We reserved a pontoon boat well in advance for an all day trip on Saturday. When we woke up on Saturday it was pouring rain, and we only live 30 miles from Indian River. So we called the other five people in our party and told them we can't go because it's raining, and then we called Howe Marine and told them it was raining and we can't go out on the pontoon boat. They told us it's not raining in Indian River and if we do not come and get the pontoon boat they're going to charge us full price. I told them nobody told us about their cancellation policy. They said it's on our website. Not everybody looks at your website. I told them we should have been informed of your cancellation policy when we called, to which they replied, you didn't ask. So after calling everybody back again and telling them we have to go on the trip or we lose all our money, we went. By the time we got there it was noon and nearly half of our day trip had been wasted. To their credit though, they told us they would only charge us for half a day, and if it rained they would only charge us for gas. 2 hours into our trip it started pouring, and kept pouring until we got back to the marina at 5. Upon pulling up to the marina they came out and told us that it only started raining 30 minutes ago. They also told us that there would be no charge for the boat since it did rain and they would only charge us for gas. Today I look at my bank statement, and they did charge us for gas, and the boat! So not only did they ruin our boating trip, they also went back on their word and took the money.
They are very picky with their boats, and I can understand that to keep them in good shape. But, when you pick up a boat they tell you everything that's wrong with it before you take it out, including all the previous damage that other renters have done to it. So my question is, what do you do with the money that you charge people that damage your boat for the repairs, since you obviously don't repair the boats?
I have rented from this place once before, and never had a problem. All it takes is one incident and you lose a customer. Treat your customers with respect and understanding, and they'll come back. I won't.
Update: They charge for oil? And she's on the phone with my wife threatening her about posting our name and other stuff. And we we're NOT drunk when we came back. Threatening your customers? Nice. You can respond to this review with negative comments and tear us down all you want, I do not run a customer oriented business, you do. So let your true colors shine. read more
