Two stories -


First story

I bought 2 garage doors. Not only did they fit together TERRIBLY, all the bolts necessary for mounting the track to the wall were missing.

I called two weeks ago to order bolts, which they were to UPS to me. Ten days later, having not gotten them, I called back. I then DEMANDED they ship them to me next day air. I did get them the next day, [B] BUT THEY WERE THE WRONG BOLTS!!!!!!! [/B] I've now lost TWO WEEKS on this installation.

Second Story

I called a concrete company for a quote on some PRECAST walls, similar to stuff this company had sent out to the local school system. For three days now, I've calld them, and every day they promise they will get me the quote. And every day the quote doesn't come thru.

Is it me, or is customer service getting worse and worse??? I mean, do these companies just NOT CARE about their customers at all???

Tell me your horror stories, so I can rest easier thinking the whole world is not just trying to screw ME.

NEXTEL customer service sucks big time.

They F'ed up on my bill and wouldn't retract the F'ed up part.  Like $40.00 eXtra or something like that.

I kept telling them to fiX it or I'll just cancel the service.  None of that one year contract crap here folks.  The lady kept insisting that it wasn't their fault.  I told her it wasn't my fault and asked her who's fault is it.

She told me it was no ones fault.  If it was no ones fault "why should I foot the bill" I asked her.

She kept saying that she was as high as this would go.  I told her "you got to be kidding".

Then she asked me if there was anything else she could help me with.  I told her "ya, take those eXtra charges off".  

She still wouldn't budge.  I was getting mad and proceeded to tell her how I had their crappy service for two years plus and it would not make economic sense to lose a customer like me.

I again asked her why it was so hard to fiX the bill.  She said it would open the door to more people clamoring for adjustments.

Before she stated earlier that I was the only one that was complaining.  I told her that "if I was the only one that was complaining, she would not have anything to worry about".

She was caught in a lie but still ultimately refused to adjust the bill and I canceled their crappy service.

Oh ya, you're not the only one.

I'll never let those f's get the best of me.

If they behave, I play nice.

One time customer service lady hung up on me when I proceeded to call her a female dog name.

I called back and said "what's up with that"?

Some geek said that they have the right to hang up on unruly customers or some crap like that.  After I heard that, I was gonna say something not nice to that guy and hang up on him.

I also told them that their customer service was crap because they don't know how to handle ALL kinds of customers.

I asked, "is that how you choose to handle customers, hang up on them"?  Oh that's very professional, I said.

I don't have to be nice to them because I don't get paid to hear this crap from people like me.

If they can't take the heat, get the heck out of the kitchen.

There are enough potential customers out there that many companies aren't worried about repeat customers or long term relationships anymore.  You're exactly right, they don't care about their customers anymore.  Before you buy, you're a potential customer.  After you buy, you're an annoyance whining about something they don't care about.

Here's a story, but it has a happy ending:  my wife got a little carpet cleaning machine at Walmart, got it home and found that it was obviously used.  The bottles of chemicals were half full, the unit was dirty, and the instructions were missing.  We took it back to Walmart, explained the situation and the "customer service" drone said she didn't think they could take back a product like that without the instructions.  We explained that this was exactly how it was when we bought it.  She said she'd have to check with the manager, and the manager said they didn't think they could take it back if it's used and incomplete.  My wife was getting a bit upset at all of this and I just smiled.  I knew that the next step was to turn into Mr. Mean Evil Bastard.  The drone then looked at the receipt in her hand (mine was still in my hand after all of this) and realized that it wasn't for the product I'm returning, so she asked for my receipt, looked at the bottom where it said I paid with Amex and then she promptly wanted to credit my account.  Lucky her - my next move was going to be to pick up my cell phone, call Amex and tell them I wanted to dispute the charge, right in the customer service department.  Once they saw my receipt, they decided it wasn't worth screwing with me.  I looked at the receipt she was previously holding and it was paid in cash.  So it's obvious that their policy is to screw the customer over, unless the customer is in a position to screw the merchant over.  If I had made that call, Walmart wouldn't have gotten any of the $220 total from that purchase over an $80 item until it was resolved, which would take at least 3 months.

The whole world is trying to screw everyone, you're not special.  Feel better? =)

No morals no ethics ...they shoulda figured that into the tv show "Startrek Next Gen"
how would you like to teleport in one of their contraptions mulitply todays quality control time the future factor crappy X 1,000,000 ....NO wonder Doc McCoy refuses to get into one....

