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#961627 by AlphaEcho
26 May 2023, 16:07
Hi,

Awhile ago someone posted on here asking for information regarding TriStar cars or Addision Lee as they now are booked via the Virgin website. At the time I gave them a recommendation as I had used them in the past and had never had a problem with them.

I have just returned to the UK from the USA and used them for a booking to first off take me to Heathrow and then to pick me up upon my return. It is the return journey that has caused problems and I believe they have more or less lied and ripped me off.

When I made my booking I was quoted a price of £70.78 which I was happy with, however I have now received a receipt for £99.26 which is what they have charged my credit card.

Their justification for this is an additional Waiting Time Charge (30 mins) - £19.32 and £4.42 Heathrow Car Parking, (plus VAT on both).

I was on the VS042 which arrived on Stand @ 16:08 (scheduled 16:00), as according to their T&C's they would have monitored my flight and have known it was a few minutes late, so technically the standard 30 minutes included waiting time included in the booking would have started at 16:08.

We parked on Stand 301 which isn't the closest stand but I fail to see how it could have possibly taken us 60 minutes (the 30 minutes allowed for + an additional 30 mins charged by the minute) to go from the gate, through Immigration, which wasn't that busy, collect the bags which took about 10 minutes to come out, clear customs and into the arrival area to meet the driver. There's no way that took an hour.

The driver, as nice and charming as he was got himself a bit flustered in the car when he discovered he had lost his Car Park ticket.
So we drove down to the exit gates and he spoke via the intercom to an agent who told him the cost was £6.00 which funnily enough is according to the Heathrow website the cost of 0-29 minutes in the car park.

That kind of blows the additional cost of £4.42 (+ VAT = £5.30) out of the window as Heathrow T3 Parking Charges are £6.00 for 29 mins, £9.50 for up to 44 mins, £12.70 up to 59 mins, £16.00 for up to 2 hours. Nowhere can you come up with £11.30 so it seems to be a figment of Addison Lees imagination.

I have tried e-mailing them to challenge the final invoice amount but they have yet to respond.

Sorry for the long post, but just wanted to warn people and from now on I definitely wont be using them again if they resort to these kind of tactics.
#961629 by CommanderB
26 May 2023, 16:25
I think it was me asking about TriStar. I've yet to hear anything good and others seem to have had similar experiences (declining quality of service) since the Addison Lee merger.

I used the Wheely app last time I was in London to summon an S-Class limo to take me to the Upper Class wing. It was a brilliant service and cheaper than Uber by a significant margin. So I'd recommend that to others.
#961633 by Kraken
26 May 2023, 17:50
Pre-pandemic I did a trip to Dubai on Emirates that included their Chauffeur-Drive service as I was flying in business class. This service - at the time was provided by PCS [Professional Car Chauffeurs] - in the case of flights into & out of BHX & MAN.

I mentioned to the PCS driver about a slightly less than stellar trip I'd has with TriStar from MAN when arriving in on VS & he basically said "PCS may not be around much longer". He alluded to a Court case that was about to start in the coming months & that if convicted, some TriStar management could expect custodial sentences.

How true this is, I don't know. I do know that the PCS drivers were all self-employed on zero-hour contracts at the time, so it was obviously in their interest to see PCS continue to send work their way (& Emirates was probably a pretty good steady flow of work).
#961669 by AlphaEcho
31 May 2023, 16:18
Just to update my original post.

Heard back from Addison Lee and in a roundabout way they admitted I shouldn't have been charged the additional waiting time and car park fee.

Result - £28.49 being refunded to my credit card.

Not sure I will bother using them again if that's the games they try and play. And next time I will definitely make a note of the time I get into the arrivals hall.
#961683 by ColOrd
01 Jun 2023, 18:22
Before the Pandemic, I would swear by London Heathrow Cars, every time I used them, I had a spotless Merc E Class show up normally a good 15 mins early, with a very professional driver, and it felt like a premium service. I've used them twice since the Pandemic and both times they were late with drivers that spoke very poor English. My trip back in April, I just used the Gett app to hail a regular London cab, it was one of the bigger new Electric ones, it still, just, fits through DTCI, and they are available 24/7 so I know what I will be doing in future!
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