My husband and I, after a long flight, had just settled into our room at the Royal Solaris resort in Cancun, Mexico. We were just dozing off when from the room next door came the LOUDEST SMALL CHILD SHRIEK you can imagine. My husband immediately called the desk and said “You have to move us. Can you hear that?!” Apparently the desk clerk offered to ask them to be quiet, but my husband said “No. The parents have loud speaking voices too. Please move us to a different room!!” Within minutes a guy was at our door with that rolling thing for luggage and we ended up in an awesome big suite - a big upgrade from our regular room. (The thought of spending our all-inclusive vacation with an ear-piercing screaming child next door still makes me shudder.)
Unfortunately, the warning came too late for me to do anything about it. I’d bought my tickets the month before, but only two days prior to my flight, my stepfather warned me that flights to Atlanta from his location were always delayed, or cancelled. And my flight from his location back home was via Atlanta… I was worried. And right to be.
My flight was delayed for a repair last Sunday. Initially it was only delayed for ten minutes, but that soon changed to a 90 minute delay, meaning I’d miss my connection at Atlanta. I got in line at the desk. To the people in front of me, asking about different flights (next day, different hub and so on) the clerks were saying that everyone had to go on this flight and wait for a new connection, because all flights out were full due to problems on another airline taking all their free spots and then some.
When I gave my information, the clerk got very quiet. She talked into the phone and I couldn’t hear much, but it sounded like she was asking for a special treatment, even calling in a favor or two. I waited silently for her to finish and let me know when my new connecting flight would be. And then she told me I’d been given a new flight out to Memphis because there were no more flights from Atlanta to my hometown available that night or the next day. The transit was smooth from there out, and she got me better seats, too =D
I don’t get it - are you some kind of a VIP? Your story doesn’t tell us why you got the different treatment. (If so, then this sounds less like an example of good customer service and more like an example of toadyism…)
It was right after 9/11 (like 2 weeks) I was in Vancouver BC. I get back to the hotel on Tuesday afternoon, and when I open the door to my room, I see a letter on the floor (had been slipped under the door)
Letters slipped under your door at a hotel are never good news.
I read the letter, the hot water is out until tomorrow, come down the lobby, we will get you another room. (this hotel is actually 4 joined buildings, so one building could have no hot water and the rest would be fine)
Fuck this, there are very few things I hate more than having to pack up midweek and move rooms. I decide to stay where I am and take a cold shower in the AM. then I went to the bathroom and went to wash my hands. The water was black from all the sediment that had been dislodged from the pipes.
Fuck.
I head down to the lobby to see about another room.
The good part about staying in the same hotel over and over is the staff gets to know you a bit, and they do tend to loosen up with the “regulars”
So I go to the lobby, go up to the desk and say to the clerk (who I knew by sight) “You did this on purpose didn’t you? You knew just how much I hate to move in midweek, I bet you broke the water heater on purpose. so what have you got for me, a maid’s closet, or the machinery room?” (all of this was said with a big smile on my face, and a laugh in my voice)
He tells me to shut up and he will get me a room. He taps away for a few minutes and programs a new key. He puts the key in the envelope and directs me to the correct elevator to get to the room. He tells me that I will need to use the key in the elevator. ( the part of the hotel I was staying in was 2 stories, there is a tower that is 18 stories high on the other end of the end of the hotel)
So I collect my stuff and head off the new room. I get the elevator put in my card, the doors close and it heads up.
It stops at floor 18 (top floor) I get out and look at the folder that the key was in. Under room number is says 4. Nothing else, just 4. meaning penthouse 4 (there were 4 penthouses on this floor)
I open the door, this is a 2 story, 1100 square foot apartment with a full kitchen, a master bath to die for, a full on entertainment center, a total of 5 balconies and a view to die for.
When I returned the key for my old room, the clerk smiled and asked how I liked the room. (Let me be honest, he had a shit eating grin, he knew I loved the room) I told him I had one complaint. He got a WTF look on his face and asked what was wrong? I told him I knew that a room like that had to come with at least 2 smoking hot babes, and I had so far been unable to locate just where they were stored. 
Thought of another one…
I was staying in at a hotel in Toronto once. It was business, and one day, business went well after normal business hours. No meals were provided, so at the end of a very long day, I grabbed some fast food to scarf down on my way back to my hotel. When I got to my hotel, I thought I might like a drink. So I went into the hotel bar, where I ordered a Maker’s Mark on the rocks, with a pint of Molson Canadian beer off the tap. As I had my drinks, I chatted amiably with the barman–nothing important, just small talk. Nothing I’d call memorable.
But it was pleasant enough, and on the three days or so that I had left in town, I’d stop into the bar for a nightcap when I got back to the hotel. Every night, he’d offer me a Maker’s Mark with a pint of Canadian, and I always accepted. And we made small talk: the weather, sports, current events. Always, nothing memorable.
