You call this

The BBQ Pit
1

Longish rant…

The story goes like this…

I came to the US after hearing about the fame customer orientation of businesses here. But after my recent experience with Verizon (a cell phone company), I am left wondering why they bother calling it customer service.

I wnated to transfer a cell phone connection from a co-worker name to my name since he was leaving the country soon. And since I was new to the US (no credit history) I was asked to pay a $500 deposit. I did. A month later the cell phone that I use is cut off. Reason- non payment of bills… But hey I did not GET any bills!

Went to the outlet that did the transfer. After umpteen calls, was told that my cheque for $500 was lost between the outlet and the company. So the transfer never really happened.

Was sent to the company office. By now I am steaming. (ths fact that all this happens on a hot Houston afternoon does not help)

I am told that they cannot take responsibility either. I offer to cut off my connection immediately. They tell they cant do that. It does belong to me, see.

So in essence the Service Agreement that I signed with Verizon is not worth wiping my ass with!

I am so pissed off with all the phone companies, service providers here! You call them and you have to wade through asinine operators who are so blinkered that if you ask them what the weather was outside, they would say “Its dark in here”

DAMN DAMN DAMN!!!

2

Sounds like the same soul-less spawn of Satan that runs Ameritech also Verizon. DAMN THEM ALL.

Ameritech has this wonderful customer service arrangement where you can literally spend 3 hours on the horn before you even get to talk to the person you need…and even then, they’ll sometimes send you back through the loop just to satisfy their twisted hatred of the world.

The phone companies are the worst–I’ve had no other experience with poor customer service than our phone companies.

3

If the check is lost, then cancel it. Now.

4

The short answer is that you were lied to, son, plain and simple.

The long answer is that many businesses in the U.S. give excellent customer service. It’s how they stay in business - if you get bad service from one company you’ll go to their competitor next time. Unfortunately, cell phone companies grew out of phone companies which, like most utility companies, are a morass of pain and suffering worthy of about seventeen separate Kafka novels.

I do think the quality of customer service is declining (although I must remember, as Eve said, “people were always awful”) as a result of the speed at which we do business today. Taking care of customers, listening to them, the “extras” of personalized services take time, and time costs money. Crazed-efficiency experts try to help companies shave time and transaction costs and serve more customers faster. As a result, fewer customers are served well. You’d think that the more information that businesses gather about us the more customer service would improve, but I think the opposite is true.

When I purchase a product or service and need more information or technical support, I want to deal with a pleasant, knowledgeable human being who has his ducks in a row, can answer questions, provide answers, and most importantly, listen and offer a solution. Someone who says “we have no record of your payment” before passing the buck is not giving you good service. These folks can spout policy and procedure till the Rapture and it’s not going to help you with your cell phone service. Someone who says “we have no record of your payment, but I will transfer you to someone who can help” is a cut above. Someone who says “I have no record of your payment, but I will personally find out what happened and call you back within 24 hours,” and then works within his organization to resolve your situation and calls you back is the best of all. But this person is expensive, requires resources and autonomy to make decisions, and a functioning organization. If these guys can’t figure out how to get you answers within their own freakin’ company, how are you supposed to figure it out by dialing one toll-free number after another?

The only thing I try to do is let people know when they are giving me good service, and taking my business (to the extent possible) away from companies that give me bad service.

Well, welcome to the boards, welcome to the country. When you get that cell phone working try not to talk really loudly on it or program in an obnoxious ring, okay?

-magdalene
(who has spent time in the former U.S.S.R and bows down and gives thanks for good customer service, nay ANY customer service, when she finds it)

5

You moved to the US because of the customer service? Sorry but that just struck me as quite funny :slight_smile:

6

Oh, I want to second what friedo said - call your bank, find out if the check was cashed and by who, and if it hasn’t been cashed, cancel it immediately.

If it has been cashed, here’s what you do. You do everything in writing from here on out.

You write a letter explaining the situation. Include dates - on X date I switched the contract, on Y the check was cashed, on Z you cut off my service, on A your operative told me to call B, B said ____. etc.

Any time you deal with the company, get the name of the person you spoke with and include it in the letter.

You explain that you would please like to have the service turned back on and the bills forwarded to your address. You also explain that if they can’t do that for you, then you would like your $500 back, less the amount of any bills you owe them, and you are cancelling the contract.

You remind them that you have done everything to fulfill your contract and that it is their screwup. “Losing the check” is not your fault. It is also not your fault if they cannot bill you properly. You no longer wish to do business with a company that cannot keep track of its customers and cannot resolve problems effectively. Basically, you view their breach of customer service as a breach of the contract.

Send the letter certified mail, and cc your local Better Business Bureau (a consumer watchdog). See what happens.

Good luck.

7

magdalene

I would love to find out more about the Better Business Bureau. I think that I came off sounding more negative about the country than I should have, there are a lot of other things that are wonderful here. But customer service by phone companies sucks big time.

I realized that I was paying $3 per minute for international calls where I could be paying 50c. When I call the phone company, they are busy trying to sell me a DSL connection! This after I tell them that I do not have a computer at home; and you know what she says? “It’s SUCH a great deal, how can you not take it?” Hey, I said I do not have a home computer OK… “No but how can you…?” Tut Tut lady, get some brains (I did not say that) Phew, that was some conversation.

BTW, I did stop the check, disconnected my service, went to another company and am reasonabley happy now. But now I open my mail with trepidation every time. Don’t know whats the next biggie thats gonna hit me.

8

ashtayk, welcome to the United States. Have you been issued your SUV and your gun yet? (smily)

If you think that is bad, wait until you have to call the cable company or electric company for service. It’s worth your while to buy a speakerphone just for that call.

