Anybody else ever work customer service?

[markw]

If not, you ain't gonna believe this. If so, you'll definitely appreciate this.

http://lists.tickld.com/x/the-21dumbest-customers-ever

 

[TheWarrior]

Yes I have. Therefore I will not click the link simply because of the very expensive 'therapy' that was needed afterward...

 

[Steve81]

Yes I have. Therefore I will not click the link simply because of the very expensive 'therapy' that was needed afterward...

Ditto. Of course beyond the occasional moron, I had more depressing experiences since I did CS for a lab. Part of their shtick was to make house calls to convalescent homes, so I'd get the occasional call from those patients. Suffice it to say those calls never went terribly well. Fortunately I got promoted out of that job quickly, albeit into greater insanity as the bed/patient placement guy for the hospital.

 

[markw]

Oh, common, guys. If nothing else, dealing with the public gives you some great war stories. Here's one of mine:

In the late 90's, I was working part time for an old friend at his Radio Shack. Now, I'm 6'3" and was about 250 at the time and some minion comes in with a $11.88 phone they sold around '82 or so claiming it didn't work.

How do I know the price and date of the phone? I bought a few myself. They were junk. That his lasted as long as it dis was a miracle.

As politely as I could, I told him it was dead and there's nothing that could be done. It's time to buy a new phone.

Now, he gets huffy. He tells me to send it out for repair. I said, politely, that they won't repair it and, besides, it wouldn't be worth the cost to get it repaired. It's only a $12 phone and he got over 15 years out of it.

Now, he starts getting loud and the other customers in the store are watching. He says it's a Radio Shack product and they HAVE to give him a new phone. He DEMANDS, quite loudly, that I give him a new phone. .for free. ...right now. ...or else.

"or else???"

Again, nicely, but I am starting to lose it, I tell him that ain't a gonna happen. Now the customers are really interested in this little exchange.

Now, he really gets loud and acts like he's gonna jump the counter and says, real loud " If you weren't behind that counter I'd kick your a&&". I'm a bit pithed now but still manage to hold my cool. ...but I couldn't take this shiite much longer and was gonna have my boss call the cops.

Now, my boss, bless his heart, sticks his head out the back room, smiles, and says, quite loudly, "Mark, it's time to take your break".

I step out from behind the counter, face this little jerk and give him my best "Joker" smile and say "Do we want to discuss this further? Let's go outside.

I've never seen anyone run so fast. ...and he forgot to take his phone. The customers all got a good laugh out of this, as did my boss and I.

I have more. My days as a consultant for a software house are even better.

 

[Steve81]

I don't really have any stories that I vividly recall from the lab, though the hospital had lots of interesting cases. I worked the swing shift (13:00 to 21:30), and was sited by the admitting department, so I got to see a few "less than sane" individuals pass through.

The one story that sticks out involved a guy that came around in the evening, stating he was being chased for a painting he had that was worth a million dollars. Only one clerk was on duty at the time, and he had no idea what to do with the guy so he came to me for assistance. Naturally while the clerk was gone, the guy didn't just sit and wait quietly. Instead, he barricaded himself inside the clerk's office and began writing on/stabbing himself with a pen. Long story short, security arrived to restrain the guy and take him over to the ER.

 

[herbu]

dealing with the public gives you some great war stories

Most of mine are from the other side of the counter/phone trying to communicate w/ an idiot Customer Service rep.

Last week tried to buy something online. Card was rejected. Tried wife's card... also rejected. Called Customer Service. Idiot said our cards had somehow been deactivated because they were swapping to the new embedded chip cards. She re-activated them. Tried purchase again. Rejected again.

Called Cust Service. This person was at least nice. Told us the first person screwed something up and they had to send us new cards. Emphasized my wife was "primary" on the account, and we MUST activate her card first. OK.

FedEx came yesterday. Envelope contained only my new card. No card for wife. Called Cust Service. Told us they had expedited shipping on my card... shipped wife's card in normal mail. Idiots.

 

[cpd]

Most of mine are from the other side of the counter/phone trying to communicate w/ an idiot Customer Service rep.

Last week tried to buy something online. Card was rejected. Tried wife's card... also rejected. Called Customer Service. Idiot said our cards had somehow been deactivated because they were swapping to the new embedded chip cards. She re-activated them. Tried purchase again. Rejected again.

