AIBU to complain? Humiliated and angry about how I was treated in Waitrose.

[JustSpeakSense]

I visited my local Waitrose cafe this morning, I placed my order at the counter (two breakfasts & two lattes, and a slice of cake) I was going to pay by debit card, the lady serving asks me to enter my card and then she goes off to make lattes. The card machine doesn't register my card going in.

She comes back and says 'oh sorry I didn't set it up right, put your card in again' which I do, nothing happens. She now gets quite annoyed with me and says 'you need to put the card in properly, all the way' I do this (again) and nothing happens, she lets out a massive sigh (I am obviously really dumb in her eyes!)

'Don't you have contactless?' she asks (I don't) 'You'll have to use another card then' she says. 'Or cash' (I don't have another card and I don't have cash on me) 'your card's not working she says' (loudly and rudely - shaking her head at me) everyone in the long queue is now showing interest in the kerfuffle.

I say to her 'there is nothing wrong with my bank card, I use it everywhere I go, in fact I have just used it in this store'

'I'm not disputing that' she snaps at me 'you'll have to go and draw cash and pay that way'

At this point I turned around and walked out the store (I was humiliated at how she spoke to me and fuming) We went down the road to Sainsbury's cafe and had a delicious breakfast (and no problems with card machine)

I was fuming and I want to complain (I have never complained anywhere before) do you think I should complain and who should I contact?

I always find it is better to complain at the time, rather than after as it is much less likely to get dealt with. It's not easy when you're in a queue but if someone in a cafe can't be polite to customers no matter how flustered they are, they're in the wrong job.

I wouldn't have thought about this for more than a minute afterwards. But this is MN where people get very angry and always want to complain/report someone for something.

I work in a shop and quite often the machines don't work and there is nothing the cashier can do about it. If it doesn't work three times we are supposed to retain the card, but we usually explain and just try twice. I think I would complain about her attitude it's not your fault she is stressed and unable to do her job, she should have called for help.

I won't stand for rude service and she could have handled it better so yes I would complain to the branch manager. His staff need better customer service skills regardless of whether the machine was working or not. Politeness costs nothing and rather than embarrass you for something which was not your fault she should have seen if another card reader would have accepted it.

lazyarse123

Do you mean if a card is declined 3 times you retain the card?

In this instance the machine was not registering the card at all, so I didn't get a chance to enter pin.

Yes you should complain. Even if a customers card is not working because they've run out of cash or the card has a stop on it should be dealt with quietly and politely without them being humiliated. V bad customer service. I even had to deal with occasions when I had to take a customers card away and cut it up but did it quietly and politely. You're not judge and jury you're on a till.

And people saying they should have comped it. Hahaha. No.

Sounds like they're understaffed and she's lacking in training, both on the till and in customer service.

I would have asked to see a supervisor rather than walking out, but I can totally understand why someone's impulse faced with faff and embarrassment would be to run away , so YANBU.

I'd write and complain, but make clear that while her attitude was off, you think it's down to staffing/training problems and the company's responsibility to address, rather than making it just a personal attack.

As an aside, Not her fault either that you only carry the one card and no cash is a really silly comment.

Humiliated and angry?! Your reaction there is over the top. Yes YABU.

If you wanted to complain you should have gone to Waitrose Customer Services Desk at the time.

Super, it can be humiliating to be told in front of an impatient queue that your card isn't working. It's not that hard to empathise with, I don't think, even if you wouldn't be humiliated yourself.

I agree with everyone who says Waitrose cafes are incredibly slow and faffy. Every one I have ever been in is the same. Like Costa, I have never come across a speedy Costa. It has to be the process rather than the staff, they can't all be incompetent faffers.

I work in a supermarket. When a card has been declined, I never make the customer feel small. If they haven't put it in properly, I check it. I have called the manager over on rare occasions who swiped (not sure of latest rules but used to be able to do this under exceptional circumstances).

If it still didn't go through, it would be down to manager to sort out rather than.get in a discussion. They often say it worked. I do believe them.and blame the machine for having a tantrum. She could even have saved the transaction, let you have your cake and drawn the cash out at the end

She was rude, and you should complain. I find either the customer service desk or by email are usually pretty good at solving problems.

I've had this issue recently at Waitrose and they just transferred my receipt to a different till, with many apologies for their card machine being a cantankerous bastard.

If you don't complain this woman will never learn how to deal with the situation again. In my work place we have regular problems with the card terminals, we apologise, reassure the customer it's not the card it's our problem, inform management about the issues, and if the customer doesn't have another way to pay, depending on amount e.g a £2 meal deal I tell them not to worry and have it on us. This is what our company and I expect from my staff, customer service is or should be priority

Sorry haven't read the full thread, did you even get to the point of putting your pin in? If not it wasn't anything to do with your card and it was the machine / her that was causing the errors. She was really rude bid defo say something.

sapphire ok the way the a waitrose woman spoke to OP was rude but no need to complain afterwards simply go to Customer Services where normally as far as I can see they have a supervisor there and they will sort it/give OP gift coupons/apologise etc.

I personally have never taken it personally and been upset when a card had been declined but then I carry other cards.

I just see humiliated as being a bit strong here.

Have just seen you didn't get to the pin endearing stage. It's her bloody machine not you and your card. That would make me much more cross and I'd defo have to say something!

Entering. Pin entering. Not bloody endearing

Super, we'll have to agree to disagree on 'humiliated'; I think it's a perfectly fair word to use.

The OP was too angry and flustered to go to Customer Services – and, tbh, if she HAD pitched up there in her angry state it might not have gone very well. A complaint afterwards is just as valid a way of getting her point across, and likely more productive.

I only have one card, often don't have more than pennies on me, and find it flustering at least if my card doesn't work.

Exitstage

As I mentioned I had a hungry teen to feed before she was delivered back to school after missing lunch.

If anything this delay fuelled her hunger

This thread has just left me wishing that either our local Waitrose or Sainsbury's had a cafe!

I will have to make do with free sushi. grumble

Patchouli666
No, I didn't get to the point of entering the PIN number.

lazy why would you take the card ?

JassyRadlett

Be careful what you wish for you wish for

I love sushi though!

The free Waitrose sushi is lush.