9

Also: Verizon is legendary for being the pits in customer service. I’d avoid them at all costs.

10

Verizon is NOT KNOWN for good customer service.

There’s plenty of other businesses, however, that have great customer service. My car dealership comes to mind right now since I just went there Tuesday for some scheduled maintenance.

11

Well, this seems like a good place to put this –

Verizon, nothing. I HATE Qwest. They sucked as US West and they suck now. If I had any other choice for local phone service, I would never do business with them again.

I’ve moved to Seattle and I need to hook up a phone. Okey-dokey, call Qwest. (No choice in that; see above.) In the course of setting up the account, I’m asked who I would like my long distance provider to be. Oh, I dunno, AT&T. Okay, but I should know that AT&T requires a $60 deposit. Really? I’ve never heard of that before. Does anyone NOT require a deposit. Well, surprise! Qwest does not. Okay then, sign me up with Qwest. Okay, hang up.

Days go by. No long distance. Call back. Why don’t I have long distance? Who is your long distance provider? Qwest. No, that can’t be possible, Qwest doesn’t provide long distance service. Well, that’s damn funny since I was TOLD by YOU (Qwest) you did. Oh, he must have meant local long distance. Funny, he did not SAY local long distance, but whatever. Get me some long distance – with someone who doesn’t ask for a deposit. MCI doesn’t ask for a deposit. Fine. Sign me up with them. Okay, hang up.

Days go by. No long distance. Call back. Why don’t I have long distance? Because you didn’t send it a deposit for it. Bang phone receiver against desk. I was TOLD I didn’t NEED a deposit for MCI. Oh, well that’s just wrong. MCI requires a $50 deposit. (This BTW, and as it ends up, is a lie. The deposit is required by and kept by Qwest.) But since you’ve had this mix up, we’ll go ahead and turn the long distance on and you can send in the check. Fine. Hang up.

Days go by. No long distance. Call back. Why don’t I have long distance? Because we haven’t received your deposit. Scream at woman at over phone. I was FIRST told that no deposit was needed and I was THEN told I could send it in – which I have – and NOW you tell me you won’t turn the service on until the check clears? How long does that take? Three weeks. WHAT??? FUCK that! There has got to be another option. Well, you can take a cash deposit down to Very Scary Collection Agency in Very Scary Part of Town and get a receipt and phone the receipt number in. Fine. Hang up.

Walk down to V.S.C.A., step over drunk in doorway, leave deposit. (Keep in mind that I am gainfully employed person of 30+ years with impeccable credit.) Call back. Here is the receipt number; turn on my fucking long distance. Okay. Hang up.

Days go by. No long distance. Call back. Why in the name of all that is holy do I not have long distance??? Who is your long distance provider? MCI. Oh, well, oopsie, we entered the wrong code; we have you listed with AT&T. We’ll have to change the code in the computer. That takes three business days.

THREE. FUCKING. BUSINESS. DAYS. To change a code in the computer. I will not have long distance until next Tuesday. (Who are we kidding? Based on past performance, I won’t have long distance then, either.) I loathe Qwest.

12

Ahhh. Phone company customer service. Quite possibly the most conflicting statement ever created. It’s almost as if they don’t want to talk on the phone. Ameritech, my personal favorite, likes to give people’s numbers out to telemarketers. My land line, which I never use, nor do I even know its NUMBER, rings about 3-4 times a day. I KNOW that it’s not someone I know, nor is it anybody I SHOULD know, it’s a telemarketer. So if I feel slap-happy, I’ll answer.

“Hello?”
“May I speak to Mr. Munch?”
“This is he.”
“Sir, this is <Name> from <Crappy Long Distance Provider>. How are you today?”
“Well, I’m pretty slap-happy right now.”
“Sir, I’m calling to offer you a great new long distance plan that we are currently offering. May I ask how much you pay a month for long distance on this line?”
“I pay nothing.”
“Well, Mr. Munch, we are offering long distance service for the incredibly low price of…did you say ‘nothing’?”
“Yes. I pay nothing for long distance. If you can offer me a long distance plan that YOU pay ME to use, I’ll gladly sign up.”
“Well sir, we don’t offer…”
“I’ll even put a sticker on my car for you for advertising, if you’d need a reason to pay me.”
“Well…”
“Or I could just say, ‘This call is a courtesy of AT&T’ at the beginning of all my phone calls, if you’d like.”
“We don’t…”
“Currently, I enjoy not paying for long distance. But I think I might like this plan of yours where you pay me to call my friends drunk at 3:30 in the morning.”
“We can’t…”
“Well, once your check arrives, I’ll commence my fully funded phone fun. Thanks!”

13

When it comes to a missing check…yeah, the best thing to do is go to your bank and find out when/if it was cashed. I worked for a medium-sized catalog company that received upwards of 20,000 pieces of correspondence A DAY. It’s very rare, but every now and again a check gets lost or a data processor hits his/her 10-key pad wrong and types in the wrong amount or account number or what-have-you. Yeah, when it happens to you, it sucks, but don’t take it personally - it wasn’t on purpose, and a quick trip to your bank and a copy of the cancelling info on the back of your check will fix the problem.

Should it happen? No. But don’t jump down the throat of the CSR you happen to get on the other end of the phone, cos it most definitely was NOT his/her fault.

Mags, I luvs ya [sub]despite the fact I haven’t spoken to you in for-freakin’-ever[/sub] but whoever dreamed up this bit of advice should be taken out back behind the barn and shot.

Customer: “Well, I spoke to Lisa on <date> and she said…”

CSR <silently to self>: “Lisa who? I work in a call center with 1500 people and at least 50 of them are named Lisa…”

It may work with a very small company, but with Qwest, e.g., with a million offices and a gazillion CSRs…not so much.