First Bus company customer complaint

[gazban]

I complained to First Bus on 11 March 2014, told that they usually take 14 working days to respond. Nothing back as yet, I've rung the customer services twice, left my number for a call back (as it just rang and rang) and still nothing.

 

I'm aware of the bususers.org website that can take forward complaints to bus companies that aren't resolved to any level of satisfaction, but I'm not sure what to do in the event that I get no response at all?

 

Do I write to their CEO, ask my MP to speak to the Secretary of State for Transport or are these suggestions a little extreme? Or do I just sit tight and wait?

 

I'd be grateful for any advice.

[2ltr16valve]

Can you give us some background on your complaint please ?

This would give us an idea of how far to possibly take the complaint.

Thx

[gazban]

]I arrived at Worcester Bus Station on Friday 7th March 2014 in time to

board the 14:30 service to Birmingham. This should have got me to

Birmingham for 16:12.

 

The 144 bus pulled up towards the stop without about 10 minutes to go

before departure time. The lady driver of the bus for some reason needed to

call over an engineer as there was clearly some sort of problem. She left

the bus walking across the station, the engineer drove the bus away and

within a few minutes the lady driver appeared at the stop on a different

bus. All the passengers boarded the bus, now running a few minutes late,

and we all set off on the journey.

 

Midway through my journey, and shortly before reaching Bromsgrove, she

refused passengers on to the bus, saying that the bus had "broken down" and

that she was now "only going as far as Bromsgrove". I was trying to

understand for myself what was happening, as I had paid £4.50 to go to

Birmingham in order to catch a connecting service by coach. Upon arrival in

Bromsgrove, everybody rose to get off. I walked to the front of the bus,

the female driver confirmed that the bus had broken down and would go no

further. I informed her that I needed to get to Birmingham, she could not

have appeared less concerned about it, she just muttered something about

getting the next bus that comes, her demeanour towards me and attitude was

not what I expected. The customer service that she gave me was appaling.

 

The most shocking thing of all was that a few minutes later, she proceeded

to fill the bus with school children in order to take them to Catshill. She

completely ignored my pleas to understand why a broken down bus would now

fill itself with children and drive away in front of my very eyes!

 

After waiting for the next bus to arrive at the back of a long queue, I

missed my connecting coach service from Digbeth at 17:00 (proof can be

provided), as I arrived in Birmingham at 17:20. I had paid £17.00 for this

coach which I've now lost. I paid £4.50 on a bus to get me to Birmingham

and it didn't. I feel short-changed and left very disappointed about the

service (or lack of it) that I received. This was my first ever time of

using this service and travelling on a First bus.

 

Can someone please look into this matter for me; I would like some

explanation as to why this happened, and how my dissatisfaction can be

rectified.

 

Thank you.

[Grotesque]

OOC, why is it of such significance in your eyes that 'the lady driver' was 'female'... and not just a coach driver to you?

[leigh04]

Cant help on the situation but that is what worcester first bus is like, even complaining to them they take no notice.

[gazban]

OOC, why is it of such significance in your eyes that 'the lady driver' was 'female'... and not just a coach driver to you?

 

It's of no significance, in fact on reflection I probably shouldn't have used the word 'lady'.

[Grotesque]

No you should not have. And if you wrote that to First Bus they probably put you down as a misogynist and filed your letter appropriately

 

However to answer your original question, your next approach for resolution will be through bususers.org as you have already suggested- as far as they are concerned, no response from the bus company is equal to an unsatisfactory one. Obviously.

[gazban]

Thank you Grotesque. I'm obliged.

[Grotesque]

Np.

 

 

It would be interesting to hear what they say, when they get back to you. It does sound a curious incident, as a school bus is subject to no lighter safety regulation that a commercial one; so if it had broken down, and hence unsafe to convey you, I don't see why the school kids were any different.

[gazban]

Np.

 

 

It would be interesting to hear what they say, when they get back to you. It does sound a curious incident, as a school bus is subject to no lighter safety regulation that a commercial one; so if it had broken down, and hence unsafe to convey you, I don't see why the school kids were any different.

 

Me, neither.

 

In fact, in the society in which live today, you'd have thought they'd have been looking out for the safety of the sweet angelic schoolkids more than the likes of me!

[Grotesque]

H'mmm unless they were anything like mine in which case I'd be the first to put them on a three-wheeled bus touring the Grand Canyon

[gazban]

ha ha

[Conniff]

I think this is the contact address for the boss - Nigel.Barrett@FirstGroup.com

[gazban]

That e-mail address is invalid.

[PresleyPlays]

I've also sent old Nige an email. I hate blooming buses (even those cool new red ones in london), and I had no hesitation in telling barrell boy that too.

[Grotesque]

What about BS Boris?

[PresleyPlays]

He's put a block on my email address, otherwise I'd be bombarding the blonde bombshell as well don't you worry!

[Grotesque]

Ha so much for listening to the voters! etc etc; what a hypocrite.

[JoeyJoeC]

I guess it helps to narrow down finding the person that was driving the bus.

 

Seems odd that someone would bring up that he pointed out it was a woman, as if assuming by someone calling a female, female, is offensive?

 

She was a lady, why is that a problem?

[Grotesque]

That was me as you may know.

 

I guess it helps to narrow down finding the person that was driving the bus.

 

Are you sure? Do you think that is the only indication the company has as to who is driving a particular bus / route / diagram?

 

In this context, I would suggest that she wasn't a female, so much as she was a bus driver! I would ask in turn perhaps, why gender would be relevant to the complaint in the first place...?

[Grotesque]

Unhelpful, in this particular instance. The OP already acknowledged the tactless language- so that other fella had **** all reason to get involved, and needed, therefore, to get called out on it!