Minor BPW Grumble

Just a small one, but it’s annoyed me nonetheless.

I was making a booking for the uplift and got distracted by my little daughter so I wandered off from the computer before finalising.
I came back to it, and obviously wasn’t paying attention and managed to click on day pass, rather than uplift and duly completed the transaction.

It was only when I saw my statement with a payment for £6 that I twigged.

I tried to get in touch twice via their “contact us” form, then tried facebook and eventually got their email address.

Summary:
Can you change my booking and I pay the difference?
No. Not possible.
Can you refund my payment and I’ll re-book properly?
Yes, we can cancel your booking so you can re-book. There’s a cancellation charge.
Even if I’m cancelling so I can re-book as I made a mistake?
Yes. It’s in the terms and conditions.

It was a few weeks ago, for a booking in November, it’s not like it was for a weeks time.

It’s only a couple of quid, but when did BPW stop being friendly and about the people and become just another money grabbing, penny-pinching corporate machine?

It won’t stop me going, just blinking well annoyed me.

100% your own fault.

If £6 is such a big deal to you, use the day pass. whatever that is.

I agree with the OP, its not about the couple of quid.

helpful1, don’t be a ****.

he knows whose fault it is that he got it wrong he is saying, and I dont think it is unreasonable , that they should just let him upgrade without a fee …they get more money from him anyway
You might actually want to read the OP as well as you missed the actual point and the actual fee

Pretty poor way to run a business annoying your customers but hey Planet X and superstar are still here 😈

I tried to get in touch twice via their “contact us” form, then tried facebook and eventually got their email address.

Or…

Phone: 07730 382501

We have had this thread before (possibly more than once) with the usual gamut of responses. My opinion: I seriously doubt anyone is getting rich off BPW. Have you ever run a business? All this stuff, processing refunds, etc, costs money. Someone has to pay for it – might as well be the person who made the mistake. At least it will serve to focus your mind next time. 🙂

Surely if it’s been mentioned before, then there are other stupid people like me who’ve made the same mistake. Probably quite alot.

In this day and age, they can’t adjust a booking and make another transaction for £25 to make up the uplift fee? If they can’t, and with the amount of traffic they get then they need a better system!

Like I said, it’s just a minor grumble. Customer service is the important thing these days, but this example is just ****. I guess they don’t need to worry as they have no competition. Until something opens is Gloucestershire….

I didn’t spot that number Flash! It’s been a long 17 months!

Customer service is the important thing these days

So they were rude to you on the phone? Or in your eyes is poor customer service merely declining to waive a charge you’d previously agreed to pay?

They weren’t rude. Just efficient.

Excelling in customer service is exceeding the customer’s expectation.
Average customer service is providing the customer with what they want.
Poor customer service is sticking rigidly to the rules with no care for the customer.

It’s not about rudeness.

I do some from an extensive customer service background so I do know what I’m talking about.

How much is the cancellation charge then? It’s the sort of thing that waiving a charge generates a fair amount of goodwill, maybe outweighing the cash value, so I’m a bit surprised they don’t go for it tbh but it’s really just their call.

davosaurusrex – Member

helpful1, don’t be a ****.

Might as well ask the rain to stop phoning tbh.

£2

I’m not grumbling about the amount, just the fact that sticking blindly to the t&cs is a bit ****.

ha ha ha… 😀

I’m guessing helpful1 is the latest username from some bitter and twisted “big hitter” who got banned in the past? Muppet either way.

If you want to set up a JustGiving page I’m sure we’ll all chip in a bit. Might take a while to get to the total but we’ll make it! 😛

I don’t often feel the need to comment but someone has charged you £2 for wasting their time and you feel the need to start a thread about it? Show your anger and boycott them.

Charging £2 for your mistake and something which costs them time and money and is outlined in their T&Cs makes them money grabbing?

You should be moaning that they didn’t exceed your expectations by giving you a free cabbage as well.

STW snipers are missing the point. If it was a large amount I don’t think the OP would be complaining. A trivial amount that could easily be cancelled would be good for customer relations at little cost to BPW.

Oh… he’d still be complaining.

I’d still be laughing at him.

But is big brave Dave brave enough to sling insults away from the safety of his keyboard? Doubtful.

Perhaps they should put the cancellation fee up then?

Fight fight fight fight

The same thing happened with me – except completely different – my small child distracted me as I typed a response seizing my chance to buy a bargain off Ton in the classified section of Bearbones forum. Once I got back to the important business of internet bike bits buying the bargain had been snapped up.

So I can kind of empathise OP but it’s only £2?

And helpful1? :

But is big brave Dave brave enough to sling insults away from the safety of his keyboard? Doubtful

Classic.

when did BPW stop being friendly and about the people and become just another money grabbing, penny-pinching corporate machine?

🙄

You made a mistake, it cost you £2…only person id be annoyed with if I was in this situation is myself; why do people feel that there’s this entitlement that the T&Cs should be disregarded for their situation?

