Complaints

The complaint text that is displayed might not represent all complaints filed with BBB. Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:06/27/2024

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  On June 22 I booked to go on a kayaking trip with some friends. In the beginning it asked to put your weight in.My friend and I were to over weight for the kayak. I was told it would be fine. I got into the Kayak and it was so close to the water. I felt very unsafe. I did not take the trip and they refused to give me my money back. I did not receive the service and I didnt go for safety reasons. I cant believe they are keeping my money over safety issues

  Business Response

  Date: 06/28/2024

  To the Better Business Bureau, we at Get Up and Go Kayaking-Weeki Wachee are submitting this response to Kansass request for a refund. ****** reached out to us for a refund after she lied about her weight and was unable to paddle. We make sure to list our manufacturers weight restriction multiple times on our website and prior to booking a guest must physically check a box that they agree to our policies, including all sales are final and our weight restriction. Kansas and the rest of the guests in the party agreed to our all sales final policy when booking and additionally all guests further agreed when she filled out her waiver-which is attached here. When ****** reached out to us, she admitted that she attempted to circumvent our policies, that she was very well aware of, by lying when she was self reporting her weight. She did not contact any team members, as you can see from the snippet, where she entered her weight to ensure they fit the requirements we have in place, but in reality knew she did in fact exceed our restriction by 60Lbs. For this reason, we are denying Kansas a refund per our very clearly portrayed policies. 

• Initial Complaint

  Date:04/08/2024

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  Date of transaction: 3/29/2024 Booking information: #********* Weeki Wachee Clear Kayak Ecotours | Manatee Season (November 15th-March 31st)Saturday, March 30, 2024 at 4:00 PM 6:30 PM 2 Adults Reasons of complaint: My friend and I booked the Kayak tour at Weeki Wachee. When we were on our way to Weeki Wachee from ********* area, there were car accidents on the road that cause more than 30 minutes delay due to traffic. When we saw the delayed time, we called the business to see if they accept late arrive. What they told us is that they have another time spot at 6:30 that we can reschedule if we were too late for the 4pm appointment. When we arrived there, there's no any sign told us where is the exact location and we had to find it for 15 minutes to make sure where it is. We called them again since there's nobody there. After we arrived, they told me the 4PM tour is the last one on the day, but they can refund it to the card. We have waited for a week for that refund and have not heard back from them. I called them again to check when we can receive the refund, The business started to say that we are not eligible for a refund because we cannot provide any evidence showing that there's car accidents on the road that cause the delay. They said they have notes on their end showing that we did not choose to reschedule and they cannot find the records of me calling them asking for refund.1. Everything they told me was wrong information when I called. The first time they told me I can reschedule to the next tour on the day, but after we get there there, they told us there's no next tour.2. The second time I called them for refund, they said I will receive the refund 3. The third time I called them checking the status of the refund, they refused to refund The payments include 2 adults fee for $145 and tips for $29 and one processing fee of $5.22. We did not even get on the tour, we still have to pay the tips and everything.

  Business Response

  Date: 04/11/2024

  To Whom it May ************** are Get Up and Go Kayaking-Weeki Wachee responding to this dispute by *********************. 
  

  on 3.29.24 at 9:43am, lead traveler Wenling, made a reservation with us for 3.30.24 at 4:00pm for two adults. We have a list of agreements that must be acknowledged and checked as apart of a booking process. Guests CANNOT proceed with booking a reservation with us without agreeing to our policies and manually checking these boxes. Policies that are listed to agreement are all sales are final. Once booked, guests are not eligible for a refund or reschedule unless otherwise specified. This is listed verbatim and again, is a policy that MUST be agreed to upon booking. These screen shots of supportive documentation will be included in our attached evidence packet.
  

  Additionally, after manually checking and agreeing to these policies, guest are then sent a detailed list of instructions, which will include what time to arrive and where to arrive. This email is automatically generated and distributed by our booking system. These guests not only received this information, but, we have it confirmed that they opened this email as well. We have attached a screen shot of these details as well. 
  

  on 3.30.24 at 3:22pm this guest phoned and advised theyd be late to their reservation due to an accident on the road. We request that guests send us documentation to support claims like this. this guest was also advised of our policies, if guests do not send supportive documentation, their tours will not be held. We inform all guests of policies when they phone, the transcription can also be reviewed in the screen shots attached. If and when a guests sends their supporting documentation (typically GPS photo is requested) then we will honor a delayed start time of 10 minutes post regularly scheduled tour time. If guests are more than 10 minutes late and do not send documentation, guests are considered and marked as a no-show. If guests acknowledge theyre unable to make their scheduled tour and do not send us any supporting documentation, we offer guests a same-day 50% rebooking fee. 
  

  this guest called back at 3:25pm and asked if we would allow a rebooking with no same-day fee. They still had not sent us documentation to which we again reiterated our policies and requested documents so we could honor a same day rebooking. They did not want to come at the next offered tour time, and, again, without documentation guests are not offered alternative dates or times.
  

