How ZIRX will end up just like Homejoy

UPDATE(Oct. 1): I cancelled my account yesterday, Sept. 30, and today received an invoice for October. ZIRX is batting 1.000

Summary:

• Unresponsive after 30 minute wait for car at 9am on a Saturday morning.
• Lost the key to my car
• Had my car in an unattended outdoor lot
• Left my car unlocked in unattended lot
• Didn’t know that I’d taken my car after Ubering to lot to pick up my car
• No follow up support
• Unsympathetic apology and meager offer of discount on additional services
• Charged again after cancelling my account

How ZIRX will end up just like Homejoy

tl;dr ZIRX doesn’t care about your car or you.

Homejoy was a great idea, providing a service for busy people for a fair price. Who wouldn’t want to come home after work once a week or month to a nice, clean home? Where they blew it was on customer service, fostering loyalty (or not), and reacting (or not) to the experiences of their customers.

I’m annoyed and bummed that ZIRX seems to show no interest in avoiding the same fate and is doing the same things Homejoy did wrong.

I had a truly terrible experience with ZIRX about a week and a half ago and so earlier today, September 29, I sent the following email and received the below response(verbatim):

Hey Zirx,

I’m sorry this took so long to send out, but I’ve been busy. On Saturday, September 19, I requested to have my car delivered a little after 9am. My fiance and I had an appointment in Lake Tahoe to look at our wedding venue. We’d have left Friday night but I flew in from Chicago for work late Friday night. After waiting for about 30 minutes for my car, I texted the ZIRX agent asking if he had an ETA. I didn’t hear back, but about 15 minutes later I got a call from ZIRX support telling me that there was an issue with my key and that I could take an Uber where ever I was going and that ZIRX would cover it. I said thanks, but that I planned on driving to Tahoe for the weekend and that wouldn’t work. So she said she’d call me back and did about 5 minutes later. She said there was no easy solution: that my keys were locked in a box that nobody at ZIRX could get into and that somehow I’d have to get another key to my car to get it out of the lot.
This was an inconvenience to say the least. The fastest way to resolve this was for me to take an Uber (receipt is attached) to the lot and get the car myself so I could come back home, get my fiance, dog, and our stuff, and leave for Tahoe. When I arrived at the lot, there was nobody there to greet me, so I walked into the wide-open gate. I saw my car parked a number of rows back. I walked into the open, unattended lot to my car. I tried the door handle and found that my car, parked in this unsecured, unattended lot, was unlocked! Being in a hurry, I got into my car and drove home. As I was pulling up to my apartment, I got a call from the agent asking if I was going to meet him at the lot. Apparently he hadn’t received the memo.
You still have the key to that car. I may or may not need that back - here’s the thing: this all happened with a 2002 Subaru Forester. I don’t believe that the level of service I receive should have anything to do with the kind of car I drive, but I have to ask, would a nicer car have been treated with more care? I ask this specifically because I just traded that car in for an Audi Q5 and I’d like to take good care of my new car. I’m considering my parking options and while ZIRX is competitively priced and (usually) convenient, I don’t care to have this kind of thing happen again.
My initial reaction was to cancel my service and write ZIRX off as a good idea but poorly executed endeavor (see Homejoy), but I do like the idea and the convenience, and I do have a new car that I’d like to have taken care of.
I don’t write a lot of reviews or letters, but I think this is important. I work for startups and I have seen/been a part of some failures. I’d love to see things work out for ZIRX, but you need to get your shit together. And should probably give me some free shit for the trouble I had and for taking the time to write this.
What’s a second chance worth to you?
Please let me know as I have to move my car in an hour and a half and am paying for your service as I write this but don’t feel comfortable using it.
Thanks,
Ryan

ZIRX’s (utterly disappointing, also verbatim) response:

Hello Ryan,

On behalf of ZIRX, I want to apologize for everything you experienced on September 19th. Vehicle security is one of our top priorities and we ensure this safety by keeping our customer’s key in locked key boxes. I can see that we failed to uphold this standard with your car. As such, I will credit your account 50 dollars that can be used towards a car wash, oil change, or any of the other services we offer.

As far as you key is concerned. We have checked all our lots, Agents, and key boxed and we have not found your keys. If we do encounter keys that fir your car description, we will notify you right away. I can assure you that if you choose to park with us with your new car, we will make sure to keep it safe. Furthermore, the type and model of the car in no way affects the security of your car.

Please let me know if there is anything else I can do for you.

Best,

[removed]

—
[removed], Customer Delight Manager

I’m bummed that customer service is not important to these startups that depend so heavily on their customers’ collective experience. I was really hoping that this company would show more than zero interest in my trust and loyalty. So long, ZIRX.