Service with a Snarl

krudler

Anyone watching this on RTE? It really more TV related but as its centered around consumer service it could generate some good discussion, ah Chorus, how people loathe thee:D

anonymousjunkie

yup, watchin it, the stories about UPC are all too familiar

krudler

Here come the mobiles.....

anonymousjunkie

Gas the way they all claim that each case is is a one-off... of course they do provide a high level of customer service, yeah right

krudler

Well it is pretty biased towards bad examples, bet they wont show the level of **** people who work in call centres have to deal with from the public, thpse are all things that should have been solved with one phone call though, does ANYONE have a good story about chorus? I'd rather have no tv than use them

Sponge Bob

It is a whos who of the usual discussions over on the BB forum

jor el

BT re-instating direct debits without customer authorisation? Well there's a surprise. The head of the IPSO is on saying how this can't possibly happen, yet it has, and continues to happen, and people find it nearly impossible to get the bank to even admit that they can reverse it.

anonymousjunkie

Ah miss skelly, was wondering who would pop up next

Paulw

I must say, I love the Data Protection Act, and the Freedom of Information Act. Gives you the right to see everything they hold on their systems about you, including records of all contact. Always worth asking them for a copy of that data. Makes interesting reading. That certainly helped me when I had a "misunderstanding" with BT a few years ago.

Danno

Interesting Program. I liked Pope's sign off comment about 2009.

jor el

Paulw wrote: »

I must say, I love the Data Protection Act, and the Freedom of Information Act. Gives you the right to see everything they hold on their systems about you, including records of all contact.

I love that when they're asked to prove what was said in a phone call, by providing he recording that they say they have, that they'll inevitably loose it, somehow.

parsi

AIB did that with Mrs Parsi - signed her up to card protection and lost the tape when she queried it. In fairness it only took two calls to sort it out.

311

Can't believe someone from dell was looking at someones photos.

Great programme ,should get the masses up of their asses.

wmpdd3

After spending a few days off trying to call NTL and increase my broadband to next package I gave up and looked on the net.
Sent a request, then another, any 3 months later saw that if you download too much they will automatically switch you on to the next package!
A few movies later I get a letter, same free fone number on it so we keep going.
A few box sets later, I get a call from NTL.
I come clean, she sounds like she is smiling as she changes my package.
Problem solved, just play their system.

VERYinterested

I am an NTL/Chorus Digital TV customer. I don't want their Broadband or Phone package. I am happy with my existing provider (bit dearer, but it works consistently) and am contracted for the next 6 months. I keep getting calls from NTL/Chorus offering me their services, I keep telling them I'm not interested, they keep calling. How can I get them to stop harassing me? I suppose next time they call I will threaten them that I will cancel my Digital TV.

banshee_bones

Hi Everyone! Im new to this so please bear with me

Just watched that, nice to know i am not the only one completely frustrated speaking to call centres in India or the likes! I am a disgruntled 3 Mobile broadband customer, and im sure im not alone! Would it be possible to bring them to the small claims court I wonder or should i ask Mr Pope instead!?

Sponge Bob

read the MEGATHREAD on top of the BB forum willya . Thats the 3 dump !

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/forumdisplay.php?f=259

clicky

banshee_bones

will do! looks intense so l'll dedicate more time to it tomorrow!

voxpop

VERYinterested wrote: »

I am an NTL/Chorus Digital TV customer. I don't want their Broadband or Phone package. I am happy with my existing provider (bit dearer, but it works consistently) and am contracted for the next 6 months. I keep getting calls from NTL/Chorus offering me their services, I keep telling them I'm not interested, they keep calling. How can I get them to stop harassing me? I suppose next time they call I will threaten them that I will cancel my Digital TV.

Exact same with me - took about 5/6 calls from them asking me if I wanted their phone and me telling them (more angrily each time) not to ever ring me about it again and take me off their system. Havnt had a call in about 4 months, fingers crossed it stays that way.

Scottie99

jor el wrote: »

BT re-instating direct debits without customer authorisation? Well there's a surprise. The head of the IPSO is on saying how this can't possibly happen, yet it has, and continues to happen, and people find it nearly impossible to get the bank to even admit that they can reverse it.

Its a disgrace. My suggestion is when cancelling your DD you receive reference number, this should support your case with the banks.

BaconZombie

Wow RTE been biased, that's a first....

krudler wrote: »

Well it is pretty biased towards bad examples

the groutch

notice how bt, smart, perlico were all involved, but not eircom
eircom might be more expensive, but it's worth paying the extra for the superior service imo

MunsterCycling

the groutch wrote: »

notice how bt, smart, perlico were all involved, but not eircom
eircom might be more expensive, but it's worth paying the extra for the superior service imo

LOL :rolleyes:

311

Eircom are just as bad when there is a problem.
Because of their errors ,ended up without a listing in the business section of the phonebook last year.

