S’pore man claims Billion Stars Express arrived late, then drove off without him at 4.15am pit stop in M’sia

Billion Stars Express passenger says he was left stranded at 4.15am after coach allegedly drove off without him

A Singapore traveller has called out Billion Stars Express after claiming he endured a string of problems on a coach journey to Kuala Lumpur.

This culminated in him allegedly being left behind at a rest stop in the middle of the night.

In an Instagram video posted on 26 June, Ernz, who works as Head of Solutions, described the experience as “really traumatic”, half-joking that the company should be called “a billion traumas instead”.

Coach timing allegedly changed at the last minute

Speaking to MS News, Ernz said he booked an 11pm coach from Tai Seng MRT to Bukit Bintang, Kuala Lumpur on 19 June at about 8pm.

However, the 35-year-old claimed the company contacted him within minutes to inform him that his departure had been brought forward to 10pm.

According to Ernz, no explanation was given despite him asking why the timing had changed.

“I asked why, and asked if there’s a bus at the timing I thought, as I’ve dinner plans,” he said. “They simply repeated that it’ll be 10pm at the same pickup.”

He said he rushed to the pickup point by taxi, only to find no coach waiting there.

Instead, he waited from 10pm until about 11.15pm before the bus finally arrived.

During the wait, Ernz said another passenger, Simon, told him he had already been waiting since 8pm for his own coach.

He also claimed he later overheard a staff member mentioning that the earlier 8pm coach had broken down.

Claims coach left without passenger during rest stop

The journey allegedly took another turn during one of the rest stops in Malaysia.

Ernz said he got off the coach to use the toilet, but when he returned, he saw the coach driving away.

“I saw the coach bus just zoom away in the far distance, and he left without me,” he said in the Instagram video.

He claimed he was stranded at around 4.15am, adding that he did not know where he was.

According to Ernz, the only reason he knew where the coach had gone was that a friend coincidentally happened to be travelling on the same bus.

Otherwise, he said he would have had no way of locating it.

When asked whether the driver conducted headcounts before leaving each stop, Ernz told MS News: “They never did once, for all the pit stops.”

Says company did not respond after incident

Unable to catch up with the coach, Ernz said he ended up booking a taxi to head directly to his accommodation.

He met his friend the following day to retrieve the belongings he had left onboard.

Ernz also claimed that his calls and text messages to the company went unanswered while he was stranded.

Afterwards, he said Billion Stars Express did not respond to his complaint.

“Radio silent,” he told MS News. “Didn’t reply my text or call back or check in.”

Although he had purchased the optional S$1.20 insurance add-on, Ernz said he did not attempt to make a claim.

“I didn’t attempt, especially when the issue came from them,” he said. “They gave me the impression that they couldn’t care less right from the start.”

Reflecting on choosing to use Billion Stars Express as his coach provider, he said in his video that “the trauma and stress are seriously not worth it.”

“They did not even bother to reply throughout the entire process.”

He also pointed out other issues with the coach service, including hygiene, as cockroaches were clearly visible on the bus.

MS News has reached out to Billion Stars Express for comment.

Also read: S’poreans In KL Bus Crash Claim Driver Didn’t Sleep For 3 Days, Company Says Otherwise

Have news you must share? Get in touch with us via email at news@mustsharenews.com.

Featured image adapted from Billion Stars Express website and @euphoricernz on Instagram.