Jet-No-Star: The war begins again.

You may have noticed that my blog has been quiet for a long long time. I can't say I really have an excuse, except to say that maybe I stopped blogging because I didn't have any advocacy battles to talk about. I don't think this was ever my full intention for this blog to be purely about advocacy issues but somehow it ended up like that. Never the less, here's the latest Jetstar complaint / installment. I think I'm at my last straw with them. We'll see where this leads! - Madeleine.

I have been travelling with you regularly for the past two years or so therefore I know Jetstar's booking and check in procedures for customers needing assistance with a wheelchair very well.

Usually when checking in my 100kg electric wheelchair I am asked how much it weighs and what kind of battery it has. This enables check in staff to contact Jetstar Security via phone to obtain the 'Security Authorisation Number' to gain permission for my wheelchair to fly.

When checking in for this flight everything went to plan except that the check in staff member expected that I had obtained a letter from Jetstar myself with the 'Security Authorisation Number' myself before checking in. She said it was a new ruling that haf been enforced in the last six months.

I didn't bring the letter because I was not aware of this new ruling. I had also not been asked for this previously in the last six months when I had flown with Jetstar. The check in staff had always continued to phone Jetstar Security themselves. The Jetstar website also did not inform me of this when I booked online and told you of my assistance needs on your booking form in appropriate sections.

In previous communications and complaints I have resolved with Jetstar, I have worked with you to make online booking facilities available to those needing assistance with a wheelchair or mobility aid because using the call centre to make bookings should not be the only option.

My problem and why I feel that I have been discriminated against is that by booking online via the Jetstar website, I am trying to avoid having to contact the call centre. If Jetstar's website does not explain the process for obtaining a 'Security Authorisation Number' and/or make that function available on your online booking form, then I am still forced to contact the call centre. This then defeats the purpose of booking online. For some customers with disabilities, using the telephone is not an option for them at all.

What Jetstar needs to do to resolve this issue is: Revise and change your online booking forms to enable customers who require assistance with a wheelchair or other mobility aid to complete the whole booking process via the Jetstar website. You need to add additional space on the online booking form or provide a contact email address specifically for the purposes of gaining a 'Security Authorisation Number' for people who need to travel with wheelchairs or other mobility aids can gain the permission for it to fly.

Please note that I have also lodged a Disability Discrimination Act complaint with the Human Rights Commission because I feel Jetstar have indirectly discriminated against not only me, but other people who would find the new process of making flight bookings impossible.

Just Keep Swimming...

Just keep swimming, just keep swimming as Dory from the Disney Pixar film "Finding Nemo" says.... That's all well and good for most of us, but what if you are a wheelchair user and have specific requirements that you need in order to go swimming in the first place? Since moving to Melbourne and I needed to find somewhere local to swim as swimming compliments riding and is also one of the only ways I can exercise. I did a little bit of a Google search and found the pools in my local area. At first I thought I'd have to try out a few different ones before I'd figure out which one was best for me. Little did I know that the first place I'd go, would be the place I'd continue to go! Thomastown Recreation and Aquatic Centre (TRAC), is where I go to swim...


So what's so great about, I hear you ask? Well firstly, it is HUGE! TRAC has four pools, a spa, a sauna, and a steam room. All those facilities are wheelchair accessible bar one pool, which is the kids pool.

TRAC not only has wheelchair access to three of their pools and the spa via a series of ramps with their water wheelchairs, they also have incredible toilet / shower / changing facilities which make it possible for just about anyone to swim there. These facilities are not only big and spacious, but they have tracking in the ceiling with a hoist which moves you around the room so you can go from the toilet to the shower etc with ease and it eliminates the need for the swimmer to be able to do standing transfers.

I think photos pretty much tell my story for me!

The photos above pretty much tell the story of the awesome facilities, however there is one other really great thing about it. One of the three bathrooms has the tracking in the ceiling for the hoist that goes around the room but also goes straight out the door to enable the swimmer to be hoisted straight into the hydro pool. This also means the swimmer can not only access the hydro pool, but the spa and the teaching pool.

I tried to take more photos of the actual configurations of the pool but I was told I wasn't allowed to because of the public photo taking laws etc.

I feel like I've hit the jackpot! I've never seen such a well thought out pool which enables me to go swimming independently of other people. If I could give TRAC some kind of award, I would!

Jetstar... the user pays part 3

I know its been a rather long time between blogs, but I went home to Newcastle for my month university break. I am sorry about my absence but be rest assured I have quite a few blog ideas up my sleeve!