Went to the local resturaunt-ordered the french onion soup- got the soup-no bread, no cheese on top and after looking, no onions either.  We mentiond this to the waitress, she just chuckled and walked off.  No sorry, I will get you a new one, or ANY atempt to fix it.  Of course I wont mention the medium rare steak I ordered, and got a dry piece of charcoal or the beer cheese soup that tasted like chalk.  I am not as picky as it may sound, but when i spend good money at a restaruant, I expect decent food!

Do you even [i]listen[/i] to yourself?  Ever heard you get more flies with honey that with vinegar?  

I am a technician for the phone company.  People call repair if they have a problem and if noone else can fix it it comes to my department.  The majority of times it is customer provided equipment or customer education issues.  I can't tell you the number of times I've had people fly off the handle and verbally abuse me for a perceived trouble on our end.  I am willing to help on any trouble but I AM NOT HERE FOR YOU TO TAKE OUT YOUR MISPLACED FRUSTRATION ON.  I have said, "I'm sorry but this conversation is no longer productive towards solving your trouble.  Thank you" and hung up.  If I did not have the autonomy to make a decision like that I would not work where I work.

With that said, my advice when faced with a customer service rep is to explain the problem calmly... if you are angry, express that it is not towards them but that you are frustrated.. and ASK THEM what would they do in your situation.  You will receive more assistance if you are firm but polite than if you assault a rep off the bat or start cussing at them.  It is human nature to get defensive when attacked and at that point the rep will probably not want to give you any service as payback.

     

Let's face fact here.  Customer service is a losing proposition for most companies.  These "representatives" are typically the lowest paid, most overworked folks in the company.

They are not empowered to replace product or make adjustments, but are the front line when the customer calls.  "Do everything you can to make the customer happy. Customer's are our most precious resource.  Just don't spend any money to do it."

Spend your money with the companies who earn it.  It's easy to get frustrated with the customer service folks, but try to realize that, for the most part, they are just as frustrated as you are.

I worked in that capacity for years and wouldn't do it again unless I owned the company.

I had a similar experince to Timeport with Cellular One.

I sold a car with an installed phone.  At the time, I'd have service with Cellular One for about 3 years and was under no contractual obligation.

I called them and asked to terminate my service.  They tried to keep me on, but I made it clear I wanted to terminate the service.  The offered "Coupons" for a free phone, so I assumed if I chose to sign up for service with them again, I'd get a free phone.  That was the least they could do, since everybody was giving away phones when you signed up for service.

Any way they did not terminate the service they just blocked incoming and out going calls to my number.  The bills kept coming in and my wife, not knowing I'd canceled, kept paying them.  This went on for 3 months before my wife asked when I was going to cancel.  

I then again called Cell One and told them I wanted my service canceled and NOW.  They finally did it, but guess what?  I got a bill for yet another month.  I called and told them I wasn't going to pay and told them why.  They said It was a legtimate charge.  I said, how is it legitimate to charge me for a phone that 1) I belived had been terminated 4 months earlier. 2)That I had twice requested disconnected 3) that had I even owned the phone both incoming and out going calls were blocked.

I went round and round with the person on the phone, and she would not let me speak to her manager.  I finally got the number for the manager and called him 4 or 5 times, but got voice mail every time.  He never returned my call.  

Later I got a notice from a collection agency.  I sent a letter to them detailing my efforts to disconnect the service, my attempts to correcte the issue with the service provider, and why I felt the charge was not legitimate.  I further told them that any further contact from them or the service provider should be through my attorney, since I would consider further corresponse with them to be harrasment and would take appropriate legal action.

I never heard from them again.

This was over $30 dollars.

Grandman,
It is not you, it is them! It is an epidemic!
Send the doors back and take them to small
claims court!

January 19th my heat pump died.

Didn't finally get it fixed until March 7th.  Waiting for parts........

I had to get up in the middle of the night and tear apart the indoor unit to rest breakers for weeks and weeks.  Real fun.

Blower motor just burned out today.  Here we go again.

suckier?

