Buena Vista failed to deliver reserved ECV.

[cruisin5]

A portable ECV was reserved about two weeks prior and paid for a week prior to our vacation with a delivery at 3pm to BWV.

We arrived about 5pm, bell services couldn't find the ECV. I called Buena Vista and was told the scooter was not delivered. They suggested I rent a large ECV from their BW location or they would meet me in a park with a large ECV if we were heading to a park. I said we were not headed to a park but needed it for the night at BW and would like the portable we reserved to be delivered to BW but that was not an option.

At this point my mom said to cancel the reservation to get a credit, we'd get one at a park if needed but no way were we going to give our business to Buena Vista.

Two days later I sent an email asking of the status of my credit and expressing my disappointment in their failure to deliver. The response was promptly received with the standard "we apologize for the inconvenience and are processing the credit". The credit was processed the next day.

However, I really expected more. No one ever said "I'm sorry" "We're sorry" or anything like that or offered an explanation. A company with great customer service would have at least had a manager call to apologize. Best case ... they could have arranged for the delivery of a portable scooter even if they had to rent one from a competitor.

Fortunately, my mom did not need the scooter; it would have made it easier at Epcot but she would sit and people watch instead of traipsing through each country looking for a Chip and Dale wreath with us!

If you are considering renting from Buena Vista and really have a need for a scooter I'd look elsewhere.

My thanks to everyone here who helped with my first time scooter questions.

 

[Simba's Mom]

Was there any explanation as to why the ECV wasn't delivered?

 

[cruisin5]

Was there any explanation as to why the ECV wasn't delivered?

No explanation. He was quite unconcerned and unapologetic on the phone. My email to them stated "Please advise on the status of the credit for failing to deliver the scooter. Also, I will certainly be posting the failure in di******s and m*********s", because I wanted to document what happened in the event I didn't receive a credit. Below is their exact response:

Good Afternoon,

I do apologize for any inconvenience that you encountered with our company. Your account has been refunded in full.

Thank you,

-Buena Vista Rentals

(407)331-9147

 

[Bete]

I feel for you. I would not want the larger scooter. We rented two scooters from them and absolutely had no problems getting them or using them. We rented from 11-27 to 12-4. We never worried about having to do any extra charging, either and we had pretty long days in the parks.

We did do our reservation months in advance. Not sure if that makes a difference.

I will say through the years it's been hit and miss with all the scooter companies; we've tried more than one.

 

[Euby]

I'm using Buena Vista in January. Just curious if you spoke with a manager?

 

[EpcotQueen]

We've rented from Buena Vista for several years. But the last couple of trips and including this one, we've had problems with one of the ECVs. On occasion had a snotty person on the phone who tried to give me a 'bluff' job about how the ECV worked. Not happening! This trip 5 minutes into usage knew there was another problem. Could only creep along with speed to the full 'rabbit'. Called, got the same lecture on how things work. Not happening! Finally they said they would send out replacement. Waited over an hour for it and had to call back. When replacement came (met us inside EPCOT), delivery person super nice and helpful. Problem was with the throttle! I did rant over the phone on my second call. Threatened to never use them again. and they could see we were loyal users to the point of getting a discount! Ended up they credited us a day. Still rethinking if we will use them again. Their ECVs are wearing out! I wish I could talk my husband into getting at least 1 ECV. He thinks flying with one would be an issue since we have never seen one in the airports. Can you tell from my post that I was frustrated????

 

[mamabunny]

@EpcotQueen - I fly regularly with my personal ECV. It's no big deal. (use the Search box in the upper right corner of any page on this website to look for "flying with an ECV" posts!)

@cruisin5 - I'm curious; did you reach out to BV to confirm your reservation either the day before, or upon arrival in Orlando? Not sure that would have changed anything, but it might have reminded them you were coming...

I'm really sorry that your experience was so disappointing. I agree - you should have heard from a Manager with a full apology at the very least.

 

[arminnie]

I recently made my first trip with my ECV and LOVED it. It was so easy to get to the gate. I was free to go to the restroom, to browse or to get something to eat. We were also the first ones on the plane.

Much easier than even traveling able bodied.

 

[Simba's Mom]

@EpcotQueen
@cruisin5 - I'm curious; did you reach out to BV to confirm your reservation either the day before, or upon arrival in Orlando? Not sure that would have changed anything, but it might have reminded them you were coming...

I'm really sorry that your experience was so disappointing. I agree - you should have heard from a Manager with a full apology at the very least.

In my experience, Buena Vista sent me an Email reminder the day beforehand, which I appreciated.

 

[cruisin5]

@cruisin5 - I'm curious; did you reach out to BV to confirm your reservation either the day before, or upon arrival in Orlando? Not sure that would have changed anything, but it might have reminded them you were coming...

I'm really sorry that your experience was so disappointing. I agree - you should have heard from a Manager with a full apology at the very least.[/QUOTE]

In my experience, Buena Vista sent me an Email reminder the day beforehand, which I appreciated.

I received an email confirmation and called to cancel the first day of our reservation after deciding it wasn't needed at WL. A credit for the one day was promptly received. Perhaps that messed up the rest of the reservation. The worst part was how they handled it after *knowing* they failed to deliver. Didn't think to ask for a manager during the phone call - that was a mistake on my part.

I have decided to contact a manager. It's not a huge deal but someone who has a stake in BV should know.

