factor that kicks in ticketing. Often times, there is a temporary lock put on the seat/ticket/fare before the payment is actualised. If for any reason there has been a delay in the payment actualisation then the ticketing will be delayed.

So, my guess is, in your case, referring to the point made by @benjy , someone else was also eyeing those 2 seats you were trying to purchase and there was a split second delay on your end that has helped the booking made by the other customer to put the lock on those 2 seats. Hence, even after your payment was actualised, the seats were no longer "accessible" to be booked.

Sorry that you had to go through this.

Re : The JQ voucher - have you had any luck in getting your voucher refunded?

Edit : Now, that I think more about this - I wonder if there is a possibility that JQ has WITHDRAWN those two seats (or any of the remaining seats in the particular fare bucket) for any reason? If this withdrawal has happened a split second before you hit the Buy button, there is a possibility that those 2 seats were not available for purchase and hence you couldn't get the tickets.

 

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Booked 2 tickets last night for $109 so Jetstar lost $132, so tough luck Jetstar.