Their products are fine ,but if you want to change something out of the ordinary ,be prepared.

calex71

wasn't the issue with meteor and id theft posted here months ago???????????? Same case????


They really didnt have any depth to this program it was like mail bag or something and the company says oh sorry about that . They should have nailed them to the wall for god sake, boards alone could provide an entire series worth of cannon fodder on that subject of that one program alone :mad:

krudler

Was anyone on here contacted about contributing to the show? I was but as im still an employee of a company I didnt think it wise to be showing up on Prime Time lol

anonymousjunkie

krudler wrote: »

Was anyone on here contacted about contributing to the show? I was but as im still an employee of a company I didnt think it wise to be showing up on Prime Time lol

You should have done, could have appeared on tv with that fuzzy thing in front of your face and the stephen hawking voice modification! Class!

Darragh29

anonymousjunkie wrote: »

Ah miss skelly, was wondering who would pop up next

It's funny how they never touched on what problems the customer had with Jackie Skelly. What actual complaints did the customers of Jackie Skelly actually have about the service???

It looked more to me like a disgruntled employee getting an opportunity to give Jackie Skelly a kick in the nuts than anything else. I think RTE should think long and hard before putting an employer through that type of villification because if I was Jackie Skelly, I'd be dusting down the legal Exocets right now...

Walkman

Scottie99 wrote: »

Its a disgrace. My suggestion is when cancelling your DD you receive reference number, this should support your case with the banks.

A DD needs to be cancelled by both the customer and the company, if you as a disgruntled customer simply cancel the DD the company can just reinstate it (this is not done by someone in the company trying tp piss you off but is an automatic process and part of the billing cycle).The DD runs on a "tape" i.e. the company will automatically request payment from the bank and the bank will honour the DD request. It is a Standing Order which can be cancelled by a customer alone. Also if there is not enough money in a customes account to meet a DD payment (Once for some companies twice for others) the DD automatically stops to ensure the customer does not get hit by the bank for charges (anywhere from €5.50 to €7) per missed payment, at this instance the payments will revert to cash and the customer need to reinstate the DD with both the bank and company.

Mcfast

that dell story was something else. they could have had a whole show on that story alone

Sizzler

Just watched it there. Unreal. The DELL story was particuarly disturbing it has to be said

jor el

Walkman wrote: »

A DD needs to be cancelled by both the customer and the company, if you as a disgruntled customer simply cancel the DD the company can just reinstate it (this is not done by someone in the company trying tp piss you off but is an automatic process and part of the billing cycle).

Where to start, pretty much all of that is wrong. The bank account holder has full control over direct debits on the account. Nobody, no bank, and no company, can start or stop direct debits, without the account holders permission. If a company reinstates a canceled direct debit, the bank should refuse it. If they don't, then both bank and company are breaking the direct debit scheme rules, as set down by the IPSO. The customer should inform the originator, but it's not a requirement, as the Bank will do this anyway.

It has however happened, due to staff ignorance or apathy, and nothing has ever been done about it.

The bank should not honour a direct debit that has been canceled by the customer.

Direct Debit Rules wrote:

Cancelling and amending a direct debit instruction.
o The payer can cancel or amend the Direct Debit instruction at any time by informing their Bank in writing. They should also inform the Originator. All correspondence should be retained.
o The payer’s Bank will then inform the Originator of the cancellation or amendment.
o If the instruction is cancelled no further collections are permitted.
o If it is established that an unauthorised Direct Debit was charged to a Payer’s account the Payer is guaranteed a prompt refund by their Bank.

Walkman wrote: »

The DD runs on a "tape" i.e. the company will automatically request payment from the bank and the bank will honour the DD request.

Not if it's against the customers wishes.

Walkman wrote: »

It is a Standing Order which can be cancelled by a customer alone.

You have the same control over a Direct Debit.

Walkman wrote: »

Also if there is not enough money in a customes account to meet a DD payment (Once for some companies twice for others) the DD automatically stops to ensure the customer does not get hit by the bank for charges (anywhere from €5.50 to €7) per missed payment, at this instance the payments will revert to cash and the customer need to reinstate the DD with both the bank and company.

If enough funds are not present in your account, then a lot of banks will overdraw your account, they will generally not stop the direct debit. Even if it doesn't go through, and you're account is not overdrawn, the direct debit will still be in place, and normally several attempts will be made to debit the requested amount.

Currently, companies that are "trusted" by the IPSO, can set up direct debits, without the customers signature. They are supposed to have permission though, and these companies often use this "trust" to abuse the system, and reinstate direct debits that they know were canceled. This is a matter for the IPSO and the Financial Regulator to deal with, which neither has. It may also be a matter of fraud, and something to be investigated by the Gardai, all it will take is someone to report it to the fraud squad.