Something I did want to let you know though was the results of the ongoing Jetstar saga. In my last blog, I spoke about getting an 'unofficial' response from Jetstar on their Facebook page and how they said they'd be in touch with me soon regarding my booking. I still have not heard anything from them since their Facebook response. I sent another submission in talking about how it was news to me that I could book online, but I had tried and had not been successful. I am still waiting to hear back from them regarding my first and second submission.

However, in the last couple of days, I was booking flights from Newcastle to Melbourne for my parents to come and visit me in about six weeks time and I made a very interesting discovery. I was in a hurry to get the cheap flights so I was unable to stop and carefully examine what I saw, but I went back and booked a 'fake' flight for myself.

I discovered that I can successfully make a flight booking online!!!! I couldn't believe my eyes, I almost wanted to get up and do a dance!

See for yourself:

I'm still not entirely impressed that they haven't responded to either of my submissions and I'm still not happy about the $14 booking fee but at least we don't need to pay for the extra $40 as well. I'll definitely be interested to see if they ever get back to me!

I'll be blogging again before too long, but just wanted to share my excitement with you because I now do not have to talk to people at Jetstar who don't understand me! Hooray!

Pride Against Prejudice --- The worlds attitudes towards disability!

Whilst I have been on my four week university semester break, I’ve been getting to read some interesting books other than psychology text books. One read that I’ve got my teeth into is ‘Pride Against Prejudice – Transforming Attitudes to Disability’ by Jenny Morris. As disability awareness and attitudes is something I am very passionate about, I am loving the book and I’m only one chapter into it!

Below is an extract from the book. It is the authors thoughts on the presumptions and preconceptions people who do NOT have a disability on the lives of people who DO have a disability. The extract parts are in bold and anything else in brackets is my thoughts or personal experiences.

Assumptions people without disabilities have about people who do have disabilities are:

That we feel ugly, inadequate and ashamed of our disability.

(Not true, I love my life, my disability is part of me!)

That our lives are a burden to us, barely worth living.

That we crave to be ‘normal’ and ‘whole’.

(I feel privileged to be in this position because I see the best and the worst of what society offers. I do wish sometimes there were some parts of my daily living that could be a bit easier but by now I’ve learnt how to live my life to what they perceive as ‘normal’)

That we are aware of ourselves as disabled in the same way that they are about us and have the same attitude to it.

That nothing can be gained from the experience.

(My life is far more enriched from experiencing disability. It has given me more maturity and character than I could ever hope for.)

That we constantly suffer and that any suffering is nasty, unjust and to be feared and retreated from.

(Suffering generally means physical pain. My personal experience of disability means that I am not suffering in pain, but I know that for some it is not the case.)

That whatever we choose to do or think, any work or pursuit we undertake is done so as ‘therapy’ with the sole intention of taking our mind off our condition.

(Not likely. I want to build a life just the same as everyone else. I w

ant friends, family, hobbies, fun, a job, a car, a dog, a house etc, just the same as them.)

That we don’t have, and never have had, any real or significant experiences in the way that non-disabled people do.

That we are naïve and lead sheltered lives.

That we can’t ever really accept our condition, and if we appear to be leading a full and contented life, or are simply cheerful, we are ‘just putting a good face on it.’

(I’m sure this statement is where a lot of pat

ronising and the words ‘amazing’, ‘inspiring’ and ‘supercrip’ get thrown around!)

This is the 'putting on a good face' experience

That we desire to emulate and achieve normal behaviour and appearance in all things.

(We do to some extent, but we are usually better at realising we are unique and there is often nothing we can do about it anyway!)

That we go about the daily necessities or pursue an interest because it is a ‘challenge’ through which we can ‘prove’ ourselves capable.

(I am probably an example of this sometimes. I LOVE to prove people wrong and give me a challenge and I will give it a go! I’ve been told by many people that I don’t need to keep proving myself, but it something that I just keep doing because I keep being tol

d by most of society that I can’t.)

That we feel envy and resentment of the able bodied.

(I think this more something people who acquire disability later on in life feel, rather than people who are born with disability.)

That we feel our condition is an unjust punishment.

(This depends on whether the person sees their

disability as a negative or positive thing. For me my disability makes me who I am. Its not punishment.)

That any emotion or distress we show can only be due to our disability and not to the same things that hurt and upset them.

(Errr… WRONG! We have emotions just like you!)

That our disability has affected us psychologically, making us bitter and neurotic.

That it’s quite amazing if we laugh, are cheerful and pleasant or show pleasure in other people’s happiness.

That we are ashamed of our inabilities, our ‘abnormalities’ and loathe our wheelchairs, crutches or other aids.

