Happy Limo Company - a negative turned into a positive

[bender031177]

We returned from our cruise on the Carnival Dream yesterday and I immediately wrote an email to Happy Limo about our experience with their drivers from Orlando to Port Canaveral. They replied quickly and took decisive action and for that reason, I would gladly recommend them even though ours was a negative experience. The drivers did a bad job but the company made up for it with their action and response.

 

We arrived in Orlando the night before the cruise and stayed at the Orlando Airport Marriott. We were a group of 11 but only 8 of us needed a shuttle to the port, all 11 of us needed a ride back after the cruise.

 

We booked with Happy Limo based on a recommendation from another reputable site. Our driver's name was Tom and he was friendly enough on the drive down but it all went downhill after we had our bags and paid the bill. We had to pay up front for the return trip which didn't bother me because the company was well recommended. But Tom demanded more of a tip. He said the contract says we have to give him a 20% tip and he showed us the invoice for the full amount of the return fare (remember, only 8 of our party travelled to the port, but we had to pay the return fare for the other 3 up front). We told him the contract did not say that and we weren't paying him anymore. He became belligerent and said he didn't know how we slept at night (btw - we had already tipped him approx. 15%).

 

He went on to count the money again and told us that we didn't even give him enough to pay the full fare, let alone a gratuity. My DH said that's not possible and told him exactly how much each couple gave him and added it on his iPhone at the same time. Tom insisted again that all the money wasn't there. DH asked him if he could count it and he did - sure enough, Tom had lied. All the money was there. He tried to swindle us out of more money by lying.

 

At that point, 3 of the 4 couples gave him extra tip just to get rid of him so we could get on with our vacation. My DH emailled the company to let them know we hadn't had a positive experience and hoped our return trip would be better but he didn't go into details.

 

On the return trip, we had a different driver. There were 11 of us for the return trip and once again, he was friendly enough but once we had our bags

at the airport, he approached my DH and said we were supposed to tip him 20% and showed him the full return fare. We said it is not in the contract and asked him to show us. He showed us where it says "company recommends 20% gratuity" and we told him that was a recommendation and he wasn't getting any more. We walked away at that point. 2 members of our group were still on the shuttle because they were going to a different terminal. They told us he was visibly angry about the tip (again approx. 15%).

 

Like I said, I wrote to Happy Limo this morning and even though it is Sunday, I heard back from their Customer Service Manager within a couple hours with this response:

 

Thank you for contacting Happy Limousine regarding your recent experience. We are extremely disappointed in the manner our drivers approached you regarding gratuities. Each booking clearly states that a 20% gratuity is recommended, It DOES NOT state that the 20% gratuity is mandatory. Drivers are prohibited from asking customers to tip a minimum of 20% . This is a serious violation of company policy which has resulted in termination of your driver Tom and suspension without pay for driver F.

 

Since tips should be based on the level of service received, We believe that both of these drivers do not deserve a tip at all. We will mail you a check for the total tip you gave these drivers. Please let us know the exact amount and your mailing address.

Please accept our sincere apologies on Tom & F's behalf. We hope that you treat this as an isolated incident since this is not the type of service our customers have come to expect from Happy Limousine. We are offering you a complimentary upgrade to our 8 passenger Lincoln stretch limousine to anywhere in Orlando from MCO on your next visit to our beautiful city. Upon your next visit simply book a sedan and mention this discount code xxxxx and you will receive an upgrade free of charge to our 8 passenger Lincoln stretch limousine. Please keep in mind that this code is valid until 12/31/2013, this offer has no cash value and is non transferable.

 

 

Should you have any further concerns, please direct them to Happy Limousine.

 

Obviously they have had complaints about Tom before. We are very happy with the swift action taken and the offer to set things right with us. My mother is going on the same cruise in less than 2 weeks and she needs a shuttle to the Port. I will try to convince her to use this company and see what kind of experience she has. I have told them her name and that we hope she gets the service we had expected so I think she will see a vast improvement.

 

Overall, I will recommend Happy Limo and I will be sure to update after my mother's trip to let you know how much of an improvement there is.

 

Please give them a chance, any company who stands behind their customer service promise like this is a reputable company who deserves our business. There was no argument from them, no attempt to justify or downplay, and they responded quickly with an apology.

 

Thank you Happy Limo!!