I think the official Oxford terminology is 'more sucky'

I work in an industry that is nororious for poor customer service. I think if it weren't for our captive business, the railroad industry would go broke. Thank God for coal and grain!

being on both sides of this one I can tell you that people are just plain more self-centered and rude then they have ever been. It will only get worse. there are an awful lot of people out there with emotional instability to top it off. Most have few survival skills and can't handle a minimal amount of stress. It cannot have always been like this. If it had, we would have got our asses kicked in WWII, but good.

what does everyone expect when the economy is good companies can't fill those jobs with caring hard working people. but watch as the lay-offs start. these customer service people should start treating customers better. for fear of  getting fired or replaced by a laid off worker that realy cares because they need a job

I always treat the guests that frequent the establishment were I am employed with the upmost respect. I make sure that the culinary items are correct and received as requested. Most importantly I pride myself in insuring that the sprial cut and julienne cut pomme frites are segregated into their proper containers.

If you want really good customer service, try buying your shooting supplies from MidwayUSA.  Their prices are competitive, they don't charge shipping, and they stand behind their products.  Many other companies could learn from them.

you do all that! i just thought you asked if they wanted it super sized or not[:P]

Unfortunatly everthing is a pain in the rear. You can almost never get what you want when you want even if you pay extra. After a few dealings with a company you learn how efficiant they are.  If you want something next day you not only have to pay the shipping but you need to make sure they have it in stock and can ship that day.  Most will ship next day, about a week later.  ALWAYS follow up your order with a call that day to ensure they shipped. I've canceled many orders on same day shipping promises that they did not ship. I'm not going to pay for next/second day shipping three days after placing the order. Usually these guys don't have it in stock but lie to get you business.

Using the grocery store as a microcosm, the ideal of customer service seems to have evolved into the phrase, "Can I help who is next in line." All consumers are treated indifferently by employees who don't even care enough to check the gender of the individual whom it may be, much less look them in the eye and say "Have a nice day."

Yes I do listen to myself and I only had to use that word on one or two occasions.  It was with Cellular One(Now AT&T).

Scenario in question:

I always start out firm and polite.

The CSR does not answer my inquiries adequately or is lacking in knowledge.

I ask again, she gets feisty.

I call her a name and get hanged up on.

I immediately call back and try again.  Speaking to her supervisor this time who is also an ass.

And I will keep calling back until the problem is resolved to my satisfaction.

Oh, and I don't believe my frustration was misplaced.  Who else am I going to call?

Not long ago, my wife and I got home and had a bizarre message on our machine.

An operator says she's got a collect call from some bozo and asks if we want to accept it. Now, since the machine picked-up the call, she HAD to know she was talking to a machine, NOT a person.

Anyway, she asks her question and the same voice that placed the call says, "Yes." The SAME guy who is making the call said "Yes!"

So the operator says, "Thank-you" and goes off the line. Now there's silence. Finally the guy says, "C'mon, Kyle, pick up the phone!" Finally, after 2 minutes, he hangs up.

There is no-one named Kyle at our house. We kept the recording in case we had a charge for the call and sure enough, we did. Nineteen dollars for two minutes we didn't authorize!

So I call the phone company and complain. The idiot there says the technology prohibits the caller from authorizing the collect call. I played her the message. No deal. IT'S IN PLAIN ENGLISH ON THE RECORDING AND SHE INSISTS WE AUTHORIZED THE CALL!

So I ask to talk to her manager and her manager decides not to fight me since I have the recording.

Damn, how hard can it be to prove something when you've got the tape to back you up?

Appleby's Restaurant

The waiters and waitresses are "trained" to ask you if you want any change when you lay a $20 bill down for a $10-15 bill.  Incredibly rude. I haven't called management yet but want to see if they will change.

I generally stop frequenting places that have bad service so I tend to think overall it's pretty good.

Recently had EXCELLENT customer service from bushmaster.....it`s not everybody.....

I suppose. They are even nice enough to disguise the 4% credit card charge as actual price not reflecting cash discount.

I have a great inside story for you:

I work in a parts department of a reputable Ford dealership in the St Louis area. I have been doing this for over 15 years and am ready to start choking some of the higher ups at Ford. They are finally seeing the light in trying to satisfy customers, rather that just letting them buy a car and forgetting about them until they need another. They are all gung ho in satisfying them actually, we have a Ford rep in the dealership every 2 weeks harping on every little complaint that someone reports about the dealership. Working in parts I know that 95% of all complaints are from the unavailability of parts. I can vouch for all the parts departments in the area when I say we all work together to help the customer, but Ford sure doesn't do anything. Ford wants us to stay open until 9 at night on weekdays and all day Saturday. The depots that supply us with parts shut down at 3, and are not open on Saturday, what does that tell you? I am especially angry because I used to work for a dealer that also had a Nissan franchise, and let me tell you nissan and Ford in this respect were like night and day. If there was a part needed and it wasn't readily available, Nissan would pull off the assembly line. Ford will not do any such thing. So if you are angry about your dealership service or parts departments, please give them a little leeway as it may not be all their fault, I know from experience that every employee in my dealership could call up complaining and it would go to deaf ears, but if the customer calls once, it is genarally handled.

