The problems with customer service today.

THE PROBLEMS WITH CUSTOMER SERVICE TODAY.

Many of us seniors remember a time when customer satisfaction was the rule rather than the exception. Slogans like "customer satisfaction guaranteed" or "money refunded cheerfully if not satisfied" have pretty much become dinosaurs.

Today, you have to call a customer service line that will play this headache-producing music with either constant reminders "your business is important to us" or ads about all the other great products and services they have to offer. If your lucky enough to get a "customer service representative" in less than 15 or 20 minutes, you will have to argue, yes argue, about why you feel you should get a refund or a credit. The representative will point out you didn't read the disclaimer in paragraph 22 on page 695 of their 20,000 page terms and conditions agreement which is only available in micro print on their website, although that website is currently down for maintenance. Finally, after asking to speak to a supervisor, you'll be offered a partial credit of 10% of the price you paid which will eventually will rise to 59% the longer you stay on the phone.

Assuming nothing but 100% refund is acceptable to you, after 2 hours on the phone, the agent will transfer you to a supervisor. You will have to go through your whole story again and wait another 15 or 20 minutes before you finally have an agreement for a full 100% refund.

Then the fun begins. You'll be offered a credit to apply against any future purchase, and, if you have a monthly account, you'll be told that no, this credit can not be used to lower or pay off the balance owing on your account. At this point, if you decide to close your account, you'll be advised that a refund cheque will be issued after all pending charges and account closing fees have been applied, usually in 4 to 52 weeks.

If you insist on a refund cheque, you'll be transferred to a manager where you will start all over again. Up to another hour will be spent as this individual will try to convince you to keep the product and your account before they finally agree to send you a refund cheque in 4 to 52 weeks.

By this time you are angry and frustrated and you tell the manager you are closing your account and won't send them another penny, even to pay off your outstanding balance. The perky, cheerful manager suddenly transforms into Billzilla (the Godzilla of bill collectors) and begins threatening your credit rating village. If you don't pay your balance, this monster will rampage through your credit rating killing and destroying any chance you have to live a normal life, buy a car or mortgage a house. Plus after all that you will owe the balance currently on your account multiplied by ridiculous interest rates and late fees which will be turned over to collection agencies run by ex-mafia who are experts at offering "a deal you can't refuse".

In frustration, you hang up, swear you will never patronage that company again, and switch to a different company that offers better customer service. Your blood pressure returns to normal, your life becomes enriched with all the spare time you have from not having to spend hours on the phone arguing with reps in companies that provide bad service and you actually feel you might experience happy once again.

Wouldn't it be wonderful to have company reps treat others the way they want to be treated? Instead it is this avaricious pursuit of every last dollar. That sucking sound is the sound of money being sucked from the pockets of the poor and being channeled into the off shore accounts of the filthy rich. THIS HAS TO STOP!

SHARE THE WEALTH - POVERTY NO MORE.