(I focus more on my abilities than my inabilities, to me what I can do is more important than what I can’t do. I fair from loathe my wheelchair. My wheelchair is what gives me the freedom to be me. Without it I would be stuck at home doing nothing. I love it so much that the old girl has a name. Her name is Polly!)

That we never ‘give up hope’ of a cure.

(Walking or finding a cure wouldn’t really help me anyway. See this article written by Stella Young about cures. It pretty much sums up my views about it.)

That the inability to walk, to see or to hear is infinitely more dreadful than any other physical aspects of disability.

(The actual notion of not being able to walk on two long, strong and tall legs is not the issue. It is consequences of that and how that affects me personally that is t

he issue.)

That we believe our lives are a ‘write off.’

That words like ‘walk’ and ‘dance’ will upset us – as if people who’ve endured what we have have fragile sensibilities.

(Words like walk and dance are not things that bother me or many others. When talking about going somewhere, I usually say in conversat

ion that I ‘walked’ down the street. I am obvious

ly meaning that I went down the street in my wheelchair but I don’t really feel its necessary to state that I ‘wheeled’ instead of ‘walked.’ Dance well, I can dance, I probably look a bit funny dancing especially when I’ve only got my upper body to work with, but heck, its still dancing!)

That when we affirm that we cannot or do not wish to do something, our judgement and preferences are overridden and contradicted as inferior to theirs.

That we are asexual or ay best sexually inade

quate.

(I want a partner, a relationship, a marriage and children one day, again, I am just like you!)

That we cannot ovulate, menstruate, conceive or give birth, have orgasms, erections, ejaculations, or impregnate.

(Unless part of our disability affects our reproductive organs, then why would this be affected?)

That if we are not married or in a long term relationship it is because no one wants us and not through our personal choice to remain single or live alone.

(It may be personal choice, or it may be that we haven’t met the right person yet.)

That if we do not have a child it must be the cause of abject sorrow to us and likewise never through choice.

(The key word here is CHOICE! It is our choice. Sometimes due to medical complications with our disability, this may be a reason why we can’t have a child, but did people forget about adoption, fostering and many other ways people can become parents these days?)

That any able bodied person who marries us must have done so for one of the following suspicious motives and never through love: desire to hide his/her own inadequacies in the disabled partner’s obvious ones; an altruistic and saintly desire to sacrifice their lives to our care; neurosis of some sort, or plain old fashioned fortune-hunting.

That if we have a partner who also has a disability, we choose each other for no other reason, and not for any other qualities we might possess.

When we choose ‘our own kind’ in this way the able bodied world feels relieved, until of course we wish to have children; then we’re seen as irresponsible.

(I hate having people automatically assume that I want to be in a relationship with someone who has a disability. Yes I might choose this option if the guy I meet has a disability, but I won’t be choosing them just because they have a disability! And about the children thing, did people ever think that if we are capable of being independent and looking after ourselves, how

much different is it going to be looking after a child? Okay so there may be something physical things we cannot do, but we’ve problem solved all our lives, we are experts at it, let us figure it out!)

That if our marriage or relationship fails it is entirely due to our disability and the difficult person this inevitably makes us, and never from the usual things that make any relationship fail.

(I am starting to feel like a broken record… WE ARE JUST LIKE YOU!)

That we haven’t got a right to an able bodied partner and that if they happen to be very obviously attractive, it’s even more of a ‘waste’.

That any able bodied partner we have is doing us a favour and that we bring nothing to the relationship.

(They obviously like us enough as a person to want to be with us, so if they didn’t why would they still be sticking around?)

That we can’t actually do anything. That we ‘sit around’ all day ‘doing nothing.’ Sitting seems to imply resting so it is presumed that we get no ‘exercise.’

(I have a life that is just as busy and productive as you, if not more busy. People with a disability seem to appreciate their abilities more than most people, so any opportunities we can, we usually grasp with our hands ever so tightly!)

That those those of use whose disability is such that we require a carer to attend to our physical needs are helpless cabbages who don’t do anything either and have nothing to give and who lead meaningless, empty lives.

That if we are particularly gifted, successful or attractive before the onset of disability our fate is infinitely more ‘tragic’ than if we were none of these things.

That we should put up with any inconvenience, discomfort and indignity in order to participate in ‘normal’ activities and events. And this will somehow ‘do us good.’

