Poorly run, zero customer service, and a double charge as a treat!
My son had hockey in the area so we figured we'd grab some quick protein on our way to the rink. We ordered ahead through the app and decided to use the drive thru for pickup (first mistake). The line wasn't great but Chik-Fil-A locations in my area of North Carolina run smoothly and quickly so there wasn't a concern. I checked in on the line which confirmed my order and put the charge through - OK there. As we advanced we encountered a second person who confirmed our order - even better, as he confirmed he saw it and all was good to go. Both people encountered were friendly in that Chik-Fil-A way, so again, nothing out of the ordinary. Once we were the third car in line at our aisle (two aisle setup), we had another person come over to tell me that the charge from my online order "didn't work" and that they would need a physical card to take care of the charge. I initially gave them a card, then when the person came back with my card and the food there I questioned why they needed to run it again since I had a pending charge on my original online card. The guy just shrugged, and asked if I wanted my food. I said yes, and could they look into the double charge. The guy said OK and walked away. I could go anywhere anyway because the two cars in front of me hadn't moved. After about five more minutes the cars in front of me moved but no one had come back so I waved down someone else and asked about my double charge. He said he could check on it. Another wait for a few minutes, until finally someone came by and said "the manager wants you to come inside". I finally park and go inside to go talk to the manager, yet the manager stayed in the drive-thru area. I waited, assuming she was just wrapping something up, but she never came over. It took two cashiers asking me if I needed anything to get a manager-type (not the drive-thru manager who ignored me despite asking me to come in). The manager-type person had no knowledge of the situation so he had to speak to the driver thru manager (she spoke to him, not me) and told me that after 30+ minutes of waiting and a double charge, there was nothing they could do. I was told again that one of the pending charges would go away and not to worry about it. Not once in the half-dozen or so people that I spoke to did I get an "I'm sorry" - not for the wait, not for the double charge, not for having to come in only to be ignored - nothing. Horrible visit all around.
I reached out that evening to Chick-Fil-A customer service to tell them my experience and received an email stating the same thing (about one of the pending charges going away). I also received an email from that restaurant location, which was a generic form letter that didn't reference anything specific so it was a cut & paste response. Fine.
After a few days of waiting and monitoring my credit cards - you guessed it - both charges cleared, so I was officially charged double. I reached out to customer service again, and got no response for a week. I followed up a third time and got the restaurant location to respond, who asked me for proof of the double charge. I showed both credit card statements with the charges cleared, and received a response that they didn't see that on their end therefore they would not refund anything. Honestly, why ask for proof if were going to ignore it anyway?
I ended up having to contact my credit card company and contest the charge, nearly two weeks later. The absolute indifference to an error that they initially made goes against any experience I've ever dealt with at a Chick-Fil-A. This was the type of experience you expect from a run down diner 10 minutes before closing, and it was 5 in the afternoon on a Saturday at a chain that prides itself on positive customer experience.
STAY. FAR. AWAY. read more