How did we ever get into this state?

[seylectric]

My laptop packed in on Friday. On Saturday I phoned Comet - a mile down the road but use a national rate number (I use SAYNOTO0870.COM - Non-Geographical Alternative Telephone Numbers to get the proper local number and free easymobile credit to make the calls but that's not the point) and spent the first three minutes listening to an advert for their latest sale.

 

Having eventually got to speak to someone I spent another 5 minutes waiting to be transferred to the national repair line or whatever. So why don't they just put the national repair line number on the receipt??? ???

 

"Hang on", he says, (I wasn't going anywhere fast anyway), I'll just check. Some manufacturs ask for the unit to be returned to store, others collect direct...............yes, it's HP. You need to bring it in. Monday morning I packed it all up in the original packaging and took it in.

 

"Oh, no, the girl at the counter says. It's HP. You need to contact them directly and they will collect it." Fine.

 

8.47 a.m. today. Spent 10 minutes trawling the HP site looking for their number (click on support and it takes you to the US site).

 

Eventually found THEIR UK 0870 number. Was transferred to another country and having given my name, address, phone number, serial number, product code etc. etc. I was asked to run through a diagnostic procedure after telling the guy that the screen was totally blank. "I can't run a diagnostic, the screen is totally blank like I told you."

 

"No problem sir, I will put you through to techinical support" Five minutes on hold, and I was then talking to tech support who asked me all the same questions all over again. I gave them my name, address, phone number, serial number, product code etc. etc. and they eventually established that I would need to return the machine for repair. "I know, that's why I'm phoning you".

 

I was then transferred back to the UK and spoke to the people who arrange collection. I gave them my name, address, phone number, serial number, product code etc. etc. having been asked for a third time. "What seems to be the problem with the machine, sir?" the girl said.

 

"The problem is simple. It needs to be collected and returned for repair."

 

"Yes but what's actually the problem?"

 

"I've been through all that twice, just arrange for collection will you".

 

"I need to know the problem sir"

 

"JUST arrange a collection will you??? Any day except Thursday or Saturday."

 

"OK can I have your name, address and postcode please?"

 

I gave her my name, address, phone number, serial number, product code etc. etc.

 

"How about Thursday afternoon?"

 

Jesus wept.

 

In all it's taken me a wasted visit to Comet, 10 minutes on the internet to find the phone number and nearly an hour to arrange a collection for a simple problem (almost certainly just a loose ribbon cable). How did things ever get so bad. Is this what they call "service" these days?" Oh, and I need to unpack the laptop and give it to the driver who will then repack it. What a farce.

 

:-x :-x :-x

[dave]

What a country!

[welly]

PMSL Good old Comet and wait till they come to pick it up!! If he said monday then that will be a wednesday and they will come when your out for 5 mins to get a paper lol Sorry you thread did make me smile:)

[meagain]

I think the problem is that we're British, and therefore too easily accept being walked over as being a part and parcel of life.

[welly]

Thats whats good about this site I have now found myself saying "Hold on Im not happy with that Im going to do something about it"

[seylectric]

Picked up today, I was quoted between 1 and 5.30 pm and the carrier (Parceline) were there at 1pm on the dot.

 

The joke is that I was told by Hewlett-Packard that it would be picked up by DHL and I was not to hand it to anybody else! What do you do?

 

As luck has it I used a bit of commonsense, had Parceline not been sent they wouldn't have turned up for the collection and as luck has it I knew the driver very well.

 

Good post welly, the apathy in this country amazes me but at least more and more people are saying "enough is enough".

[The cobbett slayer]

I'll try and keep this brief but it's a good'un.

 

The dearly beloved had seen some patio furniture in Argos that she really wanted and tried to order it on line. Couldn't find a set anywhere locally so kept widening the search area until she found one in Cambridge - 110 miles away. OK says me the ever faithful hubby reserve it & we'll go in the morning.

 

Well I gets to Cambridge, finds Argos, pitches up with my reservation details and a wedge of £20 notes to be told "We haven't got one!"

 

I am not happy and politely ask to see the manager. I am sent a small female who gives the impression that the ink on her gcse certificates is not quite dry yet and insists on calling me "mate" (or is that M8?) I was along way from being her "mate" at that time.

 

Anyway - she tells me that there is a patio set just like the one I ordered at the store in Bedford. It's only another 30 miles so I might as well go and get it. I pointed out that I was 4 gallons of unleaded out of pocket so far and she very generously crossed my palm with £40 out of petty cash.

 

I packed the wife and offspring back into the limo and made to Bedford with all haste before they sold the bloody furniture again, collected it and went back home, arriving 9 hours and 300 miles after I left.

 

Still being a bit miffed, I wrote to Argos Director of Customer Services with the whole sorry tale and got nice letter back from PA to Sara Wells (who I now know to be the CEO of Argos PLC) asking me to ring her. which I did & she offers me goods half price due to inconvenience caused. Only question is do I want Argos Vouchers or cheque. Well Kerchinggg - Cheque please. Arrived recorded delivery next day.

