My experience with Henry Limos was HORRENDOUS. I booked their 24-passenger Executive Party Bus built by GLAVAL for my boyfriend's surprise birthday party. I reserved and paid through their 3rd party vendor (OneWayLimo). Reservation was for 4 hrs, w/pick-up in the Bronx and drop-off in Manhattan. The driver was a few mins early (pick-up was for 11pm- he got there at 10:45pm). Great! The issues started once we got on the bus.
The driver wasn't the most personable individual. No smiles, greeting, nothing. Not a big deal. I offered him water and food and moved on. He gave me a remote for the music player and said he did not know how to work it but I could figure it out. To my surprise, the music player did NOT work (despite my calling Henry Limo TWICE that day to confirm that everything- AC, music, lights- was in working order). My guests made the best of it anyhow. I brought out speakers from my house, but they were not loud enough for everyone to hear on the bus (no surprise- they're not equipped for that). He then asked for the address to the drop-off location and said that it would take about 45mins to get there. I asked him to take his time getting downtown because we wanted to enjoy the party bus before getting to our destination. He said he had to "get some sleep" for his next shift early that morning and that the company only told him to pick us up and drop us off. I explained that I paid for 4 hrs for a party bus. He said he had nothing to do with that. I asked him to call his company and told him I'd do the same. I got off the bus (so that my guests would not know there was an issue going on) and called Henry Limo. I spoke to a very rude man named Eric (who I later found out was a manager- go figure). I explained what was going on and asked why we were being rushed off the bus. He stated that the company has a 4-hr minimum requirement for the party bus, and that I booked a pick-up and drop-off service which has nothing to do with that minimum. He said that OneWayLimo was supposed to explain everything to me and that I should speak with them on Monday because there was "nothing he could do". Think about it: why would I pay for a PARTY bus and book it for 4 HOURS just to get off of the bus in 45-minutes? I paid for a PARTY bus. I paid for an experience. Otherwise, I could have rented a van to transport my guests downtown. I pleaded w/Eric to have empathy and put himself in my shoes as a paying customer. Whatever misinformation happened, that was on their part- not my fault. He kept saying "speak to OneWayLimo". I asked for his last name, which he declined to give. No problem. I asked for their corporate office's number, which he also declined to give. I then told him I'd be reporting them to the BBB. I got back on the bus and told the driver I didn't blame him because he was just the middle man. I told him once we got downtown, I would try to have everyone cleared out and clean the bus as quickly as possible, but asked him in the meantime if he could at least drop us by my friend's house in Harlem (which was on the way downtown) to get louder speakers. He did. We got to our destination and I asked the driver to let me out so I could run to the restroom and come right back to tell my guests what was going on (they still did not know because I didn't want to ruin their trip). Once I got back outside, I see a bunch of angry guests standing outside the bus because the driver had begun to kick them off. I tried my best to explain the situation but they were (understandably) upset. A few moments later I receive a text from the Limo company saying: "Shuttle up: WE HAVE REALLY TRIED TO BE REASONABLE AND ALLOWED YOU TO MAKE ADDITIONAL STOPS WITH NO CHARGE- ENOUGH. AT 2:30AM IF THE BUS IS NOT CLEAR WE WILL CALL THE POLICE BECAUSE YOU AND YOUR PARTY ARE TRYING TO HOLD THE BUS HOSTAGE- ANY PROBLEMS YOU CAN CALL ON MONDAY TO ONE WAY LIMO"
Imagine my surprise to be texted this horrible message as if I am some sort of criminal. I don't know what the bus driver told the company but I was nothing but courteous to him. I told him that I would do my best to get everyone off the bus as quickly as possible and clean up quickly so that he could leave. How dare the limo company send this disrespectful text message threatening to call the police on me? Imagine 20+ guests standing there on the sidewalk after being thrown off of a PARTY bus that they thought would be a great time for them. Imagine it being your birthday night and you are surprised w/a party bus full of your closest friends only to have that time ruined. I called and OneWayLimo and received an apology and a partial refund which I am grateful for. However, I am still upset about this whole ordeal. I overlooked the email mix-ups. I overlooked the music not working on the bus. However, I will NOT overlook the treatment I received from Henry Limo and me and my guests will NEVER book their services again. This is UNACCEPTABLE coming from a customer service industry. read more
