Categories: entertainment, friends & family, general, sports & recreation, travel, vancouver, vancouver mobile makeup artist, weather, whistler, zipcarTags: car, convertible, drive, mini cooper, rental, reservation, sunny, zipcarAuthor: mikaI recently had some troubles with my ZIPCAR, and by reading the following letters, you will see how my problems were resolved.
This is the letter from Zipcar I received before I sent my reply.
Dear Mika,
I’m sorry to hear about the trouble you had with the top of the Mini Convertible. The last time you contacted us about the issue, our fleet team visited the vehicle and found that the top was not broken. Sometimes, when the trunk is filled quite high, it shifts a piece for the convertible top, or blocks the area in the trunk where the top needs to go. It may have occurred during the previous member’s reservation, but is not a mechanical issue with the car. We’re looking to put a note in the convertibles in the near future that warns members not to overload the trunk.
Unfortunately I cannot refund the cost of the reservation, because the car was used for the full reservation period and was driven over 250 kilometers. I understand that it can be frustrating when a car doesn’t operate how you expect it to, however, the agent you spoke with gave you a two hour driving credit for the inconvenience.
If I can help you with anything else, don’t hesitate to contact me. I can be reached at the local office at 604-697-0550, ext. 5700.
Regards,
Jennifer Anne Neale (Zipcar VAN)
And this is my reply:
Dear Jennifer at “Zipcar”,
Good morning.
First off let me tell you I am absolutely LIVID with my situation with Zipcar and what I have experienced over the past 2 months. What makes me even more FURIOUS is that your fleet team decided to ASSUME that the reason why our Mini Cooper Convertible top wouldn’t work for the 2nd time is because I, or the last driver had the trunk filled “quite high”. That is the biggest attempt at an excuse that I’ve heard all year. Please tell me what kind of a convertible top will not open up if the trunk is filled quite high. (?????) Did Mini Cooper not make a car that is functional?
By the way, I didn’t have anything in the trunk.
Let me tell you from the beginning, my memorable “experience” with Zipcar so you can understand my situation and why I will NEVER want to use your company again. (And let me add that this is the BIGGEST load of inconvenience I have ever had.)
I decided to try out Zipcar and reserve a Mini Cooper CONVERTABLE for the entire day of July 18th. I wanted to go with the convertible since it’s summer and I wanted to have the experience of putting the top down. My boyfriend wants to actually buy a Mini Cooper and we thought it would be a perfect opportunity to test one out. And I already have a vehicle, but it’s not a convertible, so we made plans around this convertible from Zipcar and thought for sure we could rely on Zipcar. Wow, were we ever wrong.
When I arrived at the location of Nelson and Seymour, the Mini that I had reserved wouldn’t open with the Zip Card that I had. I tried a dozen times then decided to call Zipcar. I waited while the machine spitted out options, then I got cut off. I had to call back and wait again through all the rambling of the machine once again. Finally I got a person to talk to, and I passed them on to my boyfriend Jay since I was too upset to talk. After about 30 minutes on the phone, the conclusion was that a Zipcar rep called me late the night before and informed us that they had CHANGED our reservation to a totally different location and to a totally different CAR. A CAR. It was to a Toyota Matrix. This is NOT a convertible. I cannot begin to explain how annoyed, upset, confused and pissed off I was. WOW. (Zipcar said we could take this car out and they will get us the convertible for another day, as well as the lost couple of hours that we were inconvenienced.)
My boyfriend and I had prior engagements so there was no time to mope around. We made the best of our situation and took the Matrix out with us for our busy day. We returned the car an hour and a half early, and still got charged a $35 LATE FEE!!!! (Initially, the car reservation was from 8am-8pm, although we didn’t get the car until around 10am so we were to have the car until 10pm. I returned the car just after 8pm.)
Needless to say, they mistakenly charged me the $35 and had to take the charges off.
We wanted to try again for our long awaited day in our Mini Cooper Convertible. So we agreed to book the Mini for August 16th from 8am -10pm. We get to the same location as the 1st reservation and this time the Zip Card actually worked and opened the doors to the Mini. We were happy. Then we started the car, again happy, and then attempted to open the convertible top…. This is where we began to doubt Zipcar again. It only opened half way. So it was pretty much a sunroof. We call Zipcar’s 1-800 number and go through all the machine prompts until we get a real-live representative. She walked through the steps on how to open a Mini Cooper Convertible top, and still, it didn’t open. We had NOTHING in the trunk to stop the top from opening. So again, being the optimistic couple that we are, my boyfriend and I began our busy day, with a faulty convertible that we have been waiting over a month for.
If you are more worried about the 50km that we went over in, then I will pay the extra $15 (for .30/km), although I’m sure I am owed AT LEAST that!!!!!!!!
What I am wanting from Zipcar is a guarantee for myself and my boyfriend to have 1 full day in a WORKING Mini Cooper CONVERTABLE, since that’s what I have been trying to do since July 18th. When a driver rents a convertible in the summer, it’s most commonly because they will like to take full advantage of the removable top and drive with it off… If I wanted a regular car I would’ve taken my own car out.
This letter has taken precious time out of my life and I’m sure yours too, so thank you for your time in reading this email. I hope to hear from you or someone from Zipcar very soon.
Dear Mika,
Mika
www.MikaDoesMakeup.com
604.764.MIKA (6452)
Downtown Vancouver
And here is the REPLY I got:
Our office has reviewed the situation with your Mini Convertible reservation on August 16. Because of the trouble you’ve had with the vehicle in the past, we’d like to offer you a reinstatement of the “One Free Day in a Mini” credit. The credit of $104 will automatically be applied to your next reservation. In addition, a member of our fleet team would be happy to meet you at the vehicle and take you through the operation of the convertible top. All of the convertible tops in our Minis are currently working, although we’re still experiencing the problem where the movement of a small lever in the trunk prevents the top from going down.
We’re working to resolve this issue by providing a diagram for members so that they can correct the problem themselves.
Please let us know if you’d like to rebook the Mini reservation, and the date, and we’ll arrange for someone to meet you there. If you’d like to discuss this further, please contact me at 604-697-0550, ext. 5700.
NOW I AM A HAPPY ZIPCAR MEMBER. WE BOOKED OUR NEXT ZIPCAR MINI CONVERTABLE COOPER FOR SEPTEMBER 12TH FROM 8:30AM-10:30PM. HOPE THE ROOF OPENS UP THIS TIME!! 
