Raleigh Rickshaw

Rickshaw said tips only, but then demanded a $15 payment (Bait and Switch)The Rickshaws say that they work for tips only, but after getting in the rickshaw today and at the state fair (rickshaw number ** at approx 12 noon) the driver demanded $15 after the ride had started. I pointed out that it said he works for tips only (was happy to give him $5-10 for a 5 minute ride), but he refused. I then said this is a scam, because the ride had started and he was demanding $15 after we got in, despite the fact that the rickshaws advertise that they work only for tips. Desired SettlementI want to know why the business is allowing rickshaw driver ** to state that he only works for tips, but then charges passengers after the fact. This is a shady business practice, and is blatant false advertising. Business Response The drivers for Raleigh Rickshaw work for tips in the Downtown Raleigh area, which is where we typically operate out of. However, at the State Fair the drivers charge a fee, and are up front about the cost ahead of time. However, sometimes, especially on extremely busy days like the 24th, where attendance to the Fair reached over 140,000 people, demand for the rickshaw is so high that passengers get into the rickshaw before the driver has had a chance to explain to them the cost. No driver would intentionally put themselves into the above situation, for the following reasons:1. Raleigh Rickshaw puts customer satisfaction at the top of our priorities. Our drivers are trained to follow our policies.2. The sheer volume of potential passengers at the State Fair is so high that not only do our drivers not need to spend time haggling with potential passengers, but it is actually drastically more time efficient to find a customer happy to pay for the service.3. Over a million people attended the State Fair, and collectively, Raleigh Rickshaw gave more than 10,000 rides during the course of the 11-day fair. If our drivers were intentionally deceiving our customers, we'd have received more than one complaint during this time. More than that, our drivers know that breaking our policies would result in suspension or possible termination, and so they are unlikely to risk it during such a big event.4. While our drivers did charge for the rides during the fair, a big chunk of their money comes from tips, and it is difficult to impossible to get a good tip off of a customer who feels like they've been scammed or otherwise deceived.When all of the above is taken into consideration, it is my estimation that what most likely occurred was an honest misunderstanding. The passenger may have assumed that because our drivers work only for tips downtown that it worked the same way at the Fair, and got into the rickshaw before the driver had a chance to let her know what the cost was. The complaint does not state that the rickshaw driver personally told her he only worked for tips and then changed it on her after she got in, so most likely we're talking about some sort of misunderstanding between the passenger and our driver.The complaint also does not state what occurred after she found out there was a set charge. Once she found out the cost, did she complete the ride or did she say she no longer wanted to do it anymore? I am certain the driver would have been fine with pulling over and ending the ride early if there was a misunderstanding over cost, and the passenger didn't want to pay. It sounds like on top of a misunderstanding there was a lack of communication from the passenger to the driver during this exchange, which likely could have seen it resolved on the spot instead of leading to such hasty and drastic measures as this.Raleigh Rickshaw cares about our customers, and is more than happy to discuss criticisms or complaints should something arise. Feel free to contact us again in the future if you need to.Consumer Response At the State Fair, drivers should then have to cover up the "We Only Work For Tips" signs on your rickshaws. I am saddened by the tone of your response and will not be using your business anymore. Final Business Response We are sorry that the you are saddened by our response. We can understand how it could have been frustrating for you to read our signage indicating the drivers work for tips only. it is important that raleigh rickshaw reflect our services fairly and to this end we will make changes to ensure that we avoid confusion like this in the future. In order to address you frustration we would like to offer you a free historic tour for two of downtown Raleigh. if you wish to discuss this further we are happy to do so and can be reached at [redacted] We hope you will accept our offer and that we will have the opportunity to show you what a friendly customer service oriented company Raleigh Rickshaw is. Regards,Raleigh Rickshaw Co.[redacted]

I booked the Raleigh Ricksaw Co. to provide transportation on my wedding the night of 10/24/2015. The terms of our agreement included ricksaw transportation from my reception venue for the groom and myself at 11:00pm until 11:15pm down the street to our hotel for the evening. The Raleigh Ricksaw Co. charged me $100 in full when I made this reservation.The night of our wedding (10/24/2015), the entire wedding plus us exited our reception venue at 11:05pm. At this time, there was no ricksaw outside. We then had a few members of our bridal party walk around the building to ensure the driver did not go to the wrong location. No one was able to locate them. We then waited until the end of our contracted time at 11:15pm and the ricksaw never showed. We were then forced to hail a taxi for transportation to our hotel. I had provided my contact information to the driver in case they had any questions and was never called.The next morning, I emailed the company to ask my charges be refunded at they never provided a service. I received an extremely rude email saying it was not my fault my reception ended earlier. This was a false statement, as we and 100+ of our guests were outside during the designated, contracted times and The Raleigh Ricksaw Co. was not presented. We are able to get 100+ statement confirming the times and location and the absence of their service during these times.Desired SettlementI would like my money refunded ($100) as the service was not provided. Business Response Contact Name and Title: [redacted]Contact Phone: [redacted]Contact Email:[redacted]The Customers money has been refunded. It is unfortunate lines of communication were crossed for this booking. We have doe hundreds of wedding in the last 10 years and regret the customer was not satisfied as Customer satisfaction is our main goal at Raleigh Rickshaw and we are taking further steps to ensure this done not happen again. [redacted], Owner