Taxi company demanded more money when we refused they cancelled our booking, rights?

Arcan

Taxi company asked us for more money when we’d already agreed a price, and when we said no they cancelled our booking.

Hi all, I hope this is the right place. I’d really appreciate some help to know what our rights are.

We’d booked a taxi to and from our university to the airport online because we’d booked the return we got the discounted price of £50 return which we agreed with the company and driver.

We’d paid the £30 and were expecting to pay only £20 this time as agreed; however a day before were meant to arrive at the airport we got an email asking us for the full £30 as they’d been over booked and said they’d have to pick us up a “larger vehicle which costs more, or lose our booking.”
We did not feel that was fair and wrote back that it was in violation of our customer rights as we’d had email and verbal confirmation of the £50 return.
Their response was to cancel their booking for in their words “disrespect towards are company.”

Luckily we were able to book the taxi in my name rather than my friend's, who had organised the taxi, but it was the more expensive £30 return. Also the taxi that picked us up in was the smaller one not the larger one as they said so I can only summarise they were trying to cheat us out of more money, and not over-booked which is still not an excuse to change the price.
How do I approach this?

Thank you

lincroft1710

Your rights are to use another taxi company in future. Your contract with the company was agreed at £60 and fulfilled.

If your friend was not refunded his £30 from the taxi company, then he should send them a Letter Before Action. If no refund then contact MoneyClaimOnLine, it will cost him £30 in fees, which he should add to the cost of his claim, so if he is successful he will receive £60.

If he was refunded the £30, then if it were me, I would forget it, never use the company again and advise friends/relatives to do likewise.

arcon5

You'd certainly have a case to recover the difference in price between what you paid and the price of the booking. I'd certainly be tempted to at the very least send a letter before action to be compensated for your consequential loss, that might get their attention.

lincroft1710

arcon5 wrote: »

You'd certainly have a case to recover the difference in price between what you paid and the price of the booking. I'd certainly be tempted to at the very least send a letter before action to be compensated for your consequential loss, that might get their attention.

But is it worth it for a tenner. Also OP's friend made original booking, not OP. It was OP who eventually made the £60 booking.

fluffnutter

Any company which whines on about 'disrespect' like some London teenager deserves to lose business. Name and shame.

arcon5

lincroft1710 wrote: »

But is it worth it for a tenner. Also OP's friend made original booking, not OP. It was OP who eventually made the £60 booking.

Probably not to be honest.

somethingcorporate

arcon5 wrote: »

Probably not to be honest.

And considering that they booked the return in someone else's name then the consequential loss would be really hard to justify, especially since they went with the same company!

I'd advise the OP to move on and just not give them your business in future.

arcon5

somethingcorporate wrote: »

And considering that they booked the return in someone else's name then the consequential loss would be really hard to justify, especially since they went with the same company!

I'd advise the OP to move on and just not give them your business in future.

Good point.

Tbh i'm not sure why op didn't use a different comany the second they cancelled the booking.

unholyangel

OP can write to his local council and complain (they're will be a taxi board specifically). If they have a facebook page, could post there.

Realisitically for the sake of £10, its just not going to be worth small claims. That doesnt stop him from writing to the directors of the company and putting his complaint in writing though.