Jet2 among operators under pressure as wait times frustrate agents

Pressure is growing on operators to step up their call centre operations as agents grow increasingly frustrated at hanging on the phone for hours at a time.

Jet2 Holidays and Hoseasons are among those that retailers say have been struggling to cope with the volume of calls.

In addition to the weight of enquiries – both on the phone and via email – staff still on furlough and potential technology issues with working from home are thought to be impacting wait times.

Jet2 and Hoseasons both recognised the issue.

Posting on Travel Gossip several agents said they struggled to get through at all, with lines constantly engaged.

Others said after getting through they were wating in a queue for hours. 

One agent said of Jet2 Holidays: "Obviously you are very busy with all the refunds and staff still on furlough or working from home but it is impossible to get through on the phone to make an amendment.

"I emailed group bookings as your website says but a returned email came back saying the email address is not monitored for incoming messages."

Some agents said they had been unable to get through for days.

One exasperated consultant said: "[I have been] trying for two days. I have customers who are travelling in less than 14 days and the hotel they were due to go to will be closed."

Another said there were "100s in the same boat" trying to contact Jet2.

"Oh come on Jet2! All I get is the engaged tone," another wrote.

Swindon-based Hays Personal Travel Consultant Natalie Taylor, was kept waiting but added: "To be fair they have been amazing once we are through. I know the team are working hard and all the changes are not their fault."  

But another said: "Well done. I spent nearly five hours of my time on to them yesterday…and was cut off a few minutes in after explaining it was a group amendment."

One retailer said she had been trying to get through to Hoseasons for weeks, while another descibed the wait times as "horendous".

"I have been trying to speak to Hoseasons on the phone for a month now. Need sorted (sic) ASAP before I lose a client."

Other consultants said they had been waiting for hours at unnamed operators, with one finally getting through after two and half hours only to be told – at 4pm – the call centre was closed.

Jet2 said in a statement to TravelMole: "Like all airlines and tour operators, we are dealing with an unprecedented number of enquiries. With our award-winning holidays programme resuming last week, this has resulted in more enquiries.

"We know that agents understand the number of enquiries we are dealing with, and we would like to thank them for their positive feedback, as well as their understanding and patience.

"We are continuing to work tirelessly to look after our independent travel agency partners, and we are contacting everyone in departure date order to discuss their options."

Hoseasons apologised for the wait times, revealing calls are 10 times the normal volume.

"We are aware that agents may be having to wait longer than usual to get through to us and we apologise for any inconvenience caused," a spokesperson said. "Sales via travel agents have doubled since the return of domestic holidays and we are currently experiencing ten times the volume of calls we would normally expect at this time of year.

"Our team are all still working from home, but following government announcements last Friday, we are planning to reopen our call centre this week, which will allow us to recruit more people to help cope with the temporary spike in volumes.

"In the meantime, we ask agents to be patient as we try to deal with their enquiries as quickly as possible."

A message on its website also acknowledged it was struggling due to the volume of enquiries.

"We are dealing with an extraordinarily high number of queries," the domestic operator told visitors to its site. "These will take some time to respond to as we have tens of thousands of customers to help.

"Your patience and understanding is appreciated as we continue to prioritise customers with imminent travel dates. Rest assured we will get back to every one of you."

The complaints about Jet2 is rare criticism for the operator which has been widely recognised for the way it has handled the pandemic.

In TravelMole’s Smashed It campaign, the firm was praised for its ‘superb service’.

Consumer watchdog Which? also praised Jet2 for its response during the crisis.

By Steve Jones, Contributing Editor