PHOENIX — A Phoenix woman says her dream trip to San Diego Comic-Con unfortunately turned into a travel nightmare.

Kayla tells us she’s used FlixBus for traveling multiple times over the past eight or nine years. The company bills itself as a convenient and affordable bus option with over 8,000 destinations across more than 40 countries.

Kayla says she had planned to go to Comic-Con for the first time this year as a celebration trip with a friend.

“My best friend, she just graduated college, and our little, I guess, celebration with each other was going to be, you know, going to the San Diego Comic Con,” Kayla said. “We were just really looking forward to it.”

But she never made it to the event.

Kayla booked a FlixBus trip from Phoenix to San Diego with a connection in San Bernardino.

However, traffic troubles in California caused her first bus to be delayed.

“There ended up being an accident on the freeway while we were in California, which caused our bus to be delayed. And I guess there was no communication with the second bus that we had somebody who had a connection that needed to get on this bus. So, I missed that bus,” Kayla explained.

Kayla says she tried to contact customer service by calling them and talking to them through an online chat, but she couldn’t get any help, and the next Flixbus shuttle to San Diego wasn’t until the following morning.

“I would have to pay for a hotel in this city that I’m stranded in, and then try to take the bus, which was an extra $180, I think, to get to San Diego and go, and I was just like, that’s way out of my budget for right now. And then they had a bus going home for $60, so I was just like, this is what I can afford right now. This is what I’m gonna do,” Kayla said.

Kayla tells us she was particularly frustrated by the company’s response after years of being a loyal Flixbus customer.

“The complete lack of empathy from the company, especially since I’ve used them for think eight or nine years now… it just… it baffled me,” she said.

FlixBus responds to complaint

FlixBus sent ABC15 a statement saying: “We understand how frustrating it can be for a passenger to miss a connection, and we regret the delay that impacted this customer’s journey. Our Network Planning team builds schedules with real-world conditions in mind — including traffic, construction, detours, events, and weather — but, as with any road travel, some delays are unavoidable.

“When a delay causes a missed connection, FlixBus automatically looks for the best available solution — such as holding the connecting bus or rebooking the passenger on the next reasonable departure, typically within 120 minutes. If rebooked, customers are notified via email and/or SMS using the contact details provided during booking.”

We have gone back and forth with Flixbus for weeks now, and it is unclear why Kayla never received notifications to rebook her trip after the delay. Flixbus did offer Kayla a refund of $14.99 for the part of her original trip that she missed.

Thankfully, PayPal gave Kayla a full refund for her original trip, and she was able to work with her bank to dispute the charge for the return trip home.

What travelers should know

According to FlixBus policy, customers impacted by missed connections may be eligible for compensation, including reimbursement for food, lodging or continuing the trip with another bus or rail provider. However, travelers must get approval from FlixBus before making those accommodations. You can learn more about their customer service options by visiting the FlixBus website.

FlixBus also maintains a list of passenger rights for travelers using the company.

Kayla’s advice for others: “Proceed with caution. Look at other options… I kind of wish, in my case, maybe I’d research more, but obviously, like I said, I’ve just used them for so long, and I’ve never had an issue.”

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