Your best and worst customer service experiences [rant & praise]

ben.schlomo · 12-09-2014 1:59pm

endacl wrote: »

I would have phoned them to sort it out. Maybe the OP doesn't have a phone?

Ah shtop sure then he'd want the credit or his bill paid.

veryangryman · 12-09-2014 3:43pm

Used Quinns in Castlecomer since 2008, just bought a new Seat. During negotiations, the salesman accidentally confirmed that there is cruise control on the model i was interested in. Turns out he made a mistake but said he would get it retrofitted for free as I was a loyal customer (I had previously bought a new one off them in 2008 and get serviced there at least once a year).

Still, nice Karma and generally a very competent and professional family to deal with. I said i'd recommend them so here it is.

The_Conductor · 12-09-2014 3:56pm

veryangryman wrote: »

Used Quinns in Castlecomer since 2008, just bought a new Seat. During negotiations, the salesman accidentally confirmed that there is cruise control on the model i was interested in. Turns out he made a mistake but said he would get it retrofitted for free as I was a loyal customer (I had previously bought a new one off them in 2008 and get serviced there at least once a year).

Still, nice Karma and generally a very competent and professional family to deal with. I said i'd recommend them so here it is.

Nice of the garage- however, as a non-factory modification, it has to be notified to your insurer, and typically could increase your insurance by 15-20%..........

Ramshackled · 12-09-2014 5:24pm

Thanks to all for the replies! funny stuff..
To be serious though for my last point on this. I value my time, I value other peoples time, you can look at this and say well other retailers would do likewise or you should have gone to a different store, thats all fair but the reality is until you start calling individual companies out on their standards, this level of customer service will be standard, If you do not complain this cycle will continue. There is Zero incentive for a company in this country to give good customer service especially when fellow consumers defend these corporate giants jumping on some mis-guided bandwagon that its ok to waste someones time.. its not.

XxMCRxBabyxX · 12-09-2014 5:53pm

If companies started offering gestures for "time wasted" it'd be totally abused. I see no reason why they should in the first place. To be straight about it: they may value your custom and your money but your time is only yours, not their business.

ben.schlomo · 13-09-2014 12:16am

Ramshackled wrote: »

Thanks to all for the replies! funny stuff..
To be serious though for my last point on this. I value my time, I value other peoples time, you can look at this and say well other retailers would do likewise or you should have gone to a different store, thats all fair but the reality is until you start calling individual companies out on their standards, this level of customer service will be standard, If you do not complain this cycle will continue. There is Zero incentive for a company in this country to give good customer service especially when fellow consumers defend these corporate giants jumping on some mis-guided bandwagon that its ok to waste someones time.. its not.

Utter nonsense, plenty of incentive, hence why many good companies have incentive schemes for staff to ensure that customer service is delivered to a high standard. I find overall customer service in this country to be far superior to other parts of the world. You received perfectly decent service, and yet you feel you are entitled to more, youre not, end of story.

Going Forward · 13-09-2014 1:01am

Ramshackled wrote: »

Thanks to all for the replies! funny stuff..
To be serious though for my last point on this. I value my time, I value other peoples time, you can look at this and say well other retailers would do likewise or you should have gone to a different store, thats all fair but the reality is until you start calling individual companies out on their standards, this level of customer service will be standard, If you do not complain this cycle will continue. There is Zero incentive for a company in this country to give good customer service especially when fellow consumers defend these corporate giants jumping on some mis-guided bandwagon that its ok to waste someones time.. its not.

I tend to agree, service is pretty much non existent in many places.

The retail sector claims to value high service standards, in reality, it's pretty much peopled by those with little motivation and lacking the personality traits required to be actual salespeople.

That said, the fault if any, lies with you regarding the battery fitment and not the product you purchased.

From experience, never ever accept a new product in an unsealed box, or last one, or off the shelf.

It'll invariably have been returned by someone else, repaired or simply a last of a line, display model due for an updated replacement.

(A sweetener to persuade a doubtful customer in those circumstances used to be to offer an extra year's warranty free of charge in lieu of a discount.)

Virtanen · 17-09-2014 4:59pm

Amazon Customer Support, top notch

After receiving a boxset that didn't have all the discs included, and with no more in stock to send a replacement, the rep decided to refund me in advance, before sending it back to them

Not happy with the situation but very happy with the way Amazon handled it, especially since it wasn't even their fault

ButtersSuki · 17-09-2014 5:02pm

Virtanen wrote: »

Amazon Customer Support, top notch

After receiving a boxset that didn't have all the discs included, and with no more in stock to send a replacement, the rep decided to refund me in advance, before sending it back to them

Not happy with the situation but very happy with the way Amazon handled it, especially since it wasn't even their fault

To be fair, amazon's customer service in my experience is unparalleled on thee shores. I've had a few issues over the years but the speed and efficiency with which they sort things out is something other etailers could and should learn from. I'm looking at you zavvi……….6 months to refund an incorrectly sent item which I had to pay for to return to them!

keithclancy · 18-09-2014 10:44am

ButtersSuki wrote: »

To be fair, amazon's customer service in my experience is unparalleled on thee shores. I've had a few issues over the years but the speed and efficiency with which they sort things out is something other etailers could and should learn from. I'm looking at you zavvi……….6 months to refund an incorrectly sent item which I had to pay for to return to them!

