From: [My email address]
Sent: Wednesday, June 30, 2010 11:34 AM
To: Refund, Refund
Subject: Refunds and Exchanges Request
Source: Web Customer
Passenger Name: HarleyQuinn1517
Email Address: [My email address]
Trip origin: Denver
Trip destination: Alamogordo
Date(s) of travel: June 18 - June 26
Confirmation: 6110026301
Comments: Is it possible, with several contactable witnesses and an itinerary, to get a refund because the buses never showed up on the days and times they were supposed to? My roommate and I were stranded in Las Cruces on Saturday, June 26. The 9:55pm bus was supposed to arrive, but NEVER did. We were stuck in Las Cruces, at the gas station serving as a bus station with several reliable witnesses---most of whom who can be contacted---for nearly 27 hours. A bus did not show up until 10:10pm the next night. We needed to be home sooner, as my roommate had an important medical appointment that she could NOT afford to miss. The unreliability of your buses nearly cost her that appointment. A service was promised us at the dates and times on the tickets. That service was never provided.
~~~
From: Refund.Refund@greyhound.com
To: [My email address]
Date: Sat, 17 Jul 2010 11:34:41 -0500
Subject: RE: Refunds and Exchanges Request
Customer ID: 1640111
Dear HarleyQuinn1517,
Thank you for taking the time to notify us regarding the inconvenience you experienced while using our services. It is important to us to always strive for improvement and your input will help us with this process.
It is the goal of Greyhound Lines, Inc., to transport passengers in the most effective and comfortable manner possible. Unfortunately, there are many factors that can lead to unforeseen changes and delays. Although we make every effort to meet the arrival and departure times printed in our schedules, we cannot guarantee these times.
According to our system, ticket confirmation number 61100263 was used in its totality.
We hope you will not let this incident deter you from using our services and trust you will give us another opportunity to prove we can be the most reliable and economical form of transportation to meet your needs.
For more information, feel free to contact our Customer Service department at 214-849-8966 from Monday thru Friday from 7:00 am to 7:00 pm CST.
We appreciate your business.
Sincerely,
Mr. Cruz
Refund Analyst
~~~
I have yet to send this, but my response:
Dear Mr. Cruz,
Thank you for taking the time to get back to me.
It is the goal for me as a customer to take a bus service in good faith that said service is reliable and will give the service promised. Unfortunately, when the promised service is not given, my faith in said service tends to dwindle. When nothing can be done after several frantic calls to find out what is going on, with unhelpful service reps who barely grasp English and keep directing me to a customer service line that keeps taking me back to the start, it fades. When the customer service is not only unhelpful, but provides an inane catch-22, it dies completely.
It is true that the ticket was used in its totality. It does not negate that the service promised was never delivered, and could have cost my roommate the use of her foot had she missed her MRI due to the bus in question one) not being able to be located and two) not where it was when it was promised. When a customer is promised a bus, Mr. Cruz, a customer should not have to wait 27 hours because the service's drivers simply do not feel like showing up, or do not have the room promised due to the business's inane habit of overselling tickets. They especially should not have to wait outside a gas station stranded in a town they don't know, out in the open where any number of things could have happened.
I do hope that you do not take offence that because of this incident, neither I nor my roommate will be using this service ever again, and we will be telling everyone we know not to trust this bus system. I will further inform them that the company does not care about its customers, as even though this incident was the company's fault, and even though my roommate and I were left out in the open where any number of unfortunate circumstances could have happened, nothing was done to ensure our safety, and the little loophole of "the ticket was used in its entirety" is the excuse to keep said customer's money.
-HarleyQuinn1517
P.S. Planes aren't normally delayed for more than a few hours. Something to keep in mind.