Did I just see on the news that Frontier Airlines will no longer have a telephone call line for reservation and or customer assistance? It appears you can only communicate via their app, onlline or via whats app. If so, what is the world coming too. I give up.....

More of this is coming…it’s the way forward whether we like it or not…

This is really going to impact the elderly who may not be as tech savy.

https://www.cnn.com/2022/11/26/business ... index.html

I understand that more and more is going online but this is going to backfire. Sure 99.9% of airline ticket sales are online now but those hotlines are useful when passenger circumstances are unique enough that trying to find an answer on the website is pointless. Unless they have suddenly created the greatest airline website in the world where every possible passenger situation and circumstance is covered AND is easy to find then this is just going to be a hot mess.

Isn’t this how Breeze operates?

Just curious, will this result in lay offs? I imagine the agents who were answering the phone will be working online now in the chat sessions. Are these agents even real Frontier employees or outsourced? Were they based in DEN? I imagine this will make it easy to export these jobs overseas as Frontier won't have to worry about hard to understand accents.

This is yet another reason to avoid F9. If something goes wrong and no agents are working at the airport, you’re stuck waiting for a text. Meanwhile, those on WN and others can pick up the phone and call res. This is just another way to insult the poor, who are the most likely to fly NK or F9.

Cranky's experience:

https://crankyflier.com/2022/11/28/fron ... e-support/

alberchico wrote:

This is really going to impact the elderly who may not be as tech savy.

https://www.cnn.com/2022/11/26/business ... index.html

So true and shame on Frontier for choosing this course of action. They are the Motel 6 of the airline industry.

capejet wrote:

Just curious, will this result in lay offs?

F9 probably has enough attrition in phone customer service agents that they won't need layoffs. Some staff will be moved to the chat service, and over time (maybe as little as six months) sufficient staff will depart on their own.

alberchico wrote:

This is really going to impact the elderly who may not be as tech savy.

https://www.cnn.com/2022/11/26/business ... index.html

That may be a feature, not a bug. Just as active customer service (phone or chat) costs money, providing services under the ACAA costs money. F9 may be happy to have those passengers book elsewhere. I'm not an attorney - I'm not arguing there's basis for a suit.

crownvic wrote:

Did I just see on the news that Frontier Airlines will no longer have a telephone call line for reservation and or customer assistance?

Frontier Airlines CEO Unpacks Holiday Air Travel

https://www.foxnews.com/video/6316196725112

MIflyer12 wrote:

alberchico wrote:

This is really going to impact the elderly who may not be as tech savy.

https://www.cnn.com/2022/11/26/business ... index.html

That may be a feature, not a bug. Just as active customer service (phone or chat) costs money, providing services under the ACAA costs money. F9 may be happy to have those passengers book elsewhere. I'm not an attorney - I'm not arguing there's basis for a suit.

It’s not a service provided under the ACAA. The elderly have just as much access to an app/internet as anyone else. ACAA doesn’t require airlines to provide customer service in the format that customer is most familiar with.

Frontier’s call center has been hopelessly incompetent for years - having to call them was always a hellish experience. They really aren’t losing much by eliminating it.

Probably work my like my Experian experiences. Enter online answers, can't help so show number to call. Only to enter same info, that can't help you. Then can't get a real person, so forget it. I certainly don't expect anything good of this for F9. Good luck.

A number of companies use chat with employees for customer services.

It's quick and easy and in the past month I was able to upgrade and get a new cell phone from Verizon, make changes to my Dollar Shave Club account, contact Bose and get an exchange for a defective product, make changes to my Google Fiber internet service and then some. Each one in 5-10 minutes while not tying up the phone line for hours and allowing me to get other things done.

It's not hard unless you're just.....challenged.

capejet wrote:

Just curious, will this result in lay offs? I imagine the agents who were answering the phone will be working online now in the chat sessions. Are these agents even real Frontier employees or outsourced? Were they based in DEN? I imagine this will make it easy to export these jobs overseas as Frontier won't have to worry about hard to understand accents.

lol. Of course they were all contracted out and most likely overseas.

Probably need less of them because when you are asking questions in texts, then you are taking up much less customer service time. Less time chit chatting or complaints about x,y,z.

