holidaytaxis - private transfer

kirpaloasis

Can anyone help me with what to do next?....

We booked our holiday for 3 adults and a child to Tenerife in August and decided to book private transfers with HolidayTaxis.
The service was disappointing from start to finish...

Our flight was delayed by a couple of hours arriving into Tenerife, the transfer desk made us wait 20mins before making us go to a taxi rank to take a taxi transfer - no private transfer like we had paid!!

Also noticed in the taxi the fare was 25.60eur - we paid £160 for a private transfer, which is rather inflated, paying over 3 times what a taxi would have cost.

A baby seat was not provided on either segments of our journey, even though we had paid extra for this in our booking.

We had to go back to the airport terminal to complain and then eventually they provided a baby seat but the driver was unable to secure it in his car!

A private transfer car on return but again no baby seat! We had to hold the baby in our arms whilst the driver was driving at some speed on a very busy highway to the airport, making us feel very unsafe with our child.

What disappoints me the most is that we initially sent an email of complaint and concern on 31st Aug 2022 - we have been patiently waiting for a reply since! I have followed up 3 times since, I received 1 email saying they would investigate and reply within 10 days - and still no reply/answer to this.

elsien

It’s a bit of a cop-out, because their terms and conditions say that they are acting as a booking agent and they do not accept any responsibility for the actual provision of services. Quite where that leaves you legally, I’m not sure.
They also say with regards to complaints that they will try to respond within 28 days and you are only just outside of that. Who did you raise your concerns with at the airport? Was it holiday taxis or was it the local company themselves?

I’m a bit confused though because isn’t a taxi transfer from the airport pretty much the same as a private transfer? As in a taxi just for you rather than a shared vehicle? So when they sent you to the taxi rank, the only difference was the lack of the car seat as far as I can see. 

As for the difference in price, that’s really down to you and your research beforehand. A lot of websites now will tell you how much an airport taxi costs so you can compare with the other companies operating the service before you book.

kirpaloasis

The initial complaint was made in August whilst on holiday, so that's well over 28 days ago, and we complained directly to holidaytaxis on email as well as to the local company within the airport of the issues.
When you pay for a private transfer you are greeted upon arrival by the driver and taken straight to a car where they take you to your hotel. Going to a taxi rank is different to that  - the point of booking a private transfer was mainly to ensure a baby seat for the little one and a quick transfer from airport to hotel, rather than using the group coach which can sometimes take a while before you reach your own hotel.
Anyway, still no reply from this company which is a complete shambles! so I will be seeking a legal representation on this being as there is quite a wide range of complaints on trustpilot and on their facebook page interestingly! 

Doshwaster

A taxi to anywhere in the Los Cris/PDLA area should be €25-30 so there is no need for a private transfer.

Holiday Taxis are useless. On a recent trip to Turkey the local agent had no record of my booking, they weren't answering the phone and their email response said they would reply in "7-10" working days so I had to pay for taxis myself.

I've used Hoppa a number if times for transfers and they have been reliable.

CKhalvashi

We have dealt with them in a business I've previously run.

They'd call, make a booking, leave card details on file and that would be charged at the metered rate on journey completion.

This included airports which we always ran 15-20% below metered rate for booking directly. Make of that what you will in terms of their pricing.

There is no need these days for such companies. I have the Bolt app on my phone and this has served everywhere I've ever wanted to go.

DullGreyGuy

kirpaloasis said:

Our flight was delayed by a couple of hours arriving into Tenerife, the transfer desk made us wait 20mins before making us go to a taxi rank to take a taxi transfer - no private transfer like we had paid!!

What were you expecting for your private transfer if not a taxi? A helicopter? 

Ok, I wouldnt expect to just go to the taxi rank but more than once it probably would have been quicker to do so

bagand96

elsien said:

It’s a bit of a cop-out, because their terms and conditions say that they are acting as a booking agent and they do not accept any responsibility for the actual provision of services. Quite where that leaves you legally, I’m not sure.

As you say, the first line of their T&C's states they are an agent for third party transport providers (suppliers).

I'm guessing that this means it's no different to booking a flight via an online travel agent.  Any issues you have with the flight  itself would be taken up with the airline and not the agent.

loaf1912

Had a similar experience last week from holiday taxi's booked as part of the BA hoilday to Crete. Flights cancelled and then happend next day - they didnt want to know or offer any advice, so we had to get our own taxi to hotel. On the return our private transfer was a private with another couple so both of us had paid double to get a private transfer but ended up with a shared transfer. Driver didnt give a stuff. 

Not heard from BA or Holiday Taxi yet. Previous trips with BA have gone very well but turns out transfers not via Holiday Taxi's so looks like this company is the common problem.

tovmeister

I had prebooked a private hire cab throughHoliday Taxis for a stay in Portugal. Pick up from airport was fine (although taxi smelt like an ashtray), but we were supposed to be picked up 0400 for the return journey. After several phone calls I got through to someone at around 0415 and was told they couldn't contact the driver so just get a local taxi and keep receipt...really at 0400 on a Sunday morning!  After a hastily arranged taxi through the night porter at the hotel we sped through the roads of Portugal so we didn't miss our flight and I emailed a complaint straight away (4th Sept) and have heard nothing. I have chased (like previous comments waiting 28days, then chased to be told it would be sorted in 10days) and I have chased again and still nothing. I have gone on social media...no response. Their complaint procedure is basically send an email, you cannot talk directly to anyone. All I want is money back for a service that wasn't provided, and reimbursement for the extra taxi I had to pay for. I will never use Holiday Taxis again

CKhalvashi

tovmeister said:

I had prebooked a private hire cab throughHoliday Taxis for a stay in Portugal. Pick up from airport was fine (although taxi smelt like an ashtray), but we were supposed to be picked up 0400 for the return journey. After several phone calls I got through to someone at around 0415 and was told they couldn't contact the driver so just get a local taxi and keep receipt...really at 0400 on a Sunday morning!  After a hastily arranged taxi through the night porter at the hotel we sped through the roads of Portugal so we didn't miss our flight and I emailed a complaint straight away (4th Sept) and have heard nothing. I have chased (like previous comments waiting 28days, then chased to be told it would be sorted in 10days) and I have chased again and still nothing. I have gone on social media...no response. Their complaint procedure is basically send an email, you cannot talk directly to anyone. All I want is money back for a service that wasn't provided, and reimbursement for the extra taxi I had to pay for. I will never use Holiday Taxis again

You'll get one or the other, not both.

No free lunches to be found in life, sadly.