 

[momimouse27]

Wow, they were so great when we used them. ECV's there on time(we rented two) and customer service was great. So sorry for your issues. :/

 

[mamabunny]

Wow, they were so great when we used them. ECV's there on time(we rented two) and customer service was great. So sorry for your issues. :/

*Every* vendor will have a whoops or two - and, sadly, it seems that it always negatively impacts someone's vacation. But overall, when you consider how many scooters are rented every day in central Florida (between Disney and Universal alone) it's a staggering number. And the (overall) relatively low number of issues with some vendors (like BV and Walker, among others) remains telling: No one is perfect, but we hear *fewer* overall horror stories about them. I think that's what you have look for in a vendor - who has the fewest overall issues, and how were they handled.

 

[EpcotQueen]

And our saga continues...the replacement ECV could not keep a full charge. Even after plugged in all night did not have full green lights. During the day I would try to charge while not riding but not always possible. Finally caved and called them again. They were very apologetic and promised to have a replacement ECV waiting for us when ready to head out this morning. I understand these ECVs are heavily used but I am paying for full use, not partial.

 

[mamabunny]

And our saga continues...the replacement ECV could not keep a full charge. Even after plugged in all night did not have full green lights. During the day I would try to charge while not riding but not always possible. Finally caved and called them again. They were very apologetic and promised to have a replacement ECV waiting for us when ready to head out this morning. I understand these ECVs are heavily used but I am paying for full use, not partial.

Wow - you are on your THIRD ECV on this rental? That's just no good... if I were in your shoes, I would call, and ask for a manager; explain that this has impacted your vacation negatively, and ask for a partial refund. You can (and should) let them know that you appreciate their positive attitude about getting you a replacement unit, but as you said above - you are paying for full use, not partial. You shouldn't be trying to limp outlet to outlet.

I hope this third unit works the way it should!

 

[EpcotQueen]

Guess what???!!! Forth ECV coming up! The one we got yesterday won't charge! Tried all sorts of things and no power/charge light on the charging unit. Called late last night and ranted to Andrea (I think that was her name) who claimed she was the manager. She quizzed me on all that I could have done to fix (already did that!)and was insistent that there was an on/off switch. Nope! She didn't seem to believe me since that is the unit they use in the shop. Will pick up 4th ECV this morning. Since we check out tomorrow this will probably be our last change unless this gives issues during the day. Obviously we will NOT be using BV again. Will hunt for another more reliable vendor.

 

[maxiesmom]

I'm so sorry!!!!!! I think at this point a full refund is in order.

 

[EpcotQueen]

And the final chapter in this saga...Diana (the correct name for the manager) arranged to have a brand new Golden Lite Rider delivered to our resort this morning. It worked GREAT! And she called later in the day to ask how things were and to let us know that the charging unit for the third ECV was fried! So no way I could have charged anything with it. She was very apologetic. They are going to refund another day for us. While their ECVs are failures, their customer service was great. Still don't know if I'll ever rent from them again though.

 

[mamabunny]

I'm SO sorry - four units in one trip is excessive. I'm glad you got at least a partial refund - and that she apologized and let you know about the 3rd charger being defective.

I understand your hesitation to rent from them again. I can't say that I would either, given your experience.

 

[cobright]

Was there any explanation as to why the ECV wasn't delivered?

I can hazzard an educated guess...
They keep a smaller stable of the portable ecvs because there is less demand. This makes scheduling them a bit tighter because they don't have as many coming into and out of the shop all the time.

What happens is, someone was scheduled to return a portable unit prior to your reservation day and that unit would get turned around and delivered to you. But ... They decided to keep it an extra day or three. Or they broke it. Whatever the case, the unit BV planned to send you was not available. They likely came to that realization while you were in transit and chose to wait for your call to let you know.

Considering where you were, having g you pick up a full size ecv from their location would get you mobile the fastest and was a reasonable suggestion, likewise meeting you at the park with one the next morning. It seems a little short-fuse to respond to a simple setback with "no way were we going to give our business to Buena Vista".

As for this suggestion:

they could have arranged for the delivery of a portable scooter even if they had to rent one from a competitor.

This would be impossible as no shop allows third person rental agreements. The person renting from one of these competitors must be the end user. They can't rent from the competition then rent that companies machine to you. That's assuming one of these competitors has a portable ecv available on same day notice.

The best BV could have done was try to make it right with what they had on hand or refund your money so you could go elsewhere. Exceptional service might have entailed expediting a credit to your card or handing you a refund in cash at their location so that you could go to the competition in a timely manner but as you were not so strapped for cash that a few days wait on the refund was keeping you from doing so, I say no harm no foul on that technicality.

You definitely got some indifferent service from the customer support employee that answered the phone, but it doesn't seem like you even asked to speak to anyone else who could have actually done more to make this right for you. When you emailed 2 days later about the credit and to tell them you were going to bash them online, the response was professional and apologetic.

I would love to seethe over this, I know how important mobility services can be, but ... I'm just not feeling it.

 

[cruisin5]

OP here! Well, I knew it was just a matter of time before I was slammed for posting. Thanks Cobright for living up to my expectations. No bashing, just relaying the truth. A full size ECV was not an option as we would likely be travelling by car prior to returning the rental.

Scooter rental places are all over the place, why would I give business to a company that failed to deliver what was promised AND was unapologetic about it?