All I can say is that I'm disgusted. I implore you to find another transportation service unless you like the idea of you and a few other young woman getting stranded in the middle of California, in the middle of the night, with no word on what's going on. I'd like to say, before I continue, that my driver did nothing wrong and I will not accept this business using them as a scapegoat for their negligence and unprofessionalism.
We booked two trips for my wedding on Halloween, from the hotel to the venue in the afternoon (pick up at 2pm) and then from the venue to the hotel (pick up at 10pm). The first trip was fine (on time, clean, albeit nothing terribly special; but as long as we were getting there safely and punctually who cares if the music isn't great, right?).
For the return trip... oh boy. At 9:30pm or so, the driver came into the venue and wouldn't speak with the coordinators, only the groom and I (which is odd but whatever). He informed us there was an air bubble in one of the tires and showed a picture (this bubble was the size of a cantaloupe); it was unsafe to drive the limo and they'd have to find another ride for us. I asked what we should do and he said he was calling the owner, Jon, and drivers in the area. Okay, we finish the evening and my bridal party starts packing up. I ask for an update and the driver tells us that he's still trying to get in contact with anybody around but no one is answering (hmmm, the customer service phone line does say 24/7 service but ok). We talk to the venue staff and they graciously let us stay past our contracted end time. 10:30 rolls around, then 11:00, 11:30... No updates. I ask the driver, he has no info, says that he spoke with the owner but that the owner was out and wouldn't help. Driver says there's no spare tire, and there's no way for AAA to come out since it's a special-order tire. Midnight rolls around, the venue staff apologize profusely but let us know that they need to lock up the building by 1:00am. I left a voicemail message on the management line, grasping at straws to at least get an update on what's going on. I go outside to call my mother (the Mother of the Bride) to see if she's awake enough to come get us and drive us a few at a time back to the hotel. As I'm talking to her, a limo rolls up. Hooray, we're saved I think; I go to check with the new driver and he informs me that no, he's not there for us (the paying clients) but there to pick up the original driver. So, they send someone to get the driver and not us? A group of young woman in the middle of nowhere, late at night in the cold. Um. What? I'm furious but so tired at this point that I call my mother back and she starts getting us in rounds with the best man also coming to the rescue. We were not all back to the hotel until well after 2:00am. Four (4) hours after the event ended and the original pick up time. This whole time, by the way, we hadn't heard ANYTHING from the limo company. That's entirely unacceptable, frankly.
Next day, Monday; I assume that literally anyone would call me back given that what happened the evening prior is a business PR nightmare. End of business rolls around and I haven't heard anything. Tuesday I call in the afternoon; someone does answer the phone, granted she was laughing at something someone else said as she answered (look, I've worked customer service before, that's like 101 Do Not Answer the Phone While Talking to Someone Else). I inform her of the situation and she's apologetic, and says that she had heard through the grapevine about a limo with a popped tire that needed to be towed from the same venue. Hmmm. So they were gossiping about it on Monday/Tuesday and didn't have the professional wherewith-all to actually contact the client who was stranded due to said cantaloupe- sized air bubble? She puts me on a brief hold to call Jon who was out of the office; she gets back on the line and says she'll refund me ONLY for that part of the trip. Well, yeah, I should hope I'd get a refund for a service that I did not receive? Like, that's how a contract works? I tell her thank you, I'm still not happy and would like to speak with Jon directly and ask her to have him call me. At the time of writing, it's been just over 24 hours since she said she'd ask him to call; still nothing.
I understand that the air bubble is not the fault of the driver; I also understand how on a Sunday evening getting a replacement might take a LITTLE time. However, the lack of communication and professionalism paired with the flippant disregard for the safety of clients or employees is disgusting and frankly, terrifying. Do not book with Neumann Enterprises, period. read more