(This one probably rubs me in all the wrong directions the most! I especially hate when I am out somewhere and there is not wheelchair access into somewhere and whoever I am with says they’re happy to lift my chair into the building or assist me in some other way. Had it ever occurred to them that we want to be independent and we don’t want people doing stuff for us, just because it’s easier on them? What about our dignity? Also, why should we give the venue or the shop the satisfaction of thinking that its okay to not have proper access? They should realise they loose business by not being accessible)

That our only true scale of merit and success is to judge ourselves by the standards of their world.

That our need and right to privacy isn’t as important as theirs and that our lives need to be monitored in a way that deprives us of privacy and choice.

(I once heard someone say: ‘Having a disability is like being a celebrity without the perks!’ I would agree with that! Celebrities have to share their lives with people because their under the eye of the world, and people think they have the right to know what’s going on in their lives. With people with a disability, they just want to be noisy!)

That we are sweet, deprived little souls who need to be compensated with treats, presents and praise.

(We hate feeling like charity cases! Just because you feel sorry for us, doesn’t mean we want you to come up and shove $50 in our hand and tell us to go buy something ‘nice’ for ourselves and tell us to have a lovely day!)

ACTION: DO YOU AGREE OR DISAGREE? DO YOU HAVE ANYTHING ELSE TO ADD TO THE LIST? LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS!

Jetstar... the user pays! Part 2

I haven't received an official reply yet but after I wrote my complaint to Jetstar, I decided that it shouldn't be an issue that just they have to deal with and that their other customers should know about it too. I decided to post the link to my blog on their Facebook page and see what kind of response I would get from them and their customers. 6 People 'liked' my link so it just goes to show their customers do watch what goes on.

Jetstar commented on the link and said:

Hi Madeleine! Thanks for posting a link to your blog. We’ve looked at your booking and read the points you’ve raised, and would like to this opportunity to publically respond to them.


-Customers who have specific needs can make online bookings. We have a whole section entitled “Special Assistance” (on the Payments page) which asks the customer to advise us if any passenger travelling on the booking will be travelling with a wheelchair, requires an upper torso restraint or is vision/hearing impaired. We then ask detailed questions regarding any assistance our customers may require. Customers can then advise us whether they will be travelling with a wheelchair and what level of assistance they require with their wheelchair (if any).

-Booking and service fees are common across websites selling flights. We charge a booking and service fee that is comparable to our competitors, and lower than some. We reward our customers who have Jetstar MasterCard and Jetstar Platinum MasterCard and Jetstar vouchers by waiving this booking and service fee, while at the same time providing a free service to those bookings completed using PoLi and online banking. If you pay by any other method, there will be a fee.

-Additionally, customers who choose to book via our Telephone Reservations team rather than booking online will pay a higher fare than those who choose to book online. However, if a customer is unable to book online due to their specific needs, they can advise us of this and we will provide them the online fare.

We’d like to let you know that we have received your online submission, and will soon respond privately with further information about your individual booking. Thanks for getting contact with us, and we’ll be in touch soon.

Thanks – Jetstar

After reading this I thought, 'Okay, well I should give them the benefit of the doubt and I'll try making a fake booking online and see how far I get.' So off I go to Jetstar.com to try it out, only to find that their website is too busy that I can't even search for a fake flight anyway.

After a few hours of continually trying, I finally got on and went through the process to where I could tell them I was travelling with a wheelchair. The question said something like: Are you travelling with a: wheelchair, service animal or other type of mobility equipment? They then gave you the option to tick whichever box you needed. I ticked wheelchair and then was given 3 different options to tick depending on how much assistance I needed to board the plane etc.

HOWEVER: There was no options where I could write about my wheelchair. When I make bookings over the phone they usually want to know how much the wheelchair weighs, what kind of battery it has for safety purposes etc, and they are also supposed to give me a security authorisation number so that the check in staff know that my wheelchair has been approved to be checked in as luggage.

Underneath all of the previous parts of the online form I just spoke about above was this:

Limited Special Assistance

We do provide limited special assistance services to accommodate customers who need to travel with a service dog and customers who require a wheelchair and customers who require two seats for themselves. If you need to use these special services you must contact Jetstar Reservations. Those who have made special arrangements through Jetstar Reservations will be boarded first. Other animals will not be carried unless required by law.

CONCLUSION: I cannot successfully book a flight online! I was speaking with my Mum on the phone about it and she was asking me what would happen if I did book online and just didn't give them the information they usually want about my wheelchair. I said though, that when I get to check in, they'd make it my problem for not ringing up the call centre.


There you have it! Jetstar (or as I like to call it Jetfail), really don't have a clear policy of how they deal with customers who require extra assistance or need to travel with mobility aids.