 

So that's £40 in cash from Argos Cambridge (I did mention this in my letter)and half the price of the goods back as well, a nice day out with the family. I'm now sitting on very cheap garden furniture.

 

It just goes to show that if you have a genuine grievance it pays to take it further than store level where it just gets swept under the proverbial carpet

[pcr1]

When I was at college I worked for Argos for a while and they were generally very good on the service front.

 

That is where I learnt that you don't have to take faulty goods back to the store. People used to often ring us and say "got this home, doesn't work, come and get it!" to which our reply would be "no probs, we'll send our delivery driver/a courier, when's best?"

 

Don't know if it's still the same, but you'd hope so and it sounds a bit like it.

[andrew1]

Not all is so bad then? I have a Dell computer and bought an epson printer to replace an old HP. As I installed it the pc went into another world and I couldn';t get a live screen for love nor money. PC is well out of warranty but I rang Dell - put thorugh to India - ( I hate phoning India with Abbey so I wasn't expecting much). A very polite girl FULL of knowledge ran me very quickly through Q & A - within minutes she had the whole thing sorted. One phone call - no sales crap or adverts just honest customer service.

 

Two days later, phone cll asking if it was still working okay.

 

Today was asked to fill in a survey of the call. First time I have ever filled 10/10 for anything. ( 9/9 actually 9=excellence on the survey!!)

 

Result:grin:

[seylectric]

The point is that should be the norm, not the exception to the average we come to expect, but it isn't. You admitted yourself that it's the first time you gave full marks to anybody and that proves the point.

[andrew1]

The point is that should be the norm, .

 

 

 

I wish!!!!

[dave]

It used to be.

 

I remember working in a call centre and CS was all the 'rage'.

 

I have heard recently that the same call centre punishes people for not 'cross-selling' products that blatently have no bearing on the call at all these days.

 

I doubt the onus is on CS any longer.

[seylectric]

Exactly, if I phone up for service that's what I want. I feel insulted that I have bought a faulty produce and then have to PAY to listen to a company's latest sale offers AT MY EXPENSE whilst trying to report my problem. It's even more disgraceful if the company are making a profit from an 0870 number as in the case of Comet.

 

I had a similar issue with Mesh Computers a couple of years ago. They wanted me to phone a £1.50 a minute "helpline" to resolve a fault with my pc. So my pc goes faulty and they make a profit from me reporting it? I don't think so.

[dave]

Yep - Seaboard (our electricity supplier, now called EDF) made 180,000 quid from their 0871 complaints line the year before last.

 

Where is the incentive for them to get things right first time, when they make that sort of cash from getting it wrong?

 

I urge everyone to get an 0871 number for themselves (or did before they changed the rules), and give it as a contact number only to firms that use 0871/0 numbers themselves.

 

If everyone had done it, it wouldn't have been long before it was not cost effective to have them themselves.

[seylectric]

LOL, I've got one for EXACTLY that reason, and for including on web application forms to prevent spam phone calls (OK if they do call at least I get 3p a minute for it)

 

Mine is from UK2numbers, cost's a one-off fee off £9.95 and links seamlessly to your landline number. No further costs whatsoever. Not a get-rich-quick scheme, I think I have just about earned my £10 back since signing up in May 2005 but worth every penny in my opinion. Link below.

 

If anyone is interested in signing up, PM me for the referral code, I get £2 (I think, never actually referred anyone before) and am quite happy to donate this to CAG.

Note that to get cashback @ 3p per minute you need an 0871 number (costs the caller 10p per minute), not an 0870 one

 

0871 numbers £9.95 click here

[Rich44]

I have an 0845 number from them and theyre very good I can recommend them too

[patdavies]

I think that your mistake was leaving Comet with the faulty unit to make any telephone calls at all.

 

Comet is the retailer and responsible to you. Tell them it is not working and that they either provide an immediate replacement or your money back. Do not be fobbed off wth "We need to send it away for repair". WTF are you supposed to use for the weeks that it is away?

 

My son bought a laptop from Comet and it failed a week later - wouldn't read CDs. Took it back to them and stood there - blocking the till - until they replaced it.

[seylectric]

I know what you are saying but under the terms of the Sale of Goods Act I would, after 9 months since purchase, only be entitled to a repair (or replacement if it couldn't be repaired), not a refund. It would have taken longer to argue the toss and fight for a refund if I felt I had a case than it would to get the unit repaired in all probability.

 

Had it been new or nearly new it would have been different, and since I got the laptop at a VERY good price (£500 off the £800 orginal selling price) it would have been folly to ask for a refund because it would have almost certainly cost more to buy a replacement as I wouldn't have got the same deal again. "A week later" is a different scenario entirely.