A couple from California decided to go on vacation in Costa Rica. However, their plan to soak in all the fun and comfort the tropical country had to offer was ruined when they suddenly discovered that a single charge by Uber had drained their funds. The wife, Dominique Adams, was in Costa Rica and needed to catch a flight to meet her husband, Douglas Ordonez Jr., in Guatemala. She decided to take an Uber ride to the airport.
When they were about to celebrate their fifth wedding anniversary in Guatemala, they received a shocking alert. Instead of being charged 30,000 Costa Rican colones (about $55 in U.S. currency) for the Uber ride, their joint bank account was charged a whopping $30,000 in American currency! This left them with no money in a foreign country, ruining their plans for a romantic getaway and vow renewal.
Adams told NewsNation that everything seemed fine during the Uber ride in Costa Rica, and she didn’t worry about it. However, as soon as she arrived at the airport, her husband called to say that his credit card was declined. They checked their bank account and were stunned to see the enormous charge. They were both confused and didn’t know what to do.
Both the bank and Uber pointed fingers at each other, leaving them stuck without funds. “The bank was blaming Uber, and Uber was blaming the bank,” Adams said. Ordonez Jr. was upset and worried that someone might have stolen their financial information. It took about four days, but they eventually got their money back. During that time, they had to rely on the little cash Ordonez Jr. had withdrawn earlier and make do with what was already booked for their trip.
Adams mentioned that Uber never contacted them during the whole ordeal. She expressed her frustration at Uber’s negligence, as they marked the case as resolved in their app even before resolving the issue. The couple felt let down by the lack of support from Uber.
However, Uber responded to the situation in a statement to KTLA, saying that they take all reports seriously. They explained that the large charge was mistakenly applied due to a bank error, and they promptly addressed the issue. However, the time it took to process the refund depended on the bank’s policies. KTLA tried to reach out to Altura Credit Union for a comment, but they had not responded at the time of publication.
When asked for advice from other international travelers, Adams suggested using a credit card instead of a debit card. She admitted that she should have followed her own advice in this situation. The couple went through a very uncomfortable experience and decided not to use Uber again in the future. They had to improvise and postpone their vow renewal to ensure everything was settled back home. Who would blame them for their decision? All they wanted to do was to add some spark in their relationship with a romantic getaway, and the last thing anyone needs during vacation is a stressful situation that ruins plans.