Called Cust Service. This person was at least nice. Told us the first person screwed something up and they had to send us new cards. Emphasized my wife was "primary" on the account, and we MUST activate her card first. OK.

FedEx came yesterday. Envelope contained only my new card. No card for wife. Called Cust Service. Told us they had expedited shipping on my card... shipped wife's card in normal mail. Idiots.

I have forgotten my stories from my retail days, but have a ton from the consumer side as well. Two more recent ones:

1) I had my father order a gift for my son for his birthday. It broke the first day he used it so I called for an exchange. I had a 10 minute conversation explaining that it was a gift, that it should be shipped to me not my father, and that if possible I didn't want my father to find out his gift had broken so quickly. They said no problem, he would never know. Fast forward two months, and I call back because the replacement had not arrived. They said, oh - we credited your father's credit card a long time ago. Then they looked at the account notes and noticed their mistake but said if I wanted a new one I needed to order and pay for it. I told them I would call them back and hoped my father would not notice the refund on his card. Fast forward one week, I had not called them back but I received an email from my father forwarding an email from this company confirming that the idiots had shipped a replacement (for no charge at least) to my father's address.

2) About 4 months ago I started receiving bills from our local cable company addressed to some other person at my address. I don't have service with this company so I called to get it fixed. They determined that the person moved and must have entered the wrong address but that they would keep reaching out to him to correct the error. After two more bills arrived I called each time again and was told the same thing. Finally, when the fourth bill arrived, they put me on hold and told me they just reached the culprit and he provided a new address. They ended that call with two requests (a) do you want to switch to our service and (b) would I mind driving the bill over to the person's new address. I "politely" responded no to both.

This thread is very cathartic!

 

[herbu]

It is proof that neither side of the counter has a monopoly on idiots.

 

[markw]

It is proof that neither side of the counter has a monopoly on idiots.

True, but having worked the retails side, I'm very tolerant of those on the "selling" side of the deal. But, the other side of that coin is that I demand to be treated with respect when I'm on the other side. If not, I can be a real SOB.

We generally tip wait staff around 20% and up but, in a few very rare cases, I've been known to leave two solitary pennies. Like when I asked specifically if the turkey on an open faced turkey sandwich was real, freshly roasted turkey and was assured it was and it turned out to be highly processed turkey roll.

I did leave a note, scrawled on a napkin, explaining why.

 

[WaynePflughaupt]

Great stories here, some of them pretty funny! Here’s mine.

Back in my early 20s I worked at a Sears service center taking calls from customers needing to set up appointments to get in-home service and repairs for their appliances. One day I got a call from a female with a vaguely familiar voice. Turned out it was an ex-girlfriend that I hadn’t seen in years. I was flabbergasted. This was an old PBX phone system where the operator manually routed calls to us when she saw our line was open. What were the odds that out of the 6-8 people in that department that I would be the one to get that call?

The short story, we re-kindled our romance and got married a couple of years later. Thirty-five years later we’re still together and happier than ever.

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

 

[Chu Gai]

About 1/6 to 1/8.

 

[cpd]

Great stories here, some of them pretty funny! Here’s mine.

Back in my early 20s I worked at a Sears service center taking calls from customers needing to set up appointments to get in-home service and repairs for their appliances. One day I got a call from a female with a vaguely familiar voice. Turned out it was an ex-girlfriend that I hadn’t seen in years. I was flabbergasted. This was an old PBX phone system where the operator manually routed calls to us when she saw our line was open. What were the odds that out of the 6-8 people in that department that I would be the one to get that call?

The short story, we re-kindled our romance and got married a couple of years later. Thirty-five years later we’re still together and happier than ever.

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

Thanks for raining on our parade

Seriously, that's a great story.

 

[herbu]

Speaking of large appliance repairs, maybe this is a good time for this. Bought a dishwasher at HHG. Usually don't get the extended warranty, but for some reason did this time. The salesman explained if the appliance needed the same repair more than 3 times, they would replace it with a new one.

Fail and repair #1... then #2... then #3, all within the first 2 years and all the same part. Told my wife to get ready for a new dishwasher. One more fail and they would replace it. Then fail #4. Called HHG. Asked about the new dishwasher.