+1

I always spend a little bit more to buy from Amazon, although its in Germany the service is excellent.

homer911 · 18-09-2014 11:23am

I messed up a booking with Aer Lingus last night for travelling at the end of October

- booked the default cheaper flight on a specific day instead of the dearer one I wanted - thought I was going to be stung for the €40 per ticket (x2) that they quote on line for making the change (plus the difference in cost of course)

Got on to reservations this morning who had no problem in changing the booking and waived the admin fee. Very efficient and sorted and paid for in under a minute, much relieved and thankful

ButtersSuki · 18-09-2014 4:00pm

Was in a shoe/trainer shop this morning. There was one trainer I liked on the shelf and it was a Size 12 (this is important for the rest of the story). As I'm an 11/11.5 depending on the brand/style etc., I took said Size 12 of my preferred trainer to the counter and politely asked:

Me: Would you possibly have this in an 11?
Sales person: Nope, they only make them up to a 10.
Me: (trying incredibly hard not to smart) I'm pretty sure they go higher than a 10 as this is a 12.
Sales person: Oh, ah, um, ah, um, ah - well we definitely don't have an 11.
Me: Could you possibly look before you state that categorically.
Sales person: (big audible sigh) Ok.

Sales person goes to store room to check although I'm pretty sure he went into the store room and sat on is a$$ for 3-5minutes before coming back and announcing:

"we have every size up to 13, except 11."

Me: Of course you do! (the restraint is gone now). Just a coincidence I'm sure.

And then I left.

:rolleyes::rolleyes:

Collecting sneakers/trainers is my hobby. I'm pretty knowledgeable on the subject matter, to the point that this is something I want to do someday:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Td-Lb5NeFZo

digitaldr · 19-09-2014 11:25am

Last week I noticed a one pixel wide black horizontal line on my 14 month old Samsung 42 inch TV. The 12 month warranty was up but I figured I might have some comeback under the sale of goods act. Unfortunately I bought the TV from Currys and I knew from previous bitter experience they are not the best to deal with (see my other post) now that their extremely helpful MD Declan has left (used to help customers out regularly on boards). I know that it's best to deal with the retailer in the first instance but figured that I should look for an independent engineers report before approaching them. So I googled for Irish Samsung authorised repair agents and found one based in Craigavon with almost nationwide coverage. I fired them off a quick email and got a reply the next morning looking for the serial number and proof of purchase which I duly sent off. They emailed me back the same day to say that Samsung were willing to cover the cost of the repair as a goodwill gesture! TV was collected the next day (the engineer that picked it up said it would need a whole new panel), repaired and dropped off 4 days later!

All in all a hassle free experience and Samsung have a gained themselves a definite repeat customer.

Mod note: Thread merged
Slimjimmc

digitaldr · 19-09-2014 11:48am

I bought an iPad3 on launch day from PC World in Swords and took out their 3 year insurance cover (work were paying otherwise wouldn't have bothered as I've always been a bit wary of these products). A couple of years later I dropped the iPad and the screen broke so took it back to PC World (work were understandably not willing to pay for repair as they had already payed for the insurance). About 5 weeks later got a call asking me to pick it up - it had been returned unrepaired with a letter saying that the damage wasn't consistent with having being dropped. In fairness to the Knowhow guy in the shop he said "what a load of shi*e". I asked him what I should do and he said to write a good letter. So I got an independent report from an authorised apple repair centre the next day - they didn't charge and said that the damage was entirely consistent with the iPad being dropped. I sent this together with a letter that included some URLs of youtube videos of iPad drop tests. Just to be on the safe side I used registered post. Lo and behold they agreed to repair the iPad. At this stage I had read and reread their T&Cs of the extended warranty and knew that if they didn't do the repair within 21 days I was entitled to the value of my iPad in vouchers. By day 22 still no iPad so went into PC World and got a gift card to the value of the iPad (after a 30 min wait while they got an authorisation number form head office!). They told me that once I started to use the credit it had to be used within 24 hours. My wife also had an iPad and in the 10 weeks or so that I'd been without mine we figured we could get by with one. A few weeks later a friend of mine needed a new laptop so I used my voucher and she gave me the cash. There was some money left on the card and the bit about you must spend all your credit within 24 hours of first use turned out to be bullsh*t!

digitaldr · 20-09-2014 12:49pm

Just as a follow up to my previous posts a few tips on how to complain that have worked me:

Be courteous to the shop employees - 99% of the time their hands are tied by company policy and you want to keep them on side.

