This site is closed to new comments and posts.

Notice: This site uses cookies to function.
If you are not comfortable with cookies then please don't browse this website.

problems with COMFORT car service? — Brooklynian

problems with COMFORT car service?

chaplin'smom
chaplin'smom
edited November -1 in Park Slope
i recently ordered a car to pick me, my bf up at JFK with COMFORT Car Service.

i'd previously used 7th Avenue Car service but for some reason gotten car sick with/in their cars (lack of shocks? dunno...).

so i tried another.

the first time i used eastern was to the airport and they were on time, courteous and the car ride was smooth and comfortable.

however this time, the car was rather 'compact' and, after he dropped us home, told us there'd be an additional charge (even though we were told it would be $38 with a coupon, even though it was expired because, as the dispatcher said 'all their coupons are expired,') of $5 because we had a dog (and NEVER have we been charged anything extra by any other company... our dog stays in his bag, is extremely well behaved, quiet etc)...

in any case, the $5 once we were home (he could have mentioned it to us before we got in the car i thought) wasn't such a big deal... but THEN he added on an additional $10 for 'waiting' (which is absurd.. my flight was EARLY and my bags came immediately) and then said the coupon wasn't valid and that the total would now come to $60.

we were clearly quoted $38 (which is still $4 more than others charged) and, again, i can understand the $5 for a dog but the additional $22 seemed, at least to me, outrageous....

after much 'discussion' we agreed on $45. but still... was i scammed?

has any one else had this experience?

and, just out of curiousity's sake, does anyone else know of additional charges for small dogs?

hmmmmmmmmmmm

Comments

  • veets
    veets
    Well I don't know if this is a scam but obviously it convinces you to never use this car service again. Bummer!
    I have two small dogs... small enough so they both fit on my lap and I have had ocassion to take them in Car Service in and out of the neighborhood (not to an airport) and have never been charged. I do always tell the dispatcher I have a dog. I use Continental.
  • chaplin'smom
    chaplin'smom
    crazy thing is that when i phoned the dispatcher to complain about all the superfluous charges he insisted that EVERY car service charges extra for dogs no matter what the case is to which i replied how i've been using car services for the past 4 years and had NEVER been charged by any of them before whenever i've brought my dog.

    he refused to believe me (nice) and when i complained about the other insulting over-charges he said 'well you only paid $45 in the end so... what's the problem?'

    suffice it to say that i will never be using Comfort Car and Limo services again.

    what a way to come home..
  • brooklynjack
    brooklynjack
    Thanks for correcting this to the correct car service name. Didn't sound like Eastern at all. I've never seen a coupon for Eastern, or any of the other lo cal ca services, I've used Easter, Aracebo and Evelyn. None of them will wait for you at the airport, ASAIK they don't even take reservations. I call Eastern while we are taxing in (now that you can use your cell phone during that time) and they pick me up curbside. If you do make a reservation for pick-up with a car service it is normal to be charged for waiting time and parking.
  • pitu
    pitu
    My favorite for the airport is 11th St Car Service
    Nice guys, never screwed up, actually managed to call and get flight info themselves on a return trip, which seemed like above and beyond service
    :D

    I've sometimes been charged extra for a dog, not always
    I always tell the dispatcher tho, so they can send the plastic covered car if they feel *that* way about it....
  • raw
    raw
    chaplin'smom wrote: crazy thing is that when i phoned the dispatcher to complain about all the superfluous charges he insisted that EVERY car service charges extra for dogs no matter what the case is ..
    Maybe you got the double dog charge because the driver thought you were a dog too.
  • chaplin'smom
    chaplin'smom
    wow.
  • shishkab
    shishkab
    i think raw was the dispatcher you spoke to.

    MOD NOTE: Since this discussion branched off to general talk about taking a dog in a car service, we've made a SPLIT TOPIC
    http://brooklynian.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=41261
    please continue discussion on whichever thread is appropriate
  • rainbowpromises
    rainbowpromises
    yeah, i think he charged you extra for being a "bitchy" client.
  • chaplin'smom
    chaplin'smom
    what was really interesting is that neither i, nor my fiance (nor my dog for that matter who quietly sat in his bag on our laps) were anything but kind and considerate and quiet. More over we were each extremely happy to see each other and to be going home (despite the fact that we were all smooshed in the very cramped backspace of the car. no complaints were voiced though.)

    it was only when we were at the bottom of the brownstone in which we rent that, when confirming the price with the driver of the $38 we were quoted he went off adding charges left and right. As soon as one of us said that was entirely inappropriate and unqualified and not the price that we were charged he eventually backed down. But it was HE not us that was trying to bully the other into handing over more cash for no reason whatsoever.

    Had he mentioned any of this when he first picked us up we would have taken another car or even a taxi which would have ultimately been cheaper. Especially in hindsight.

    by the end of his rant we were stunned (and insulted) at all the charges out of nowhere he had amassed.

    All that being said,it's really insulting all these posts insinuating that either i (or my fiance/bf) were either 'bitchy' or a 'dog' when it's pretty clear that none of any of our behaviours were anything other than respectful, optimistic, kind and polite.

    really.
  • booklaw
    booklaw
    Chaplin's Mom, if you spend a little time perusing the various threads on this board, you'll see that certain people have juvenile senses of humor, which, when directed at other people, are often genuinely funny. However, when directed at oneself, without provocation, they can seem (and are) cruel and unwarranted.

    A couple of folks were being funny at your expense. It may seem personal, but I'm certain it was not intended to be. Try to accept it as mere sophomoric humor... the price one pays for posting on public boards.
  • jetshark
    jetshark
    My wife and I ordered a car to JFK once from Legends. When the driver showed up (at our requested time of 6:45 AM) he was clearly drunk and the back seat had empties scattered on the floor.

    Obviously we got out and called the dispatcher, not so much to complain but to warn them. The dispatcher assured us he was not drunk and that the empties were from a passenger. Uh Huh....

    Anyway....watch out.
  • chaplin'smom
    chaplin'smom
    sadly, i often fear that the dispatcher couldn't care less what the customer says or thinks... they're clearly friends with the drivers and thusly tolerate cheating, lying and general crappy behaviour.

    the guy at 7th ave cars has always been nice (and most of the drivers there as well...) it's just that their cars seem to have bad shocks and always make me carsick... but the dispatcher for Comfort was condescending, pretty much told me what happened actually didn't (and i've my bf as a witness) and lied to me.

    good times.
Sign In or Register to comment.

Howdy, Stranger!

It looks like you're new here. If you want to get involved, click one of these buttons!

Sign In

Categories