He feels like the charge is a piss take for a simple error especially as he is upgrading and they are getting more money- do you think he has a point or not?

WHo knew such a sm=imple thread was an easy way to identify ****?

Not aimed at the person I just replied to to be clear

I don’t ever think bpw has ever been ‘about the people’.

Friendly yes, but not about the people.

Have several experiences of money first agenda.

To qualify that last statement.

* refusal to amend bookings without charging despite forewarning
* refusing to refund uplift slots- then selling the same slot to someone behind you at full value.
* single trip riders getting uplifted before day up lifters despite them being in the queue

I like BPW, it’s a unique site and a great day out. I just don’t think they’re flexible enough.

BPW have been greedy from the outset. to do 1 ulifted run with my 10 year old son would cost £20!
i live 20 mins away and hardly go near the place.

Lummox – Member

* refusing to refund uplift slots- then selling the same slot to someone behind you at full value.
* single trip riders getting uplifted before day up lifters despite them being in the queue

When we were there, there were 2 different queues and absolutely no chance a single tripper was getting on the bus ahead of day tickets. Usually everyone got on the bus anyway but a few times the singles were left behind.

(oh OK, there was one, where a group of 3 daytrippers decided to wait because there were only 2 spaces, and 2 singles got in instead, but that’s obviously different)

Selling the same slot twice is kind of Ticketmastery though, when your service runs at capacity like theirs does it’d be a very nice feature to offer transfers/waiting lists, it’s one thing when they’re struggling to fill seats and another when they can be so confident of reselling a refunded ticket.

b45her – Member

BPW have been greedy from the outset. to do 1 ulifted run with my 10 year old son would cost £20!

It’s £4 a run if you buy the card, or £5 cash

helpful1 – what is that supposed to mean? Are you offering me a scrap in the playground when school is over? Grow up or I’ll give you a wicked dead leg and take your lunch money.

Northwind – Member

It’s £4 a run if you buy the card, or £5 cash

For clarity; what I meant was, you’re not paying £20 for one uplift; you’re paying £6 for a full day’s riding, and £4 for one uplift.

He feels like the charge is a piss take for a simple error especially as he is upgrading and they are getting more money- do you think he has a point or not?

Not on the basis i reckon when you work out the cost of an employee of BPW actually refunding/reschedduling/etc the place, the labour cost would be near to or more than £2. Simple mistake or not, still OPs mistake, dont see why BPW should be out of pocket.

I don’t get the impression BPW is a particularly profitable business and, if they are turning a profit, hopefully its going back into the trails/infrastructure: on that basis they have to protect their margins so these little charges might not make it ‘friendly’ but if its necessary to keep it operating then so be it

I’m going to hazard a guess that there are loads and loads and loads of requests for altering tickets.

A £2 fee doesn’t sound like money grabbing to me, it sounds fair.. small mistake, small fee.
Take it out of your daughters pocket money ya tight whiny git

b45her – Member
BPW have been greedy from the outset. to do 1 ulifted run with my 10 year old son would cost £20!
i live 20 mins away and hardly go near the place.

Under 12s are free aren’t they? So £14?

I agree though the pricing structure doesn’t really lend itself to just popping up for an hour.

The Saturday morning kids club is good though £10 for a 2 hour lesson with a proper instructor for the kids and it comes with a day pass a day pass for both of you – I can get 2 runs in whilst he’s in the club and we go for a pottle afterwards.

the labour cost would be near to or more than £2.

Its not free but it is basically answering a phone or an e-mail and clicking on a booking system the only cost part is the booking system as you will do the first bit anyway.
So basically £2 to press a button on the computer

OH ans using your maths this post was worth cost a fiver 😉

under 10s are free with a full paying adult, 2 x £6 day passes and 2 x £4 for an upift = £20.
Add to that the very expensive food and an attractive place to take a child it ain’t.

I think we can all count ourselves lucky that this was only a ‘minor grumble’. 🙄

Not sure the one in Gloucestershire will come close to BPW or the Forest of Dean for many years to come if ever and that’s dear too.

the labour cost would be near to or more than £2.

Its not free but it is basically answering a phone or an e-mail and clicking on a booking system the only cost part is the booking system as you will do the first bit anyway.
So basically £2 to press a button on the computer
OH ans using your maths this post was worth cost a fiver

Small error there junkyard, so that’s £2 please.

Technically the person would have been there not doing the transaction anyway, so is overhead

The only cost is the financial transaction (£.65 or so)

If you have to employ a person to deal with enquiries, amendments, refunds etc, you have to cover their cost of employment, or preferably make them profitable. The charge ensures the wage cost of the person dealing with enquiries is covered. Good business sense.

For typos and grammar errors it will make more sense if I just set up a Direct Debit 😉

another money grabbing, penny-pinching corporate machine?