Gig103

Small businesses shouldn't have to deliver what they promise? Just because you think it's trivial doesn't mean that it is to the customer.

MDJennings

Based on his username, if a customer ordered a single 10x15, he'd give the customer three 8x12's and think it's fine.

Statman

I don't understand this.

They promised him a ride in an S-Class Mercedes and he got a ride in an S-Class Mercedes.

OP never said that they "guaranteed" him a particular model year of that car.

dhuey

I'm with you on the idea that the business should deliver what it promised, even if we're talking about luxury level gold and they delivered silver. Still, the OP is talking about invoking the charge dispute procedures of Amex to resolve this. I hope the OP decides not to do that.

Among the ways the card-issuing banks earn their fees, from cardholders' perspectives, is that they will seriously consider a cardholder's claim that he/she did not get the goods/services promised. They are not hesitant to deny payment to the vendor, and to side with the cardholder. This is a very valuable service Amex and other card-issuers provide. I've invoked it two or three times in my life, and each time they sided with me.

Still, I hope we all reserve this measure for when the vendor really blew it. Not just a minor failure to deliver, but a major one -- we got half or less of what we paid for.

OP, I think you have good reason not to use this car service again. But in response to the question you posed, my answer is "not dispute."

floridagal23

I once complained to a car service company (that frequently has offers on a amex) because we reserved a luxury car and we were picked up by a minivan (not a Mercedes). I didn't ask to be credited but inquired as to whether the car was really a luxury car. They ended up crediting me the difference between the standard/economy and luxury cars. They claimed that the minivan was considered a luxury model, though. We use the car service frequently and they always have good customer service.

dave2003

Please do many consumers the favor of *not* disputing this with AMEX. Such a dispute would: (1) almost certainly fail; and more importantly, (2) take the time away from customers with legitimate disputes, and decrease the likelihood that future (legitimate) disputes will be handled well.

The credit card dispute system exists for when goods/services aren't provided, or are provided in a way that is materially different such that cognizable harm occurs (e.g., a person who is 6'7" orders a size 13 shoe and receives a size 9).


(Before everyone freaks...)

Don't get me wrong, you have a legitimate customer service issue with the car service. And I encourage you to pursue it through their system, professionally and politely. If that doesn't reach satisfaction, I encourage you to use other means (e.g., social media) at your disposal to share your story. Should you reach that level, keep it simple, factual, and devoid of personal opinion or judgment -- just provide it as "useful information" available to other consumers when selecting which car service they want to use.


But please, please, don't interfere with the CC grievance process that is so critically important to helping so many consumers avoid predatory business practices. No one likes being deceived. I get you. But you weren't harmed that much -- you got where you were going, safely, and in a clean vehicle. A courier didn't drop the fragile gift you'd saved all year to buy your partner on the concrete pavement outside your door, you weren't threatened by anyone, and no company charged a recurring fee to your credit card without proper authorization to do so. (The examples, of course, get much worse than this, but I'm deliberately trying not to overdramatize.)

Jesperss

Haha surely this has to be a joke?

jags86

+1

Fraser

Thank you for understanding my point. This isn't something I expect everyone to understand or sympathize with, I was just disappointed that I did my homework and yet ended up with something that I didn't necessarily want.

I did speak with one of the managers of the company, we had a civilized chat and we came to a mutual agreement that is beneficial to all. He noted that they did have to subcontract the ride out to another firm as it was a busy day and apologized. I understand that some companies can drop the ball but it is how they respond in those situations that makes a difference. On this occasion after sending a second follow up last night I had a response within a matter of a few minutes.

Statman

So it sounds like you are happy with the outcome and do not plan to dispute the charge?

KDS777

Good to hear because by sitting in the older Benz and taking the ride you accepted the service offered therefore disputing the charge would have been the incorrect approach.

Fraser

Correct, yes.

My plan was only to dispute the charge/get Amex involved if the company went radio silent with me and even then it wasn't for the whole amount, just a "reasonable" credit for the additional premium for the newer vehicle over what an older one would have cost. As noted in my initial post this is something Amex have done for me in the past pro-actively.

As noted before, my initial emails (pre-booking) were answered in a matter of hours but after 3 days with no response to the "complaint" email I was thinking they were looking to not respond and wait for me to go away.

Whilst that may be accurate it's not exactly feasible in the real world in most cases. If you're going to catch a flight or aim to be somewhere at a specific time you can't take that approach.