Your worst customer service experiences?

[SpottySausageDog]

I found a thread on this from last hear but didn’t want to resurrect it with my own stories. I’ve worked in customer service myself a few times so know the standards that are expected which makes me more shocked when I have awful experiences! Name changed as some are local independent places.

1. In a local pub a few years back enjoying a pint with a friend. Two of our old friends came stumbling in and insisted on buying us more drinks even though ours were pretty much full. They ordered £20 worth of drinks. Funnily enough when it came to paying their card was declined and when asked what they were going to do about payment they legged it. Pints were already pulled so the arse of a landlady looked to us for payment. Threatened to call the police on us if we didn’t pay so I ended up footing the bill. It was 30 minutes before closing time so we couldn’t even drink them. Looking back I should have just told her to get a grip! We weren’t even at the bar when the drinks were being ordered. She should have called the police and shown them the cctv of the guys actually ordering the drinks. Still makes me seethe to this day! Never stepped foot in that place again.

2. KFC - well renowned for being painfully slow and always fucking orders up. My partner and I ordered a ‘boneless dipping banquet’. I like the dips it comes with, especially the buttermilk garlic mayo. When we got the food we checked it and asked about the dips. The woman behind the till said ‘we’ve not got the holders for them’. Meaning the cardboard strip with holes in for the dips. I said ‘well have you got the dips’. She said yes and looked at me completely gone out. I asked ‘can we just have the dips then please’ and she responded with ‘no sorry they come in the holder and we don’t have any of those’. I gave up and walked out as it was late at night and I would have lost my shit😂

3. NHS and LA - particularly midwifery services. Pregnant with my second child. Self referral by phone call in my area. Phone line always in use when I was free to call so tried for a whole week to book when I found out at 11 weeks (irregular periods, heavily documented on my medical records). I had to resort to emailing the leisure centre in which they’re based to get them to put me through to the midwives over email. I got an email from an ‘@midwifebasename.com’ address and I responded giving them my info. Never got a response so I went for a private scan and saw a private midwife for my first appointment. I finally managed to get an NHS appointment for 20 weeks (thought I was 23 because of irregular periods and incorrect dating on private scan). Midwife denied all knowledge of there even being an email system at their base and pretended as if the woman I spoke to didn’t exist. I showed her the email, my private scan and that data from my private midwife appointment. She still referred me to social services straight away (they are instructed to do so if you come in after 23 weeks as it’s seen as ‘concealing the pregnancy’) and I’m still currently going through the legal complaints side as they have put me through so much stress. So glad I have plenty of evidence against them. Funnily enough I’ve been having 3 weekly growth scans at the hospital so they can cover their own arses if anything goes wrong. Baby is growing perfectly and there are no obvious issues but they’re still insisting on them. SS have also messed me around in the process. Woman who came out to see me arranged a second home visit which my partner had to take unpaid time off work for as he couldn’t be present the first time. Luckily it was done over text. She never turned up, no reason or apology given. We have CCTV so it can be easily proved. I got an unannounced visit the other week because it had been passed on. She didn’t even log the appointment or any of the info I gave her at her first visit and she is on long term sick. It was escalated to child protection because they thought I was refusing visits. Absolute fucking shambles. Luckily there is no child in danger! Will be taking it up with my MP soon so he can address any failures in their system.

What’s everyone else’s worst/most bizarre experiences?

I have nothing as bad as the NHS/SS one!! Though I am currently fucked off with greggs for the absolute shite customer service I received about a month ago.

Went in with DC to pick up some sausage rolls and a chicken bake for lunch. The woman on the til called “next” so I went up to the counter, put the sausage rolls down, said hiya and asked if I could get a chicken bake please. She completely ignored me, rang the sausage rolls through the til and asked me if I needed a bag so I said no, but could I get a chicken bake please. She went “oh for fuck sake!” And stormed down the other end of the counter, grabbed the chicken bake so hard with the tongs it burst and shoved it in a paper bag. I didn’t say anything about the chicken bake but when she snapped the price at me I paid then said “there’s no need to be so rude to your customers” only for her to turn around and say I’d been the rude one! I’d greeted her, used please/thank you etc, been fairly friendly right up til she’d snapped the price to me. I’m now silently boycotting that particular store - but not other stores. I love their lattes too much

Hope this isn’t a journo post!