  This guest did not call back or show up for their scheduled 4:00pm tour time but instead called at 4:33pm and indicated their arrival. Our admin advised the same and indicated they were not eligible for a booking change or refund due to not submitting photo documentation. 
  

  this guest then called back again on 3.31 at 8:55am and requested a refund. We advised them again that our policy did not constitute a reimbursement as they had not followed our policy requirements. They advised our admin they spoke with someone about being reimbursed but we again stated our policies and that they were not eligible. 
  

  on 3.31 at 10:23am, the owner of our location, ***************************, called and spoke with this guest. ***** advised again they were not eligible due to not adhering to policies. They agreed and indicated they understood why they were not eligible and that they were never offered a refund because they were never eligible for one. 
  

  please see our attached documentation and advise if you need any additional information. 
  

  We take disputes and claims very seriously and are again acknowledging this guest was against policy and therefor never eligible for a refund 

   

  Customer Answer

  Date: 04/18/2024

   
  Complaint: 21541920
  
  I am rejecting this response because: All of the screenshots they provided do not explain or show that they did not provide wrong information.

  1. I made 2 calls at 4:37PM and 4:43PM regrading the refund. We were informed that they can process the refund so I chose not to reschedule. 

  2. When we called at 3:30PM, they told us there's an option to reschedule to the next tour on the same day at 6:30, but after we arrived, they said the tour that we missed was the last one on the day.

  3. The total fee included tip and other processing fee. Why need to pay the tip if we were never in the tour?

  4. It is illegal to record or intercept a telephone conversation in ******* without the consent of all parties to the conversation. Fla. Stat. 934.03(2)(d). 

  
  Sincerely,
  
  *****************

  Business Response

  Date: 04/19/2024

  We, Get Up and Kayaking-Weeki Wachee, are writing in response to the recent dispute regarding a refund request from one of our guests.
  
  
  Prior to booking, all guests are required to agree to our policies, including our "all sales final policy." It is important to note that this policy must be acknowledged before proceeding with payment. This guest did so on March 29th, 2024 8:43am date when they purchased their two seats directly online via our website. 
  
  
  Attached, you will find evidence of the guest's acknowledgment of our "all sales final policy" that they must acknowledge prior to booking. To confirm their acknowledgement of these policies, guests are required to physically check a box indicating their agreement to our terms and policies before completing their booking.
  
  
  Immediately upon making their reservation the guests received a confirmation email that also includes our policies, including all sales are final. The guests received this confirmation email on March 29th, 2024 at 8:44am date. We have included a screen shot of this confirmation email. 
  
  
  The guest also received a reminder email that includes all of our policies prior to their tour departure. 
  
  
  Additionally guests signed waivers on March 29th, 2024 at 10:38am date agreeing to our policies including ALL SALES are final.
  
  
  The guest acknowledged and reviewed our policies 4 times prior to missing their tour. 
  
  
  We reviewed the policies in question with the guests during the following conversations on March 30th at 2:22pm EST, 2:25pm EST, April 7th at 7:55am, and 9:16am on April 7th. During these interactions, the guest was informed that they were not eligible for a refund due to their failure to adhere to our policy. Our admin team member, management team member and the owner of the business reiterated this policy to the guest during these conversations.
  
  
  When the guest contacted us to inquire about a time change due the guest arriving 40 minutes past their departure our admin team  informed them that they would need to make a new reservation per our policies.  Despite being advised that they would need to make a new reservation since they had missed their tour by 40 minutes, the guest arrived without making a new reservation and expected to be accommodated with a seat on a later tour. 
  
  
  Our policies protect the experience and integrity of our tours, as these are small group tours, a maximum of 10 guests. Once guests purchase a seat on the tour that seat is held for them and no longer available for purchase to anyone else.Just like an airplane if a departure time is missed guests are required to purchase a new seat. 
  
  
  We appreciate your attention to this matter and trust that the provided information clarifies our position regarding a denial of the refund request.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 04/26/2024

   
  Complaint: 21541920
  
  I am rejecting this response because:

  I acknowledge the "all sales final" policy that was mentioned multiple times during the booking and confirmation processes. However, the circumstances surrounding my request for a refund involve miscommunications that went beyond a simple cancellation.

  
  Throughout my interactions with your staff, I received conflicting information regarding the possibility of rescheduling or receiving a refund. This misinformation led directly to my missing the opportunity to reschedule appropriately. At one point, I was informed of the possibility of joining a later tour on the same day, only to be told upon arrival that no later tour was available. This contradiction directly impacted my decisions and actions.

  
  It has come to my attention that you have provided screenshots and recordings of our phone calls as evidence. I would like to highlight that it is illegal in ******* to record or intercept telephone conversations without the consent of all parties involved, pursuant to Fla. Stat. 934.03(2)(d). At no point did I consent to these recordings. The use of such recordings in this dispute is not only inappropriate but also unlawful. I preserve the right to take legal action regarding this matter.

  
  Given the miscommunications by your staff and the exceptional circumstances of my arrival delay due to traffic, I urge you to reconsider your stance on this matter. A rigid adherence to policy, in this case, overlooks the essence of customer service and fair practice, especially when the information provided by your representatives was inconsistent.

  
  Due to the illegal recording of our conversations and the potential use of this as evidence against my claims, I am considering seeking legal counsel to address this violation of my privacy rights.
  
  Sincerely,
  
  *****************