Two years after that, I was back in Toronto, and staying at the same hotel. One night, I went into the bar. The same barman was behind the bar, and as I sat down at the bar, he said, “Good evening, Mr. Spoons. Maker’s Mark on the rocks with a pint of Canadian back?”
I was floored. He remembered me–and my order–from perhaps three visits, two years before! Yes, I had “my usual,” as he called it; and it was the only time I’ve ever left a 100% tip. He deserved it.
Agreed. I have never been disappointed (knock wood). Just a couple of things… A few months ago a raptor’s temporal-spatial loci intersected with those of my windshield. USAA paid for a new windshield. (They didn’t cover the raptor’s damages.) Then several weeks ago they called to tell me that windshield replacement was not covered in Washington. But they waived the deductible since the mistake was on their end. Good resolution, but I think they should cover the windshield if it gets smashed through no fault of my own. The other thing is that they employ a survey company to collect information. I hate that. If something changes, I’ll tell them. (In searching, it seems I’m not required to participate in the survey.)
Oh, a couple more things: I would love to insure my house through them. But the house was built in 1934 and has knob-and-tube wiring. They won’t cover it, and I have to buy my insurance through Safeco. And when I tried to insure my motorcycles, they directed me to their Progressive affiliate. I’d rather have USAA handle all of my insurance needs.
The fan belt on my MGB broke not too long ago. AAA towed me to a shop, but the shop could not make the repair that day and I was 80 miles from home. The tow truck driver took me to a guy he knew, and didn’t charge me for the mileage in excess of the five miles you get free. The mechanic, who shares shop space, installed the new fan belt I luckily had in the boot. He didn’t charge me. ‘It only took ten minutes.’
This is standard practice in Japan.
I’ve done this many times through the years for thorough cleanings, adjustments and, just the other day, replace a tiny screw that fell off. Very often they do it on the spot and they never ever mention anything about buying the pair at another shop.
No fair, experiences in Japan shouldn’t count!
Hell, ya walk into a convenience store there and the clerks act like you’re the second coming or something! They may be cursing me in their minds for all I know, but they certainly try to make the customer feel welcome, which I find refreshing coming from the US (esp. New York).
my wife’s family has been with state farm for insurance for 40+ years; her car got broken into the very first weekend after she drove up to Canada the first time. she called her agent, was on the phone for 5 minutes, then waited about 15 more minutes until the agent called back - a local GM dealership was expecting us and would have our repairs completed before end of day, a local towing company was en route and should be there within 30 minutes to take the car to the dealer (car wouldn’t start due to damage to the ignition and steering column), no charge, no deductible, nothing.
I’ve been dealing with the support staff at Rackspace at least once weekly for the last 2.5 years; an agent answers live chat within 10-30 seconds every time without fail, 90% of the time can answer my question or address my issue on their own immediately and are happy to do so, and the 10% that cannot explain this clearly and escalate me to someone that does - these ticket escalations are usually handled within 2-3 hours in my experience.
lastly, debate about homosexual marriage aside, I have never have a bad customer service experience at chick-fil-a. it’s so good, I am only half-kidding when I wonder if there’s some type of corporate brain-washing going on there. how can every single minimum-wage employee be this fucking happy to serve me my lunch?
this is a great thread idea, btw.
Not as earth shattering as some of the experiences posted here, but I’ve never had a bad experience with customer service from L.L. Bean. When I wanted to exchange a belt, the first thing I noticed was that the service number was clearly posted. Some sites try to hide the “talk to a person” number, hoping, I guess, that you’ll get discouraged and give up. Second, I was connected within two rings to a live, cheerful person. Problem solved within about two minutes.
A few years ago my GF and I had a weekend getaway at a nice rural hotel. We wanted the big suite, but it was too expensive, and it was non-smoking except for disabled guests. We ended up in one of the cheapo crappy “smoking allowed” rooms. We weren’t very happy with it.
The next day while we were napping, we awoke to the sounds of domestic violence in the adjacent room. What ensued was a huge drama including me calling 911, the cops almost hauling me away because they thought I was the abuser, the actual abuser fleeing, the abusee being arrested on other charges, and a big kerfuffle with the hotel manager and cops and all sorts of shit.
The upshot was that my GF did not feel comfortable staying there another night, and was willing to just go home. The very nice manager ended up moving us to the big suite, and provided the ashtrays. Woohoo, fireplace and hot tub!
How did the cops mistake you for the abuser when you were in a different room???
The best customer service experience I had was at Disney World.
I was staying the the cheapest of their accomodations. At the time, I wore contacts. After a long day and night in the parks, I came back to the room and went to take them out. The lid to one side of my contact case was missing. Crap. It probably fell on the floor and the maid threw it out by mistake.
I phone the front desk and ask if they sell them in the gift shop (which was closed). They don’t. Double crap. I ask where the nearest 24 hour pharmacy is and if they will call me a cab. They put me on hold.
Girl comes back and says that I shouldn’t have to pay to do that but they don’t have any one who they can send until the morning shift. I decide that a glass over my case should be fine for the night and got to sleep.
