Greyhound Bus Co. Consumer Reviews - Page 4
My daughter stood out in the rain in New York City with many other passengers waiting for a Greyhound Bus that never arrived. The pick-up time was eight o'clock at night and she arrived at seven. She was finally forced to leave at eleven thirty because the other passengers left and she was alone on the street. The pick-up location has no enclosed shelter just full exposure to the weather and everyone was caught in a rain storm. She tried contacting Greyhound through different numbers to determine if the bus was in an accident. Greyhound has no numbers to tell passengers if one of their buses is going to arrive or not.
They have plenty of phone numbers when it comes to services that require payment from you. The bus drivers that maintain these routes should at the very least be given phone numbers of designated passengers to let them know the bus will not arrive. Clearly Greyhound is not interested in putting their passengers first. My daughter has very little time off of work to visit her family. Rescheduling is very difficult at best. From what I understand there is no cash refund on her bus ticket. Greyhound gets what they want and my daughter gets nothing, another indication of profits over people.
My friends and family want to know what happen to the bus and why you have poor passenger communication. Based on other complaints I have read you appear to be a company that has very poor customer relations. I want my daughter to have a cash refund so she can reschedule a home visit in the future from a transportation service of her choice. The following information is about her pick-up location and reference number on her ticket. I want this matter investigated. I will be filing my complaint to other websites so potential passengers can be warned ahead of time of you total lack of regard for your passengers.
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SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA -- After purchasing a round trip ticket at the San Francisco Greyhound Bus Terminal I proceeded to the staging area, and door number stated by ticket agent and printed on my ticket. I got in line behind an older woman who had been waiting in line for about 20 minutes. It was 10 minutes before departure when I got behind waiting to board when announced or the door opened. Three to four other people got behind me, also going to the same destination, needing the same bus. Had the same door number to wait and time to depart. At the departure time for our door, the next door opened and began taking customers waiting in front of the door.
One gentlemen in my line went and asked the ticket taker if that bus was the one to take to get to the destination we all were going in the other line. He said "NO stay in that line, they will board you soon." We all waiting for another 20 minutes and in the meantime another gentlemen went and asked two other Greyhound staff members outside what was going on. He was told they had to get the bags off the bus first and then would board us. That did not happen.
One by one those in the line with me, left and three of us ended up at the ticket counter to see what was going on. We were told that we were in the wrong line, missed our connection and would have to pay an additional bus fee (more than the original ticket!!) in order to board the next bus leaving the station.
When we protested this, the ticket agents (two at the beginning) said it was up to us to be in the correct line. That if we couldn't figure out this, then we were not paying attention, not really in line, at the wrong door, etc. We explained that NO we had been in line and what should have been an apology and an alternative if possible for the misdirection or mis-ticketing those of us at the gate printed on our ticket. They began a long and embittered, defiant attitude including threats that if the tape proved we were lying, it would cost even more money to ride the next bus, or maybe we couldn't get another ticket, period, that day.
A female ticket agent grabbed a customer's ticket and proceeded to the back of the ticketing area and disappeared to "check the film". 10 minutes later, she returned as a young man who also missed the connection was arguing with another agent, and she began to ask if I had seen what happened in the loading ramp at the departure time listed. I said I did not know what she meant. She said that if I did not see what happened then I was lying and would need to buy another ticket. This did not stop there.
When requesting a supervisor, (the next bus was leaving in 20 minutes) and the female's name, was told supervisor left and we had already talked to him. (He did not say he was a supervisor.) And she would not give her last name and walked off stating as she was leaving with hand in the air, "you won't be getting a ticket at all or it's going to cost you a lot more."
The man who was a the Ticket Agent/Supervisor again began telling us we were wrong, owed more money if we wanted to go anywhere and after getting what I thought was his supervisors number, answered my phone call, put me on hold and left the phone on hold and busy for over an hour. I was told by security there was no other way to contact Greyhound personnel except through these people. I had to be at work, was now unable to get to my destination at all, and had to call family to take me the 64 miles there and back when done.
The other young man in line was going much farther, out of state, and had no other funds to purchase another ticket. One man left, the older women got in line to purchase her ticket again, in order to leave San Francisco. I did get her name and address as well as the young man's. And, if the female ticket agent was correct when stating they could check film/tapes then it is on tape exactly what happened.
The ticket agent I purchased my ticket from can testify to this outrageous, unprofessional, unethical and unlawful business practices done with deliberate and purposeful actions to extort additional monies from its customers who are powerless to find any other alternative or solution.
