Lonely Planet™ · Thorn Tree Forum · 2020 |

# FUNWAY RENTAL - be aware of these SCAM ARTISTS!!! Country forums / Pacific Islands & Papua New Guinea / Samoa
wilkzlasu 23:59 UTC 30 Jun 2008 | "The dirtiest scam artists on the Island." That is a better way of describing the company FUNWAY RENTALS in Apia, which I STRONGLY URGE you to STAY AWAY FROM! They are unreliable, untrustworthy scam artists that will try to force any kind of bs. and lie upon you. Me and my fiancée had the unfortunate displeasure to deal with these crooks and this is what happened. After booking a specific car, the 2-door 4WD Toyota RAV4, which I specifically asked for (because there was just the 2 of us and it looked new, clean and exciting to drive) over ONE MONTH prior to the specified day, I was reassured and received a confirmation from them that the car would be waiting for us (which in the case of this company really doesn’t mean a thing). As we arrived on the day and time we had advised, I saw the car I had booked in front of the doorway and another person stepped into it, so I naturally asked what was going on, pointing out that that was my car that I had booked, and all I heard was that my would be there at 11.30-12.00 at the latest (we were there at 10.30). I asked if it was the same car, make and model and was assured that it would be (which turned out to be a complete lie!). At 12.30 (after a 2hour wait) the car turns up; an OLD Kia that looks like it would fall apart any minute – with a soft rooftop that was broken! (which would be devastating for our luggage as it rained heavily the following day), torn seats, smelly inside from cigarettes, no air-condition etc. I asked the guy if this was a joke, and he replied that that was our car! And he said, in his own words “Take it or leave it”! as if “I don’t care if you had booked another new car over a month ago, I don’t care that it was confirmed and I flat out lied to you promising you the same car which you waited 2h for.” I couldn’t believe what I was hearing and asked how this was the same car that I had booked?! He replied that it was a 2door 4WD - Except that the make, model, year, condition was immensely different! It was just ridiculous. I asked what sort of price he could offer for this car – read piece of junk - (thinking that I might start considering it for half the price of the RAV4) and heard that it was the same price! And after pointing out the differences to him between the two cars that even a blind person could spot, he reluctantly (as if he was suddenly a good Samaritan) said he could go down from 130 to 120 WST/day, so 10 WST (approx. 3US$)/day less! That was just it and we left to go to another agency! He didn't even look us in the eyes. Please be aware of these crooks! Note, there was NO APOLOGY WHATSOEVER from their side for their errors and lies, not to mention the inconvenience it meant to us! NO regret whatsoever. NO offer of help to try to find another rental company or car. Absolutely NOTHING! This was by far the most unprofessional, unfriendly and unserious company I had ever dealt with! As we finally found another rental company, Discovery rentals, and told the story, their representative apologized 3 times (although she had nothing to do with it!) and could not believe her ears. I can truly recommend Discovery Rentals, who might be a few $ more expensive (literally a few) BUT are a serious, professional and customer oriented company that is a pleasure to deal with. Budget rentals are also recommended; the nice lady didn’t have a 4WD but allowed us to use her phone to call other companies in search of it, and also regretted our situation (needless to say, half the day passed by, which is a lot considering our rental time was 2 days - ¼ of our time to drive around was wasted because of the scam artists of Funway rentals). So be warned; if you want lousy if not non-existent customer service, absolutely no guarantee you even get a car even if you booked it a month before and got it confirmed, if you want to risk waiting around for hours for nothing, deal with unfriendly, unpolite and liars, than I would recommend Funway. If not, turn to a proper, decent rental company like Discovery rentals or Budget for a normal, professional rental experience. And, if you still decide to deal with Funway, DO NOT under any circumstances give them any money upfront before you see the car! I didn’t, thank god, because I’m sure I wouldn’t even get the money back. They are as UNSERIOUS, UNPROFESSIONAL and UNFRIENDLY company you will ever find. “The cleanest cars on the island” should be replaced by “the dirtiest scam artists on the island” for a more truthful description of them. |
pago 04:56 UTC 01 Jul 2008 | Thanks for the "warning", we'll stay clear of Funway. | 1
islandboi321 05:18 UTC 01 Jul 2008 | And here Funway was always THE most reliable car rental agency in Samoa.... Things that make me go "Hmmm...." | 2
smandkjc 23:47 UTC 01 Jul 2008 | It is considered rude to look people in the eye in Samoa. | 3