I'll wait to 'officially' hear from them again and see what happens from there, but rest assured, I'll be telling them that I tried to book online and couldn't and I will quote that paragraph above about calling Jetstar Reservations.

Jetstar... the user pays!

I recently booked my return flights from Melbourne to Newcastle so I can go home for my uni break. As Jetstar don't allow wheelchair users to book online, I went through the process of ringing the call centre.

After making the booking and receiving the itinerary, I was shocked to find that they had charged me an extra $2o per flight just for making the booking through the call centre! They also charge anyone who doesn't use their new Jetstar Mastercard, a fee of $14 to make the booking on any other credit card!

Both of these realisations made me rather angry. I decided to tell Jetstar just how angry I was and how unacceptable these costs were.

This is the complaint I sent to them via their website:



I am a wheelchair user who has no choice but to book my flights through the Jetstar call centre. I find it very unacceptable that just because I have no choice but to book through the call centre, that I am forced to pay the $20 Call Centre Offset on each flight booked. I would prefer to book online as it is much easier to do so than via telephone, however, this is NOT my choice.

I also find it unacceptable that anyone no using the Jetstar Mastercard, has to pay a $14 fee to use another card. Personally, I do not have a credit card, I have a debit card. I am on the Disability Support Pension, I am unemployed and therefore, I cannot afford to have a credit card. I have a debit card for instances where I need to pay for things over the phone or online, but I don't see why those who are not able to have a credit card because of financial circumstances, should have to pay the $14 fee.

With these two costs added to my booking, I ended up paying an extra $54. This is unnecessary and unacceptable.

Jetstar needs to implement a no fee policy into any booking where the passenger is traveling with a wheelchair or other type of mobility equipment. Just because you have not set up a system for us to be able to book online, does not mean we should have to pay for it.



SO: What are you experiences with air travel? Have you been charged ridiculous amounts? Or have you had other issues with airlines non related to fees? Leave me some comments, I'd love to hear your experiences.

Victoria's Taxi Inquiry

I've recently been in contact with the people who are conducting the inquiry into the current Victorian Taxi service via twitter. They asked me to forward them my experiences with wheelchair accessible taxis in Victoria. I'd like to create some discussion about it, so below is what I have sent them. Tell me what you think and if you have anything else you'd like to say or suggest, please do, and I'll forward it onto them.

My I sent to them:

I have been following you via twitter as @tinymads. Here are my experiences, opinions and suggestions.

I have found that my experience with WATS have been generally good.I have heard experiences of others after speaking with them.

When making bookings, some passengers may not be able to speak effectively enough on the phone to make themselves understood and therefore this may complicate their booking. A mobile version of the current online booking service for WATS vehicles needs to be made available. The iphone application is not suitable for everyone because not everyone has an iphone. A mobile site which any user can access no matter what device they have needs to be implemented.

People with communication barriers or slurred speech have difficulty speaking with drivers who do not understand English. WATS Drivers really do need to be able to speak excellent English as this makes the situation stressful for the passenger and driver.

Some parts of the different disabilities that passengers may have, may involve them not being able to tell the driver where to go and give directions. It needs to be policy that every WATS vehicle has a GPS and the driver has training on how to use them properly.

Eftpos machines in WATS vehicles generally don't have long enough cords and therefore passengers sometimes have no choice but to reveal their pin number so the driver can process their payment.This is an invasion of privacy, and needs to be addressed.

Wait times are too long. Some people I have spoken to have had to wait up to 1 hour for a WATS vehicle.

If the pick up address is the passengers home, and the passenger is not out the front when the driver arrives, they need to knock on the door to let the passenger know they are there. Just because they are not out the front, does not mean they are not there. There may be a number of reasons why the passenger cannot wait outside. When the driver knocks on the door, the driver needs to be patient, due to our disability it may take us a little longer to answer the door, so don't assume we aren't there because we don't answer straight away.

I have had other passengers tell me that drivers switch on the meter before they begin the journey while the driver is strapping the wheelchair in. That can sometimes add at least $10 or more onto the fare. This is unacceptable.

Drivers need specific training in the safest way to strap in the wheelchair. Their vehicle should also not be allowed to accept wheelchair jobs unless they have all four restraining straps and seat belt. If a passengers wheelchair is not strapped in properly, this puts the passengers life at risk.

When traveling interstate, passengers should not have to explain to drivers what the 'interstate docket' is. I have had many incidences where drivers have refused to take the docket because I am not from their state or territory and they have had no training in what to do with interstate dockets. Passengers should also be able to request as many dockets as they require. 10 dockets per 7 days is not acceptable.

GO: I know you've all got something to say, so tell me your experiences!