I'm personally glad they are going in this direction. It will dramatically split the customer base between those that can deal with this and everyone else who will book on more traditional airlines.

So I guess it would be quite difficult for a visually impaired person to book with Frontier Airlines now...

alberchico wrote:

This is really going to impact the elderly who may not be as tech savy.

https://www.cnn.com/2022/11/26/business ... index.html

Meh

alberchico wrote:

This is really going to impact the elderly who may not be as tech savy.

https://www.cnn.com/2022/11/26/business ... index.html

This is noted and a fair point, but how many elderly don't have whatsapp? What do we consider elderly. Are elderly even flying Frontier? My mother is 65 and uses whatsapp all the time as an example. All this to say, I am sure they've done their research on this

2eng2efficient wrote:

Frontier’s call center has been hopelessly incompetent for years - having to call them was always a hellish experience. They really aren’t losing much by eliminating it.

I tend to agree, unfortunately. When F9 went ULCC and laid off all their in-house res agents (who were a fabulous group of people, many of them former Midwest Airlines), it went downhill dramatically. I'm not sure who they contracted it to, but basically, if you call about anything that isn't explicitly on their script, they can't do a heck of a lot to help you. And forget about talking to a supervisor to resolve it. That takes hours and I've found that more often than not, you get disconnected in the process.

alberchico wrote:

This is really going to impact the elderly who may not be as tech savy.

https://www.cnn.com/2022/11/26/business ... index.html

The number of "elderly" people, not tech savy who travel and book their own plane ticket is most likely much lower than a statistical error, and most likely would not fly Frontier anyway; so, this is basically a non-issue.

Almost every time I've had reservation issues on any airline, live humans had to fix it. I see this going in circles and circles until someone buys a new ticket I bet at least fairly often when issues come up that pax can't articulate and the "support" people don't pick up on. Hell, that may be by design...

maverick4002 wrote:

alberchico wrote:

This is really going to impact the elderly who may not be as tech savy.

https://www.cnn.com/2022/11/26/business ... index.html

This is noted and a fair point, but how many elderly don't have whatsapp? What do we consider elderly. Are elderly even flying Frontier? My mother is 65 and uses whatsapp all the time as an example. All this to say, I am sure they've done their research on this

How many people that don't know how to use smart phones\do things the old-fashioned way fly Frontier? Weekly? Thousands easily. My 83-year-old grandma can use a smartphone, my 61-year-old father from California can not. A lot of people don't. It's reality. A.net loves to live in a bubble when these topics come up and insist that the cases are "rare" that a person NEEDS human interaction to solve their travel issues, but I'm telling you from someone who has spent a life in the industry, that attitude is very incorrect...very very incorrect.

i call them and Breeze "Walk Away" fares. Going in I would be aware i would simply to need to walk away from planned trip or book at higher rate in the case of an extreme IRROC scenario

Polot wrote:

MIflyer12 wrote:

alberchico wrote:

This is really going to impact the elderly who may not be as tech savy.

https://www.cnn.com/2022/11/26/business ... index.html

That may be a feature, not a bug. Just as active customer service (phone or chat) costs money, providing services under the ACAA costs money. F9 may be happy to have those passengers book elsewhere. I'm not an attorney - I'm not arguing there's basis for a suit.

It’s not a service provided under the ACAA. The elderly have just as much access to an app/internet as anyone else. ACAA doesn’t require airlines to provide customer service in the format that customer is most familiar with.

And people needing ACAA services who can't/won't use online/chat services will book elsewhere, saving F9 money. F9 may be fully satisfied with that.

stlgph wrote:

A number of companies use chat with employees for customer services.

It's quick and easy and in the past month I was able to upgrade and get a new cell phone from Verizon, make changes to my Dollar Shave Club account, contact Bose and get an exchange for a defective product, make changes to my Google Fiber internet service and then some. Each one in 5-10 minutes while not tying up the phone line for hours and allowing me to get other things done.

It's not hard unless you're just.....challenged.

