Eight Black Airport Shuttle abruptly closed on Friday, June 13 after the company messaged customers and posted a message on its website.
“Like many transportation companies, we’ve been hit hard by a perfect storm—a significant increase in insurance premiums, rising airport and regulatory fees, and steep capital costs,” the statement said. “In the shared ride model, where affordability matters most, we simply can’t raise prices enough to cover those costs while still offering the frequency and schedule that our customers expect. So with a heavy heart, we’ve made the decision to shut down Eight Black Airport Shuttle.”
In the days following, Eight Black Airport Shuttle customers reached out to the Longmont Leader, posted on Reddit, and left 1-star reviews on Google stating that they bought hundreds of dollars in vouchers in the weeks leading up to the closure.
Customers of the company alleged on Reddit that the company had been advertising voucher sales as recently as two weeks before the company closed. “They were spamming my phone AND email multiple times a day to buy 8+ vouchers,” one Reddit user wrote. “I can’t believe they didn’t know they were close to shuttering.”
Eight Black’s initial message did not mention a process for issuing refunds. Owner Simon Chen told the Longmont Leader on June 18 that he updated the message on the company’s website with a voucher refund request form. In the newly posted message, Chen apologized for not addressing refunds in the company’s original statement on Friday. “It is my full intention to refund every single customer, no matter how long it takes,” he wrote. “I know this situation has been a letdown for you and for the Boulder County community.”
Chen wrote that the day of the announcement was a difficult day for him professionally, and apologized for any inconveniences that were caused by the closure.
Chen wrote that the refund process may take 12 months to complete, but will start with the most recent purchases. The form must be filled out, and the company will cross reference with its master list and follow up with each customer on the refund process.
Longmont Leader reached out to former employees of Eight Black, but they were unable to speak on the matter due to a non-disclosure agreement.