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SHREVEPORT -- I recently planned a 7 month backpacking trip through South America, however, I had to cancel my trip when the first leg of my journey on the Greyhound bus turned out to be a horrible experience. Greyhound lost my backpack and my wallet was stolen while on the bus. Greyhound's corporate policy is that a bag is not considered lost for 24 to 48 hours after it was due to arrive at the destination.
I found out that they regularly take bags off of the bus that a consumer is riding upon to make room for their Express Package shipments. It is almost impossible to reach a live person with Greyhound and when their employees don't care about providing service at any level, then why should we, the consumers use their bus service?
Here is the tale: Monday, May 12, 2008. How Greyhound Lines, Inc. isn't a company we can trust. After booking my ticket online, I arrived at the Shreveport Bus station where I at the misfortune of having **, an older lady who apparently has been working at this bus station for a number of years and has gained the reputation of "she's just mean."
Usually I write down my confirmation numbers for things, however, I didn't find the Greyhound ticket confirmation number among all the other numbers I wrote down for my trip to Panama. **, who apparently didn't want to provide any assistance which would take her away from being able to watch her Television show or do anything that required thought wasn't able to find my ticket information. I'm sure it's because she didn't know how to utilise the computer system.
Then it was a 15-minute wait on the Greyhound 800 number before I was able to reach a live person to provide assistance. I was finally able to obtain my confirmation number (**) and returned to the then extremely long waiting line at the ticket counter. It seems that ** and ** were more involved in having a conversation about personal things and watching the television than assisting customers. And ** kept going back to the other office and didn't help with the long line of customers.
Almost everyone in line was complaining about the bad service. I was finally able to reach the counter after a 20-minute wait and obtain my ticket. I'm not sure what the form was that I signed, but I believed it was the confirmation signature for my ticket purchase.
The time came to board the bus, so again I waited in line. I set my large backpack in the line for the baggage handler to load it on the bus. I waited to watch to make sure it was actually loaded on the bus, which it was along with a number of other bags. Thirteen hours later I arrived in Atlanta, the first stop that required a change of buses and where I was to claim my large backpack so I could check it on the next bus. However, my backpack had been taken off the bus that I was on somewhere along the trip. I complained at the ticket counter, they sent me to a man in customer service and he sent me to check with a man in the baggage department.
My backpack wasn't to be found. Not one of the employees of Greyhound were concerned that my backpack had been taken off the bus and informed me that I couldn't file a complaint until I reached my destination. While I was complaining to the baggage handler he proceeded to inform me of Greyhound's policy about baggage, that they would often remove bags from a bus to make room for their express package deliveries, or other bags and then put the removed bags on another bus which would arrive at a different time than the bus I was on.
On Tuesday, May 13th, I arrived in Orlando, Florida, and wasn't surprised that my backpack wasn't there. I complained at the ticket counter and was finally able to get a complaint form, but according to the form it was to be completed by a Greyhound employee and not the customer. I completed the form and handed it to the lady at the ticket counter who just threw it on the counter. The only employee that even tried to provide service was ** in Orlando. No one at Greyhound was able to inform me when my backpack would arrive and because I was supposed to be catching a flight early the next morning for Panama I couldn't wait.
Well, this and the fact that while on the bus someone stole my wallet and the bus driver (**) wouldn't stop to allow me to file a police report and if he would have stopped then I would have been able to recover my wallet from one of the three people who stole it on the bus. Thus I had to call my family collect to get them to buy a return ticket (Conf. # **) to Shreveport while I awaited my lost backpack and reorder all of the missing items from my wallet. I left Orlando on Greyhound at 8:50 pm that same evening very frustrated, upset, and distraught over the lack of customer service by Greyhound.
I could have continued with my trip had my backpack arrived with me, but since I didn't know when it would arrive I had to return to Louisiana. I arrived Wednesday, May 14th, in Shreveport over an hour late. Thursday was spent filing a complaint online through the Greyhound online system and trying to reach a live person with Greyhound to find my lost backpack. After a 30-minute wait on the Greyhound 800 number I was given another number to call (214-849-6246 the Package Department). I called and spoke with a woman who provided me a Customer ID number (**) so I could always use that number to talk to anyone at Greyhound.
She wasn't able to inform me where my backpack was located so I insisted upon her providing me a number to talk to a supervisor. She gave me 214-849-8218, which is only a recorded message where you can leave a voice message. I left a message and waited for a return phone call. Friday I was even more upset so my sister suggested I call one number up or down from the other number, which I did and was able to reach an operator. (She refused to give me her name and said that her name didn't matter, but I spoke to her at 4:42 pm.) And she, like all the other employees of Greyhound, didn't know what customer service was and refused to help me.