That's great if the chat is with a real person and not a bot. I've gotten wonderful service similar to your examples via online chat when it's a human at the other end, but hit brick walls when it's a bot

RJNUT wrote:

i call them and Breeze "Walk Away" fares. Going in I would be aware i would simply to need to walk away from planned trip or book at higher rate in the case of an extreme IRROC scenario

If one is a frequent F9 flyer the extreme IROP scenario may be a good reason to buy $150/year travel insurance to cover delays. People who know F9 well shouldn't book F9 for a 'need to be there' ticket, anyway.

maverick4002 wrote:

alberchico wrote:

This is really going to impact the elderly who may not be as tech savy.

https://www.cnn.com/2022/11/26/business ... index.html

This is noted and a fair point, but how many elderly don't have whatsapp? What do we consider elderly. Are elderly even flying Frontier? My mother is 65 and uses whatsapp all the time as an example. All this to say, I am sure they've done their research on this

What's app is not as popular in the United States as it is in the rest of the world

really, really dumb idea... Wait and see if Frontier isn't going to profit ahead months later. Too bad. Please attention to all airlines do NOT follow Frontier's idea. Just back off and wait.

Q

Q wrote:

really, really dumb idea... Wait and see if Frontier isn't going to profit ahead months later. Too bad. Please attention to all airlines do NOT follow Frontier's idea. Just back off and wait.

Q

Plenty of companies no longer allow customers to call them; it's done by texts, emails or apps. The good thing about that is that it leaves a trace in case of conflict.

I know a lot of companies do this... But imo not a good idea. You can push people to apps, social media, email, but in the end if someone really feels like they need assistance and have no one to call, they'll probably fly other airlines going forward. Non-travel related I can understand this method but sometimes you actually want to talk to someone to ensure clarity and peace of mind, especially if you don't travel often. Bad move but they aren't the only company to make this mistake.

I also don't really care as I already won't / don't fly f9. Ever. Just another reason for me to avoid them.

Frontier will make Greyhound look fantastic in comparison

I really don't see the big deal here.

It's a huge shame. Personally, I wonder if, in the future, you won't be able to access reservations via their website, instead you will have to download and use their app. Why? Because apps are far more insidious about collecting information about you than websites are, and that information is sellable, traceable, and hackable.

Honestly I prefer chat-based customer service. Super easy to screenshot for verification of what was discussed, and most systems will also send you a transcript. Makes it way easier for me to remember what either myself or the agent said, which is helpful as I age Also some carriers, especially United, are able to quickly fix a surprisingly huge amount of issues via text chat. I've had a couple billing issues solved within a couple minutes quickly and efficiently in this way.

usflyer msp wrote:

I really don't see the big deal here.

For starters, about 30% of Baby Boomers do not own a smart phone and nearly half aren't tech savvy to access advanced features. My parents are in their mid-70s, highly intelligent but do not use a smart phone nor a computer.

Didnt Spirit had a similar stance under Indigo? I don’t know why people are surprised. Indigo is known for being absolutely the greediest and cheapest when it comes to cost-cutting.

And to think people actually wanted them to become bigger by merging F9 with NK. Saved by the bell!

Such moves should not be legal. It abuses the customers. And not just old ones who don't know how to use apps; I'm young and quite tech savvy but often need to call to get help with changes. Especially when they keep "simplifying" websites to eliminate many of those features. It's also just a much more pleasant experience to hear a person's voice than send anonymous messages. Yes Frontier is not known for pleasant experiences but customer service should be a requirement rather than a luxury.

Very stupid idea....but its Bill Franke, nuff' said.

I’d imagine that F9 ran the numbers and found that any revenue lost due to those who don’t use tech nit booking will be easily made up in the savings by not having phone agents.

WidebodyPTV wrote:

usflyer msp wrote:

I really don't see the big deal here.

For starters, about 30% of Baby Boomers do not own a smart phone and nearly half aren't tech savvy to access advanced features. My parents are in their mid-70s, highly intelligent but do not use a smart phone nor a computer.

They can send an email. My 76 old mom can do that. I don't see the big deal

MIflyer12 wrote:

capejet wrote:

Just curious, will this result in lay offs?

F9 probably has enough attrition in phone customer service agents that they won't need layoffs. Some staff will be moved to the chat service, and over time (maybe as little as six months) sufficient staff will depart on their own.