Ask them the best person to write to or google it and then put everything in writing by which I mean an old fashioned letter - preferably registered. Keep copies of everything.

Try to keep everything factual and avoid ranting.

State how long you are prepared to wait for a response - I think 10 working days is reasonable.

In the initial letter I don't think it's a good idea to threaten eg the small claims court at this stage. Graded response is probably the best approach - if you haven't heard anything in more than 10 working days or they aren't entertaining your claim then hit them with the legal stuff.

The bottom line is if you act reasonably you are more likely to be treated reasonably.

Edit: Forgot to add - be patient - this is easier said than done with items such as a fridge or washing machine though!

Sin Eater · 23-09-2014 12:17pm

Bad experience with Laptopsdirect.ie

Tried to buy a laptop that was listed in stock on their website. Went through the usual processes, and was given an estimated delivery date of 23/09/14.

Got a phone call next day trying to upsell me on various stuff, anti virus, office 2010, etc, and before the caller told me delivery wouldn't be for another month (I had asked whether there would be a delay in delivery). Then later that day received an email from the company telling me that the product was no longer available and the order would be cancelled, I should expect a phone call to discuss alternatives. Waited until the next evening, phonecall never came. So cancelled it from my order status page. Was still charged on credit card. Only got the money back in my account today.

Not impressed with them at all.

Icyseanfitz · 23-09-2014 12:23pm

has to be eircom, ive been waiting for efiber for 2-3 months at this stage!!! supposedly here tomorrow but ive my doubts on that

bren2001 · 24-09-2014 12:01pm

Ordered runner from Sportsdirect on Saturday, came home on Tuesday to find the missed delivery slip from DHL. Rang them up and rerouted the delivery to by work. Got a phone call this morning when I was about ten minutes away say he was at my office. I said I was stuck in traffic. No bother to him, he just said take your time, I'll be here when you arrive.

Not my first time dealing with Sportsdirect or DHL, on every occasion they have been absolutely fantastic.

QBee · 01-10-2014 4:24pm

I’d like to say it was a pleasure doing business with this company Tulip Blinds Limited or as they were previously known Tulip Blinds – same people same place – but it was not….never again!

We initially had problems getting them to install correctly/safely our awning, heaters and lights but eventually through perseverance we got it sorted. This purchase was covered by a 5 year warranty which was not worth the paper it was written on….as they are now a different company (same people, same place) and if we want our lights repaired we need to go to the receiver!!!

Customer Service is not something this company know anything about because if they did they would have installed our awning correctly in the first place and then offered some form of solution to us when we contacted them with this current problem. We were customers and could potentially be future customers….NOT NOW. I could understand this if the company had been taken over by different people but it was not. So, if you need to do business with them be forewarned!

dudara · 01-10-2014 4:49pm

Merged into Best/Worst Customer Service thread

dudara

the groutch · 07-10-2014 9:41am

shortened version:

Pinergy sales rep claimed that he could save 20% compared to current supplier.
He believed this and signed up, then later found out this was untrue.
He then asked to cancel, engineer came out to remove Pinergy stuff, and while there caused a power surge that broke a new tv and laptop.

07-10-2014 9:49am

Long story but just want to express my recent dissatisfaction with Zavvi.com. Have purchased from Zavvi quite a bit over the past few years (mostly dvds & games) but recently I had two orders which I had problems with.

The first had not arrived nearly a month from despatch but after contacting Zavvi I was sent a replacement which arrived a week later. I was happy enough but annoyed it took so long to get my order.

The second order was very frustrating. The item was despatched on 19th August and close to a month later it had still not arrived. I contacted Zavvi about this and was asked to print & sign a non-delivery of goods form and send it to them. They could not offer me a replacement as the item was now sold out so a refund was my only alternative.

I contacted Zavvi to inform them I had opened a Paypal dispute regarding non-delivery and also that there was no mention of having to fill out this form in their terms & conditions (I checked). Zavvi's reply was they required this form so they could 'investigate' with their courier and process my refund. They did not comment on the terms & conditions and never even acknowledged my Paypal dispute.

Basically Zavvi were going to have me jump through hoops just to get a refund. :mad: The customer service reps were of no help either and just kept repeating the same blurb from their manual and talking of delays in the postal system.

But the good news is I received an email from Paypal today ruling in my favour as Zavvi had not supplied any additional information regarding the dispute and I will now receive a refund in the coming days

.

I also noticed that within the last few months Zavvi no longer accept Paypal as a payment option on their site (too many disputes from other customers possibly?)

To date I still never received this order and I don't expect I ever will, I wonder if they even did despatch it in the first place.