There is a perception in this country, that companies are entitled to take money from your account, simply because the use a legal scheme (direct debit). Direct debits are simply a convenience for companies, and also for customers, as it means you don't miss payments. They are not an entitlement for a company to take money from you, without first having authorisation, and also having provided the appropriate notification.

Taking money by direct debit, when it's neither authorised or owed, is theft, plain and simple, and no different to someone forging your signature on a stolen cheque and passing it off as yours.

Mcfast

Sizzler wrote: »

Just watched it there. Unreal. The DELL story was particuarly disturbing it has to be said

it defo was.some of the stories you could kinda understand computer errors and failing to fix it but the dell thing had a really twisted side to it with the privacy invasion and the rudeness.being hung up on cos shes a girl(decent looking girl to! ) like wtf?the call center must be outsourced i assume?did they give any reason for not being able to provide the next bisness day warranty?im pretty sure that costs extra with dell.i would have liked to have heard more about the story.

thought the jackie skelly thing was good but what was the customers problem?did i miss that or did they only talk about the employees issues?

Darragh29

Mcfast wrote: »

it defo was.some of the stories you could kinda understand computer errors and failing to fix it but the dell thing had a really twisted side to it with the privacy invasion and the rudeness.being hung up on cos shes a girl(decent looking girl to! ) like wtf?the call center must be outsourced i assume?did they give any reason for not being able to provide the next bisness day warranty?im pretty sure that costs extra with dell.i would have liked to have heard more about the story.

thought the jackie skelly thing was good but what was the customers problem?did i miss that or did they only talk about the employees issues?

Someone should tell Hibernian that this is what they'll be getting into when they outsource their back office support to India!

Mcfast

Darragh29 wrote: »

Someone should tell Hibernian that this is what they'll be getting into when they outsource their back office support to India!

was it in india? jaysus thats mad.how do companies think its a good idea

jor el

Mcfast wrote: »

was it in india? jaysus thats mad.how do companies think its a good idea

It's cheap + they don't care.

Mcfast

thats insane.id hit the roof if anyone did that to my gf.in fairness to the dell girl she was quiet good natured about it and seemed very likeable and genuine.most of the people on it came across as really bitter

lol@the ucd lecturer saying if you have a 20 year old graduate you cant trust him to use there own discretion.he must be doing some great teaching

eth0_

311 wrote: »

Can't believe someone from dell was looking at someones photos.

Great programme ,should get the masses up of their asses.

I was absolutely astounded at how NTL refused to apologise or really accept much responsibility for the monumental f**k ups covered on the show.
I guess they know they'll never be in a situation where people will desert them because a lot of customers don't have the option to get Sky, so they can treat customers like dirt and get away with it :-(

I was really surprised about the Dell "engineer" in India browsing a customers photos while supposedly troubleshooting. He should have been sacked instantly and the Dell statement merely said it was "unfortunate" and was against their rules.

Sizzler

Mcfast wrote: »

was it in india? jaysus thats mad.how do companies think its a good idea

It's all the rage, especially at this time of year

ednwireland

funny that dell story i have a bunch of dell gear here at work and find the service fairly good i've had server support take over systems and fix problems even last night had a system that started with the cpu fan full on and then nothing and had a guy in india sort it wasnt a particularly difficult problem (in fact if i'd seen the tiny error lights i would have copped it myself) i was then passed to a supervisor and asked if everything was allright and if i could understand teh technician ok, so at least dell seem to be concerned about this (eircom indian support for me have been the hardest to understand.

Darragh29

Mcfast wrote: »

was it in india? jaysus thats mad.how do companies think its a good idea

Yeah if you ring Dell customer service, your call is answered in India. Dell don't have a customer service centre in Ireland, it's all done from India. I had to do it once and swore never again... It's all very well saying you want to cut business costs are are moving your customer service to India but from what I've read on the subject, a lot of companies end up moving back when they discover that their customers will go elsewhere when they have to talk to someone thousands of miles away who cannot actually resolve their problem for them and there is a language gap or at least there certainly was when I called Dell last time.

Darragh29

ednwireland wrote: »

funny that dell story i have a bunch of dell gear here at work and find the service fairly good i've had server support take over systems and fix problems even last night had a system that started with the cpu fan full on and then nothing and had a guy in india sort it wasnt a particularly difficult problem (in fact if i'd seen the tiny error lights i would have copped it myself) i was then passed to a supervisor and asked if everything was allright and if i could understand teh technician ok, so at least dell seem to be concerned about this (eircom indian support for me have been the hardest to understand.