She just transferred me back to the voice message system. I called back and asked her to connect with me a live person, I didn't care whom, but someone who could help me. I finally reached Mrs. ** in the Executive Offices. Mrs. ** was reluctant to provide me with her name. I gave her my customer ID number, she looked it up and said that my backpack had arrived in Orlando on May 15th. (That's one whole day after I had arrived and it arrived after I would have caught my flight, the same flight I had to cancel because Greyhound lost my backpack.)
I informed her that there was no legitimate reason that my backpack should have been taken off of the bus that I was traveling upon and that my luggage should always be on the same bus I was on. She then stated that it was Greyhound's policy not to consider luggage lost for 24 to 48 hours after it was reported missing. According to the official Greyhound Package department after they receive a complaint they have 30 days to send you a letter in the mail with your Customer ID number before you would be allowed to contact Greyhound, and I informed Mrs.** that that time frame was unacceptable.
She said that she would have my bag put on the next bus to Shreveport, but that they would not deliver it to the address where I was waiting. I requested a refund of the two tickets and she told me that Greyhound would not refund for lost baggage. I informed her that if Greyhound was responsible for me not being able to take my 7 month backpacking trip then they were responsible for refunding the ticket prices.
Thus, after several days of calling the Shreveport bus station my backpack arrived today, Thursday, May 22, 2008. Upon my arrival at the Shreveport bus station I didn't find anyone at the ticket counter. I called out for someone and ** peeked her head around a door and said that I would have to wait 30 minutes because she was on her lunch break. I told her that was unacceptable, especially after everything else I had been through with Greyhound. I could see my backpack sitting just past the counter. I walked around the building looking for a door to go get my backpack, but they were all locked.
I returned to the ticket counter and told ** that I supposed I would have to crawl over the counter to get my backpack, and she said she would call the police and have me arrested. I told her to go ahead that I was sure that the media would just love to hear all of this horrible tale, which she was now making worse by refusing to provide any level of service. Angrily she approached the counter and took my baggage claim ticket (**), returned through a side door and threw my backpack on the floor some ways away from where I was standing and then disappeared again. I checked the backpack to make sure everything was still in it and left.
To date I am out the following funds because of Greyhound's baggage policies, the fact that they lost my backpack, and were responsible for me not being able to make my flight connections: First Bus Ticket: $68.00; Second Bus Ticket: $168.00; Airline Ticket: $420.00 (non-refundable); Change of Airline Ticket: $75.00.
It seems that any company that isn't capable of responsibly handling people's baggage, and from my research there are many such stories, then they shouldn't be allowed to operate. It is time that Greyhound was held accountable for the number of people's lives they have hurt because of their corporate policies.
Therefore I hope you will consider assisting me in a Call to Action against Greyhound. You can read more on the website I've created to bring together all of the people affected by Greyhound. Part of the website is to provide a comprehensive listing of other bus services that people can take so no one ever has to take a Greyhound bus again. Either we get Greyhound to change their policies or we run them out of business.
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By Renée - BUFFALO, NY, NEW YORK -- My college student daughter was waiting out in the cold at the Buffalo Airport bus stop on 2/7/20. The trip was cancelled 1/2 hour before the bus was due to depart because of snow. She therefore was unable to go on her trip at all. Greyhound refuses to refund her because they claim her ticket was used for the return trip! They literally stole her money!
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By Mark - CHICAGO, ILLINOIS -- Greyhound may be the worst form of transportation. Every time I ride, the bus is over 3 hours late!! Chicago staff is the WORST MOST UNPROFESSIONAL people alive. They ignore your questions and concerns and don't even tell you the bus will be late. There is a petition starting to go around the internet to shut them down and today I will sign. So dirty and rude!!!
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By Neveragain - LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY -- First off this company is racist toward anyone not **. Not one staff was anything but that. Secondly, they treated customers like dirt. Thirdly, the company itself had staff handing out free products: food, blankets, pillows, toys and books, to illegals which is encouraging the caravan people to commit a felony by crossing illegally. I had to listen to the children of other customers cry because the staff was giving these free products to the illegals but not to them! Who the hell does that? Greyhound does!!!
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By G. - ALL, PENNSYLVANIA -- Paid extra for an earlier trip that was an hr shorter.
got to bus station to discover bus isn't shceduled for another 4hrs!!!
called to get refund, they're only giving me half a refund!!!
smells like piss and disgusting bodies.
cust. svc process is a total failure.
for anyone business ppl, this is a great chance to disrupt....
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By Vishal - BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS -- Bus was late by an hour and a half... I know that can happen, but staff handled customers irresponsibly and didn't make any announcements on the delays. Everyone felt very confused and frustrated. This happened twice in a row this weekend. Greyhound, I have been an old customer and your service has incrementally gotten worst. Train YOUR staff properly so they can treat YOUR customers a little more humanely. Thank you.
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