That's when they explained. The first 3 fails were under the manufacturer's warranty. But then the mfg 2-year warranty period ran out, and I started the HHG warranty period. Fail #4 was really fail #1 under the HHG warranty. So now 3 more to go.

Lying, cheating, misrepresenting rat ba$t@rds!!!

 

[jliedeka]

I worked customer service/sales for a satellite programming company in the mid 90s. I had a few bad days but thankfully those memories have faded after 20 years.

 

[Chu Gai]

Speaking of large appliance repairs, maybe this is a good time for this. Bought a dishwasher at HHG. Usually don't get the extended warranty, but for some reason did this time. The salesman explained if the appliance needed the same repair more than 3 times, they would replace it with a new one.

Fail and repair #1... then #2... then #3, all within the first 2 years and all the same part. Told my wife to get ready for a new dishwasher. One more fail and they would replace it. Then fail #4. Called HHG. Asked about the new dishwasher.

That's when they explained. The first 3 fails were under the manufacturer's warranty. But then the mfg 2-year warranty period ran out, and I started the HHG warranty period. Fail #4 was really fail #1 under the HHG warranty. So now 3 more to go.

Lying, cheating, misrepresenting rat ba$t@rds!!!

That was very interesting to know. If you don't mind saying, how many additional years is the HHG warranty and what was the brand and nature of the failure?

 

[jinjuku]

We sell a software package for member management(Check in, billing, point of sale etc).

Invariably an aquatics facility will call. We are only open 4 out of 12 months of the year. How much is your software then?

I ask how much was the installation of the pool and pumps discounted for them vs a center that is open all year around.

You can't fix stupid.

 

[jinjuku]

Speaking of large appliance repairs, maybe this is a good time for this. Bought a dishwasher at HHG. Usually don't get the extended warranty, but for some reason did this time. The salesman explained if the appliance needed the same repair more than 3 times, they would replace it with a new one.

Fail and repair #1... then #2... then #3, all within the first 2 years and all the same part. Told my wife to get ready for a new dishwasher. One more fail and they would replace it. Then fail #4. Called HHG. Asked about the new dishwasher.

That's when they explained. The first 3 fails were under the manufacturer's warranty. But then the mfg 2-year warranty period ran out, and I started the HHG warranty period. Fail #4 was really fail #1 under the HHG warranty. So now 3 more to go.

Lying, cheating, misrepresenting rat ba$t@rds!!!

You didn't read the paper work. That's on you... Yes there is paper work for that stuff.

 

[jinjuku]

Customers aren't the only idiots:

Get Insight Business Class Internet and phone service. In three years we managed to rack up 6 months of free service due to crappy service.

This included 4 visits by TWC techs to swap out hardware since TWC bought out the Insight franchise.

So we finally get fed up and switch our phones to a virtual PBX and get rid of TWC business class.

Fast forward two months after the switch and I get a bill for 3 pieces of missing equipment that the techs pretty much lost and never gave me any form of receipt. The only thing I have is the repair order sans any hardware serial numbers written down on them.

I worked with TWC in the 90's as a consultant in their Akron and Columbus markets when they were the FIRST cable modem markets on the globe. So I know that TWC occasionally forces all the techs to spend an off day bringing in their truck and clearing all the broke hardware and cleaning up their inventory system.

So the phone calls and emails start flowing back and forth with an idiot in Columbus that insists we are on the hook for the hardware and that their 'inventory system is top notch'.

Well it's not top notch as he thinks it is because when I personally returned the last piece of business class hardware. Well take a look:

I live in Louisville KY.

It get's better.....

 

[jinjuku]

Now I send the receipt to the idiot at TWC in Columbus. The one that said their inventory systems are 100%. Doesn't faze him in the least. We are still responsible for this according to him as we signed a contract. This will come back to haunt them in a moment.

Remember we initially setup through Insight cable. We never signed paperwork with TWC. So they send a collection agency after us.

I call the agency back from the letter they sent us. I let them know they are required by law to both verify and validate all debts and ask for a copy of the contract. They try to tell me I'm supposed to call TWC. I let them know the actual statute. That they as an agency are required to know this and act accordingly.

I never heard back.

 

[markw]

You can't fix stupid.

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