Even getting through to a human is next to impossible with Eircom. That talking robot that answers when you call 1901 is the most frustrating thing I've ever had to deal with. The whole system is designed to prevent you actually getting talking to a human.

bigpinkelephant

I would have enjoyed the programme more if the presenter wasn't such a whingebag. He just seemed like a bit of a prick.

311

The program that dell use to fix computers is very handy.
I rang them up and while I was talking to a guy (indian) ,he was using my computer.
The odd thing about it was ,he had control over the security pop ups(user account control) in vista.
Couldn't believe how open my system was ,by downloading a simple utility from dells site.

Darragh29

bigpinkelephant wrote: »

I would have enjoyed the programme more if the presenter wasn't such a whingebag. He just seemed like a bit of a prick.

To be honest, I think RTE are overdoing it recently with all the negativity. Some of what they covered on that show was not fit to be brodcast. I can't understand what point they were trying to make about Jackie Skelly. They had customers on the program who appeared to have no issue with their membership, or if they did have an issue, it wasn't raised on the program. The only point I could see for bringing Jackie Skelly into the discussion was to allow an ex employee get a dig at the business.

There were issues with Dell, but all these people have the Small Claims Court to resort to if they have a grievance, I wonder how many of them bothered their arse going down that road??? Probably not a single one.

I'm personally sick of turning on the TV and seeing pure negativity coming at me. It's bad enough we have a recession to handle without giving every muppet with a grievance, a national soapbox to stand on.

We have state institutions to deal with breach of contract, at a very affordable cost through the Small Claims Court. People should have to exhaust this avenue at least before they get airtime for petty grievances.

Mcfast

did the programme give info on how far the people had gone?i heard someone say theyd called 150 times and another 40 or so? i think?not sure bout others.but id call that fairy exhaustive.id agree most of them seemed a bit petty.how many of them smiled at all or laughed about it?but tbh i dont think prime time were fixing there issues?

edit-also what you said earlier about issues, the small claims court wont cover crap customer service which i thought was what the programme was about.there were some things there that i would like to know about as a consumer, like push the fat button at skellys, dell looking through private files and not being able to stand up to there warranties, direct debits be re set up,etc

311

I thought the programme was mainly set at putting people at ease ,who thought they were doing something wrong.

Not everyone uses boards to get advice on problems like these.

Darragh29

Mcfast wrote: »

did the programme give info on how far the people had gone?i heard someone say theyd called 150 times and another 40 or so? i think?not sure bout others.but id call that fairy exhaustive.id agree most of them seemed a bit petty.how many of them smiled at all or laughed about it?but tbh i dont think prime time were fixing there issues?

edit-also what you said earlier about issues, the small claims court wont cover crap customer service which i thought was what the programme was about.there were some things there that i would like to know about as a consumer, like push the fat button at skellys, dell looking through private files and not being able to stand up to there warranties, direct debits be re set up,etc

No, but if they had gone as far as they could have gone with the Small Claims Court, I imagine their problem would have been resolved. All the issues on this program involved a breach of contract, possibly with the exception of Jackie Skelly.

kcb

Darragh29 wrote: »

No, but if they had gone as far as they could have gone with the Small Claims Court, I imagine their problem would have been resolved. All the issues on this program involved a breach of contract, possibly with the exception of Jackie Skelly.

Why should someone have to go to Small Claims to get some clown in a call centre to do their job properly?

It seemed to me that the problem with Jackie Skelly was that there were no responses to customers queries. I find this infuriating also. And people are completely within their rights to complain about it.

More people should make official complaints, get a reference for the complaint and if they are not satisfied with the action taken by the company forward it to ComReg.

Darragh29

kcb wrote: »

Why should someone have to go to Small Claims to get some clown in a call centre to do their job properly?

It seemed to me that the problem with Jackie Skelly was that there were no responses to customers queries. I find this infuriating also. And people are completely within their rights to complain about it.

More people should make official complaints, get a reference for the complaint and if they are not satisfied with the action taken by the company forward it to ComReg.

Yeah but why didn't the program elaborate upon these "queries", in the case of Jackie Skelly??? I imagine it was because they signed up to a gym, and 2 months later decided that they didn't want to be members anymore because they were not attending the gym and wanted to cancel their membership. Sorry, if you sign up to a contract, you sign up to the terms and conditions.

People in this country like whinging but ask them to do something constructive like go to the Small Claims Court or even write a letter outlining their complaint and they will look at you like you've ten heads. RTE in my opinion should not be giving a national soapbox to serial whingers. OK, some people on that program did have a genuine grievance, but they also should exhaust the proper channel for resolving these type of issues before being given national airtime and giving the rest of us a headache...

Red Alert

I was a bit disturbed by the Smart telecom thing - presumably it's against the free market to allow a developer ban purchasers of apartments from choosing their preferred TV/Voice/Data provider?