Last week, JetBlue announced that they were offering a limited-time challenge for their Mosaic elite status and, for certain members at elite levels with other airlines, status matches.
While not the best loyalty program around, JetBlue does offer some nice perks with their Mosaic level. They are simple things, but things which can be very helpful when trying to save both time and money. The offering from JetBlue was for participants of the challenge to buy and fly $1,250 worth of airfare to earn Mosaic status for 2014-2015. For those participants with mid-level and above status on other domestic carriers, they would be granted Mosaic status for 2014 after confirming their status and then, if they completed the same challenge, that status would be extended for 2015.
So, what wording did JetBlue change in regards to their status match? When the offer came out, I wrote about the thing I was the most excited about – earning 15,000 TrueBlue points upon receiving Mosaic status. That is worth over $210 in JetBlue airfare (for me, that is two round-trip tickets to JFK). That is an awesome bonus to have with just a status match. Other bloggers commented that they did not think that was for the match offer, but the wording did not preclude that. It said:
[blockquote]Earn Fast – 15,000 bonus points immediately upon qualifying for Mosaic! [/blockquote]Yes, it says qualify, but that is exactly how JetBlue defined the status match in their terms. It says [blockquote]Travelers showing valid enrollment and status with an eligible loyalty program will qualify for TrueBlue Mosaic status for the remainder of 2014. [/blockquote](bolding mine) Apparently, I was not the only one to read into what JetBlue was actually offering because they have since changed the wording for the awarding of those bonus points.
This is the wording when many people signed up for the match
This is the wording as of now.
Was that within their right to do? Yes. Does it harm anyone who may have made a decision to apply for a status match? Almost certainly not because the e-mails confirming the actual match have yet to roll out. Was it poor form to do that? Absolutely. That was one of the main reasons I signed up for the match and was looking forward to what JetBlue had promised those who they matched. Now, JetBlue has gone back on their word, or at the very least changed their words.
For what it is worth they clarified this point on the first day the match was announced with a direct and reasonable answer. I got the quote from the Director of Loyalty: http://blog.wandr.me/2014/03/jetblue-offers-up-mosaic-challenge-status-match/.
I see that you mentioned it in a comment, but the quote did not speak to the points. Where had they clarified that? I must have missed it.