Providing duty of care to John Lewis Partnership

On Friday 21st March, London Heathrow Airport experienced a major disruption following a power failure caused by a fire at a nearby electrical substation.

The incident led to a full airport closure and the cancellation of all flights while emergency services responded. Although flights began to resume later that day, continued disruption impacted travellers over the following days as operations gradually returned to normal.

Objectives

To proactively support affected John Lewis Partnership (JLP) travellers during the Heathrow disruption, ensuring minimal impact to their journeys and maintaining clear communication throughout the incident. Our goal was to deliver timely assistance, offer travel alternatives, and keep key stakeholders informed.

Solutions

A dedicated travel alerts team quickly ran detailed reports to identify travellers due to fly to, from, or via Heathrow on the day of the disruption. These reports enabled the operations team to reach out directly to affected individuals and help with rebooking or cancelling travel plans.

In addition:

• Proactive alerts were issued to other potentially impacted travellers, advising them to check their flight status before departure and seek support if needed.
• The account management team maintained regular communication with procurement contacts to keep stakeholders updated on the evolving situation.
• Additional alerts were sent as flights began to resume, with a final update confirming the airport’s return to full operations - while continuing to advise caution due to potential delays from the backlog.

An extended support team remained on standby to assist until the situation was fully resolved.

Results

• All affected travellers received timely support and alternative travel arrangements where required.
• Communication was consistent and proactive, helping to reduce confusion and stress.
• A strong internal collaboration ensured an organised and effective response across teams.
• Positive customer feedback was received, highlighting the professionalism and speed of support:

“The response and support for our partners has been first rate"

This case highlights the value of coordinated travel management and the ability to adapt swiftly in the face of unexpected disruption. Interested to know more? Get in touch with us!