If any of you use this site just be aware if your item does not arrive you may have difficulty receiving a refund from them!

D3PO · 07-10-2014 11:00am

not sure what your complaining about.

you had a delivery issue, you conatcted them and they got you a replacement within a week. Seems pretty good service to me.

The second case I dont see how they refused you anything or why you needed to file a paypal dispute. They told you they would refund, htye jsut asked you to fill in a form confirming you didnt recieve the order. Standard enough stuff they need to chase their deliveyr partner whom they ahve a contract with and this kind of thing is standard practice.

not great to have to orders late / not delivered but hardly their fault and I see no poor cusotmer service here either.

I get it your fresutrated but you need to take a step back and look at how they handled the issue. Diddapoiting about the delivery but good service on the back end as I see it.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1 · 07-10-2014 11:16am

Good

Amazon sellers and gadgetaccess in particular. An item was dispatched by royal mail but failed to arrive. I emailed the seller via Amazon and within 3 hours the item was resent with apologies. This has just reinforced my faith in the quality of the service from all Amazon sellers. Previously, twice in fact, I got the wrong item (once due to my not reading the description properly) and each time the seller sent on the right item and told me to keep the wrong ones. I think our bricks and mortor sellers need our support and I try to buy locally when I can, but very few would match the service from these online sellers.

07-10-2014 11:26am

Well firstly it should not take a month or more for an item to be delivered from the UK and this is the second time this has happened to me with Zavvi.

Secondly, I should not have had to file a paypal dispute in the first place just to get a refund. Yes they said they would refund me but only after I printed, signed and sent them a form saying I had not received the goods. It felt to me as if they thought I was lying to them about not receiving the order and the reps I spoke to were not all that helpful.

At the end of the day I ordered from zavvi and they failed to deliver. I refused to go filling out forms to tell them what they had already been told so yes I decided to open a Paypal dispute as it was the easier option and Paypal ruled in my favour.

bren2001 · 07-10-2014 11:31am

Deleted User wrote: »

Well firstly it should not take a month or more for an item to be delivered from the UK and this is the second time this has happened to me with Zavvi.

Secondly, I should not have had to file a paypal dispute in the first place just to get a refund. Yes they said they would refund me but only after I printed, signed and sent them a form saying I had not received the goods. It felt to me as if they thought I was lying to them about not receiving the order and the reps I spoke to were not all that helpful.

At the end of the day I ordered from zavvi and they failed to deliver. I refused to go filling out forms to tell them what they had already been told so yes I decided to open a Paypal dispute as it was the easier option and Paypal ruled in my favour.

Firstly, shipping times with Zavvi are long. People know that before they order. Secondly, the item was most likely lost in transit. The fact that you waited a month to contact Zavvi is your own business. They shipped out a new item for you and got it to you in a week. If anything, that is really good service.

With the second one, there really was no need to open a paypal dispute. All they needed from you was for you to sign a form to say you didnt receive the item. That may have been for insurance reasons on their part. The fact you went through the T&C to check was that in there is a bit mad. It probably would have been faster to just print the form.

I really don't see what else Zavvi could have done in either circumstance. They are not a site I use (for other reasons). Reading this actually encourages me to order from them.

07-10-2014 11:34am

You are entitled to your own opinon on the issue

Beano · 07-10-2014 4:42pm

Deleted User wrote: »

At the end of the day I ordered from zavvi and they failed to deliver. I refused to go filling out forms to tell them what they had already been told so yes I decided to open a Paypal dispute as it was the easier option and Paypal ruled in my favour.

Yes the item was not delivered but zavvi have no control over the item once it has shipped. If it goes missing they are as much a victim as you are. The fact that they replaced the item so quickly is to their credit. I'd love to hear what you would say if you experienced actual bad customer service.

07-10-2014 6:58pm

I was happy that they did replace the first missing order just frustrated I was waiting so long.

My main concern is that this is the second time I have had to contact them about an order not received in a short period of time. I understand postal delays can occur from time to time but I do not wish to end up waiting over a month for each order and having to send messages back and forth telling them the order has not arrived.

mel79 · 10-10-2014 8:46pm

Just sold my sons phone in the cex store in Waterford and was made feel like a liar ,the rude sales assistant tried to tell me the phone was a tesco handset when I knew it was unlocked because I work for a mobile phone network and bought it unlocked. She also took a half an hour to tell me this ,only for another very friendly sales assistant tested my phone and confirmed what I said all along otherwise I would of been down 20 euro.
As if that wasn't unprofessional enough rudeness is something I cant tolerate from sales assistants after been proven wrong an apology would of been nice!!!!!! Or even crack a smile
I've news for you love!!! you work for cex your not running the company try smiling it wont hurt .

Merged into "Your best and worst customer service experiences" thread
Slimjimmc

Your best and worst customer service experiences [rant & praise]

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