Customer service is dead and gone......

[sz9144]

Went to the dipping dots carts by ET and ordered a large lemonade and a large diet coke. I hand over my $20 and take a sip- diet coke is flat and nasty. I said, "this diet is flat." The attendant looks at me like I have two heads and says "well just pick another one." I can only drink diet so I said, "I cannot drink any of the other sodas. I'll just buy the lemonade." At this point she has my $20 and I've not received any change, she tells me only a manager can refund my soda. After standing in the 90 degree sun for 10 min the mgr strolls up and after debating back and forth between themselves she finally throws my change at me. No apology, nothing. So I march myself to guest relations and express my concern. He makes me hand over my id and fill out my name address and phone number then says, "I've made a note of your concerns." So I'm like, that's it? And he stares at me and says, "what else do you want?"

Honestly, would it have killed them to give me the $2 back for the one soda I bought for my trouble? I've been a pass holder for 3 years, spend an average of $1500 per visit staying and eating on site. ***?

 

[Senator Tressel]

So the manager decided not to refund your money?

 

[cvjw]

Got a huge dose of it myself last month. Took us one and a half hours to upgrade a power pass renewal to a preferred pass renewal, and I had to pay an extra $50 for the privilege.

The whole time, my sons and mom had to stand in the heat and just wait while 3 customer service reps and two managers debated what to do and how much to charge me. None of them had any clue.

I should have been charged $25 - had done the same thing over the phone with ticketing before leaving home. They originally told me I had to pay over $170 for the upgrade, but after all that time, decided that $77 would be the price. I happily paid it just to leave.

What a cluster. I got home and got things fixed and my money refunded, and then looked at my son's annual pass and saw that they gave him a florida resident child pass - of which he is neither

 

[bumbershoot]

OP at this point, since you drink soda, have you considered buying one of the red mugs? They are refillable for 99 cents and in practice can be used time and time and time again.

Doesn't solve the issue you had, but it could help save you money going forward.

Should I ever buy a soda I'll taste it first and THEN pay.

 

[MPB82]

To the OP you said customer service is dead and gone but in the end you wanted $2 back? That's it? You prob spent several hundred dollars that day and were upset you didn't get reimbursed $2 for a diet soda? You waited for a manager then went to guest relations? Seems you wasted more then $2 doing that alone.

 

[Bluer101]

You don't want to know half the crap I go through all the time at Universal Resort period. Most are very small as you experienced and not worth the aggravation. Should it happen, no, but the world is not perfect.

As for waiting for a manager to come that would be expected. You are at a small cart not a bigger shop. They cannot allow basic employees to refund money period.

To say you have been a pass holder for 3 years and spend $1500 per visit is crazy. Just because you pay that does not mean it's your way or the highway. Don't get me wrong. I'm not justifying their attitude but I find it hard to believe as they gave you an attitude without you provoking it.

At the end if the day it was a soda and everything else in the day was fine. Move on and enjoy.

 

[drew64]

So exactly how much time total did you waste over this $2 including waiting in the sun, going to customer relations to complain, and then posting here to further complain.

Time to get over it and move on.

 

[Planogirl]

We must be very lucky because we never deal with bad service at any of the parks.

OP, I'm sorry that you had so much trouble getting $2.

 

[bumbershoot]

FWIW, my understanding is that the OP wanted the money back for the lemonade s/he did buy, along with the diet coke s/he didn't end up taking away from the stand. A gesture of kindness sort of thing.

Can the TMs not change out the soda/carbonation things right then and there?

 

[ArwenMarie]

That's too bad. You should have just been able to pick a different drink and leave the other one there. Poor service is right.

I agree though, sometimes it's not worth fighting for stuff even when you are right.

 

[damo]

That's too bad. You should have just been able to pick a different drink and leave the other one there. Poor service is right.

I agree though, sometimes it's not worth fighting for stuff even when you are right.

I think there was only one diet drink to choose from.

 

[ArwenMarie]

I think there was only one diet drink to choose from.

I thought the lemonade was an option?

 

[drew64]

That's too bad. You should have just been able to pick a different drink and leave the other one there. Poor service is right.

I agree though, sometimes it's not worth fighting for stuff even when you are right.

They offered another choice, OP refused as there was only one Diet choice.

She ordered 2 drinks, one Diet and one Lemonade.
Lemonade has nothing to do with her diet drink or replacement drink.

 

[damo]

They offered another choice, OP refused as there was only one Diet choice.

She ordered 2 drinks, one Diet and one Lemonade.
Lemonade has nothing to do with her diet drink or replacement drink.

That was my take on it.

So the manager gave back the money for the diet drink at the dippin' dots stand. OP went to guest services to complain about the service and was disappointed that guest services did not give the money back for the lemonade (which was fine and they kept) as a make up for the time wasted.

 

[Planogirl]

Would Universal ever give back money for Dippin' Dots and such places? I assume that the stand is a franchise of sorts and other than location has little to do with Universal?

I'm a little unclear as to why the OP wanted money back for the drink they kept and also why Universal was supposed to pay it.

 

[schumigirl]

Don't let that make you think customer service is dead and gone......it really isn't.

Did you answer the managers questions as to what you did expect? Was it just the $2 for the drink you kept?

We've only ever had the opposite experience. I ordered a margarita at the bar opposite Margaritaville last year......as I was drinking it a love bug fell in it........my husband ordered me another......barman saw what happened to the original and there was no charge for the new one. Good customer service and I could regale plenty of fantastic service stories........so customer care is still there.

 

[damo]

I imagine they tightened up cart till rules after this ...

http://mynews13.com/content/news/cf...icles/cfn/2013/7/27/universal_studios_em.html

 

[Senator Tressel]

The moral of the story is, Dippin' Dots are horrible and should not exist.

"Hey do you want some ice cream?"

"Maybe, but only if you can make it not creamy at all and taste like freezer burn."

 

[labfan]

Since you kept the lemonade why should they give you back the cost of it? You returned the diet soda and got reimbursed for that. That is all that is required.

 

[Magpie]

Since you kept the lemonade why should they give you back the cost of it? You returned the diet soda and got reimbursed for that. That is all that is required.

Perhaps she wanted compensation for the trauma of not enough bubbles in her diet soda?

For what it's worth, I once got an undrinkable soda at McDonalds. Someone hadn't mixed the syrup right, and it was thicker than you can imagine. One sip gave me a heck of a headache! I informed them, and got myself a water (because seriously, after that, I didn't want anything sweet). I didn't get comped my meal or anything, but they did send a girl out to stick an "out of order" sign on the drink machine (just that particular soda - the others were fine).