We get up and leave the hotel room before the morning shift comes on.
When we do return, there is a HUGE bouquet of balloons with a personal card of apology signed by Mickey Mouse. On top of that there is a pile of contact cases with a note that says, ‘I wasn’t sure what kind to get, so I got you one of everything.’ There had to be about 20 of them. I didn’t have to buy another case for ten years!
The thing that really got me is that the room was only 55 bucks a night.
I was up in Sault Ste. Marie for a week, staying at the Delta Hotel right downtown by the river there. There was a chamomile tea bag in the room. First night I had it and really enjoyed it. Let the room be cleaned (usually I put the Do Not Disturb sign out for the duration of my stay but this time I didn’t) and the tea bag was replaced so I enjoyed a cup on the second night. Third night I came back to the room to find…SIX chamomile tea bags!
I’m not quite sure. When I called 911 I told the operator that the disturbance was in room 7. She asked what room I was calling from and I said room 8. The cops knocked on the door for room 8. Maybe they just got confused.
The airline story
About 15 years ago I was on a plane that got rerouted and grounded because of a snowstorm and some radar problems in Reno. We were headed to Reno but got grounded in Sacramento.
The first problem was that we were stuck on the ground for hours and hours waiting for a gate. This was before these situations bacame big news.
And it wasn’t that bad. The flight crew came back to hang out with the passengers and let passengers come up and hang out in the cockpit. The stewardesses gathered all the food and drink that was onboard and worked out a system to let the kids on the plane distribute it. It wasn’t fun but there was a sense of everyone being in it together which made it tolerable.
Once we landed, we got meal and hotel vouchers and transport to the hotel and we enjoyed a congenial evening. The only issue was that I couldn’t find out what was going on, the airline had given us a 1-800 number but they were clueless.
Morning comes, and I still don’t know what’s happening. since I am an East Coaster, I was up and about fairly early and I ran into the pilot and flight crew in the hotel lobby. I told them I couldn’t get any answers from the airline.
So the pilot says…“forget trying to call them. We’re heading to the airport and I know that the plane has to get to Reno and I’m not going to fly it empty.” Stick with us and we’ll get you there.
So I did and it worked…and the pilot really had to pull some strings to get HIS passengers to their final destination.
and on another occasion I was waiting for a delayed flight that was delayed for hours…it was late and the food service in the airport was closed so the gate crew called Dominos and had a handtruck full of pizza delivered which they served on the flight.
And on a minor level, I stopped at McD’s one evening and ordered a burger and fries. The kid behind the counter put my fries in the bag and waited for the burger. And waited and waited…it was probably only about 3 minutes which can seem like forever when the restaurant is pretty much empty. Then when he got the burger he threw out the fries he had bagged 3 minutes earlier and gave me a fresh hot bag…I noticed and was impressed. On another occasion at the same restaurant I was delayed because they were busy and there was some problem filling my order. I wasn’t in a hurry, didnt complain, was totally patient. When the clerk gave me my order she also handed me a preprinted apology card with a voucher for a free meal.
Just thought of another one, this one a professional one.
I had to order some computer equipment for work and needed it the next day. I had previously used an on-line supplier but I was totally frustrated with their customer service, the last order I placed had been a clown circus of stuff that shipped to the wrong address via the wrong method.
So I decide to try a new on-line supplier, making the decision because I found the website easy to use. I place my order for next day delivery.
My credit card was near its expiration date and unbeknowst to me, Visa had shipped me a new card, which I had not received yet. However, they had changed the CC# in their database so I had placed the order with an invalid card.
About an hour after I placed the order I got a phone call. The caller says " Hi, Ms Hedonia this is Dave from XYZ Networking (not the real name) We’re having a problem with your credit card and it looks like this order is important. I have conferenced in a rep from Visa customer service on this call so we can get it straightened out right away."
The problem was straightened out in about 2 minutes and I got my stuff the next day…if this had happened with my old supplier it would’ve been the start of a long adventure. I have used the new company exclusively ever since.
Domino’s was the only pizza place in the small south Louisiana town I lived in, and the only place that delivered at all, so they got a lot of my business. They royally screwed up one of my orders one evening, which meant I didn’t get a pizza that night, and all the other restaurants in town were closed by then. The next evening, the manager showed up at my door with a free pizza (with the same ingrediants I usually ordered) and apologized. Really, I’m a softie, and just a “I’m sorry we screwed up” is usually enough to win me back over, but this guy went above and beyond.
There’s a Chinese Restaurant in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario called the “Hard Wok Cafe” that a co-worker recommended, and since I collect Hard Rock Cafes I figured it would be funny to go there. It’s only take-out so I ordered a vegetarian meal and took it back to my hotel. When I got to the hotel I opened the container only to find it was full of meat. I called the restaurant and explained that they messed up and I’m vegetarian, and they immediately sent over a delivery guy with the proper order. In the bag was a handful of fortune cookies and a free container of white rice with “Sorry!” and a smiley-face written on it.