I picked up on that long ago. Pretty slick.

Still, Bushy is an alright company. Armalite is the only other AR15 manufacturer that I purchase from. Both are known for decent service.

Customer service? What's that?
The first thing I get is a name / employee identification number.
When I call or visit customer service the only thing I expect is that the "customer service" person will keep their pie hole shut until I am done ranting and raving.
I have had some of them ask me to refrain from yelling, so then I have to use the same voice I use when I am talking to someone on the flight deck when we are both wearing double hearing protection and there are 8 jets turning and burning. That always gets their attention.
I also can't stand those "sensitive" types of people who can't handle a little swearing. To use the word fuck in a sentance like "I am fucking pissed off that this has happened to me" is not the same as calling the person on the other end of the line a "complete fucking moronic asswipe".
Most of the time they will pass me off to their supervisor, and it's amazing how fast things happen.
I used to work customer service, and no matter what happened, I would always let the customer have their say. I would let them rant and rave, and 99% of the time they felt much better when they were done. For that last 1% I would call the manager over and let them deal with the one percenter.

I still disagree with abusing a customer service rep just because you somehow feel you have that right.  That is a [i]person[/i] just like you.. in fact, you don't even know them!  I think customer service reps (myself included) have gotten tired of rude, nasty, abusive, belligerent customers.  

There is a difference between calling someone a name and swearing in general.  And if a customer needs to rant, I understand about letting them get it out.  But too often y'all are so ready to start a fight that the tone is positively incendiary.  The customer is [i]trying[/i] to piss the rep off so that, in addition to whatever problem they originally called about, they can say they received poor customer service.  

This topic is really a sore spot with me.  I understand that companies that provide a service need to ensure their customers are satisfied.  And some of the situations you have mentioned are legitimately frustrating.  But it sounds like a few of you are more excited by belittling another person than by finding some resolution to your problem.  

I had a lawnmower that I bought from Sear's that broke down almost everytime I used it for two years.  I called the maintenance department and customer service so often that when reps saw my call history they would audibly gasp.  I ended up getting a decent amount of money back for my 3 year old lawnmower when all was said and done.  And I never once called a rep a name or had one hang up on me because I was rude.

It seems manners have fallen by the wayside in dealing with strangers these days.  It also seems that people feel more empowered to be jacka$$es because they are hiding behind their cordless and are not face to face with the person.  

Again, I do think a customer should expect satisfaction from a company but I strongly disagree with those who feel it gives them the right to be abusive to a complete stranger.    

Customer service? Thats a tricky one.
My Sump pump runs almost constantly, The float switch'es are warranteed for a year, maybe two, but none the less they only last an average of two to three months, as long as I have the recipt Menards will replace them, no questions asked, I have been doing this for two years when they see me coming they know why. That's pretty good service, of course I wish the switch was made more durable. On the other hand when I go into the hardware store looking for a part and the young sales person ask's if I need any help? I have learned to say no, since it usually only wastes time and am no further ahead in my search for what I need. I can guess as easily as some young kid can, and at least I know what I am looking for. Hiring a knoledgable sales person does not come cheap.
Also (I'm on a roll) Ray-Ban sun glasses while they are not cheap their customer service is great, three times I have broken them and three times they have replaced them at no charge. they offer to repair them at cost but never charged me for replacements.
And yes, for the most part customer service is getting "SUCKIER" Utilities being the SUCKIEST.

It should be obvious that the flunkies that answer phones are just that. They don't know shit. I give them one chance and am as nice as I can stomach being. After that I ask to talk to their supervisor and then theirs, etc,etc. I have gotten as high as the president of the company on ocassion. They get pretty worked up about that.
  Better idea? I have my wife deal with these problems. She is far more patient and she pretty much always gets her way with these people. Don't know how she does it, but she sure is good at it.

Yea, I'll sick my wife on em too. Hell, I know the woman and I can't win an argument. how the hell is some flunky gonna have a chance. Those women sure do have a knack for twisting things around and oh what a memory.

Garden...Goblin... don`t use credit cards, for just that reason, and other reasons.....learned that lesson a long time ago..B&G.....[heavy]