F9 area is contract and I believe the company is in the Philippines. I’m sure they’ll just transition to copy/pasting chat responses.

usflyer msp wrote:

WidebodyPTV wrote:

usflyer msp wrote:

I really don't see the big deal here.

For starters, about 30% of Baby Boomers do not own a smart phone and nearly half aren't tech savvy to access advanced features. My parents are in their mid-70s, highly intelligent but do not use a smart phone nor a computer.

They can send an email. My 76 old mom can do that. I don't see the big deal

How does one send an email without a computer or smartphone? Regardless, this is F9 thumbing their nose to a not insignificant portion of the population.

usflyer msp wrote:

WidebodyPTV wrote:

usflyer msp wrote:

I really don't see the big deal here.

For starters, about 30% of Baby Boomers do not own a smart phone and nearly half aren't tech savvy to access advanced features. My parents are in their mid-70s, highly intelligent but do not use a smart phone nor a computer.

They can send an email. My 76 old mom can do that. I don't see the big deal

My parents are 73 and 76. They have never used a computer, let alone sent an e-mail. They stopped dining at their favorite fast casual restaurant after it moved all ordering to apps and kiosks (even though employees are available to assist). They are not alone. "According to a 2021 study by the Pew Research Center, 39 percent of those 65 and over do not own a smartphone, and 25 percent don’t use the internet." You're overestimating the number of seniors who are tech savvy.

source:
https://www.mouseprint.org/2022/06/27/digitalcoupons/

shamrock321 wrote:

More of this is coming…it’s the way forward whether we like it or not…

Remember Skybus, back in 2007?!?! No telephone lines at all, contact was only possible via email!

WidebodyPTV wrote:

usflyer msp wrote:

WidebodyPTV wrote:

For starters, about 30% of Baby Boomers do not own a smart phone and nearly half aren't tech savvy to access advanced features. My parents are in their mid-70s, highly intelligent but do not use a smart phone nor a computer.

They can send an email. My 76 old mom can do that. I don't see the big deal

My parents are 73 and 76. They have never used a computer, let alone sent an e-mail. They stopped dining at their favorite fast casual restaurant after it moved all ordering to apps and kiosks (even though employees are available to assist). They are not alone. "According to a 2021 study by the Pew Research Center, 39 percent of those 65 and over do not own a smartphone, and 25 percent don’t use the internet." You're overestimating the number of seniors who are tech savvy.

source:
https://www.mouseprint.org/2022/06/27/digitalcoupons/

This is mostly a choice, which they are free to make. That being said, as a company, not every customer necessarily should be your customer. There are some customers that are best sent to your competitors.

I think the major airlines will always have to have some sort of phone service available. It might change to a chat function, but sometimes you just need a live person. On AA this year, I had a reservation which could not be changed online. What are you supposed to do if there are no live agents available? I've had several reservations on Delta that I could not do anything to online (change, upgrade to a better seats, etc.). It always just gave me a message to call in.

Perhaps the newer low cost carriers which have a customized reservations system and a simply business model can do it. However, the large network carriers have too many stipulations and special cases to eliminate phone service. I do admit that, in the mid 80s, if someone told me that all city ticket offices would close in the next 15 years, I would have thought they were crazy.

I recently had to contact Cathay Pacific (CX) and they have moved to whatsapp only from North America. After three attempts to resolve the issue, bypassing the bot and stating 'agent', I got a minimal resolution. Note that I was on hold 17 hours each time: I don't think they were open 24/7 and I simply was in the queue.

Similarly I dealt with Aeromexico on a change and the emails did not resolve the problem. Agents were simply responding by message to whatever they could make sense of. When i finally spoke to someone in person, he was able to resolve the problem very much to my satisfaction by prompting me with the right questions. I'm relatively tech-savvy but can't always concisely explain myself in an email or text.

stlgph wrote:

A number of companies use chat with employees for customer services.

It's quick and easy and in the past month I was able to upgrade and get a new cell phone from Verizon, make changes to my Dollar Shave Club account, contact Bose and get an exchange for a defective product, make changes to my Google Fiber internet service and then some. Each one in 5-10 minutes while not tying up the phone line for hours and allowing me to get other things done.

It's not hard unless you're just.....challenged.

Its the best way to deal with Delta when things go wrong, and you have a paper trail.