I had a weird experience with John Lewis once, I’d ordered a bunch of home stuff (about £50 worth) and set the delivery as click and collect from my local Waitrose as I work full time so wouldn’t be home to sign for it, and Waitrose was near the station so I could easily pick it up after work.

Got an email a few days later to say an attempt to deliver to my house had been made but nobody was in so it had gone back to the depot. I called up and explained I’d selected click and collect, so I couldn’t understand why it had gone to my house - they apologised profusely and said they could see click and collect was selected so weren’t sure what happened. They’d redeliver the next day to the Waitrose. Ok great, thanks.

But no. They tried my house again, and couldn’t deliver again. And I called again, and they apologised once again and said it would go to Waitrose tomorrow. It didn’t...the exact thing happened again, so that’s 3 times total!

In the end I just cancelled and refunded the order as I was sick of doing this dance with them. It was maddening. I sent an emailing to their customer services team outlining what had happened and why I’d cancelled.

A few days later someone from their Customer Service team called apologising, I got the impression they were a bit higher up than the people I’d spoken to - he advised that apparently the call handlers kept selecting home delivery rather than click and collect despite them confirming otherwise (?). They sent me some vouchers as an apology which was nice, so it was handled well in the end but really put me off ordering with them again.

A brand called Southwest based in South west France (Biarritz). They hate their customers. It's comical really. My teenagers like their Surf-y stuff so I get dragged in to their shops regularly. Their staff, to a person, hate customers touching the clothes (which are hung and folded around the shops as in any clothing shop) and they jump on customers saying don't touch, don't touch!

The clothes are sweatshirt-y type things, not raw silk. It's like a Benetton shop (only not with such neat piles) and not being allowed to touch the products. It's really bizarre. They are so rude that I make a point of not spending any money in there but teen DD's do only probably about half what they would spend if the staff weren't so rude.

I have worked for years in retail and I completely get how irritating it is to have to tidy over and over but that was my job! And helped sell the products. Possibly the worst customer service I've ever seen.

I’d have a very good imagination if it was a journo post😂 don’t worry, I just wanted a genuine moan and like hearing others stories. Didn’t want to post on the dead thread from November last year.

God I don’t think I’d be able to refrain myself if someone swore at me like that if they were serving me! From the other thread it seems like quite a lot of people in big company stores/restaurants are quite useless. Especially when it comes to delivery of items. Why is it so difficult🤦🏼‍♀️

Virtually every time I've used Currys/Dixons Group. I just don't go there anymore - they're hopeless.

Started years ago when I bought a Video recorder. Sometimes it worked, sometimes it didn't. When I reported it, they insisted on sending an engineer. Of course, the fault didn't happen because it was intermittent. Then it happened again day after, so another engineer came out. It faulted for him, so he made a report which I took to the shop. Manager refused to give me a new replacement and insisted on giving me a display model which didn't have a box, no instructions, and had a couple of scratches. I refused - he refused - stalemate. So I wrote to their MD who wrote back telling me to take his letter back to store to give to manager instructing him to give me a new one. So I did - lots of eye-rolling, sighing etc., but he did.

Should have learned from that. But no, years later I bought a camcorder online from them. It was faulty so I took it back to store for a refund (as per their online T&Cs which said returns can be taken to store). Different manager, but same story - point blank refused to refund citing it was bought online - I had a screen shot of their t&cs but he wouldn't even look at it. Another letter to MD with exactly the same - take it back and show letter. Same response, sighing and eye-rolling.

I just don't know why some staff are so unhelpful when it's their store's responsibility - it's not as if they're paying for the refund out of their wage. Unfortunately, I've found the same with Argos - some of their staff seem to take it as a personal insult if you ask for a refund for a faulty item.

There's a fabric and trimmings shop in London that I won't name, but you'll know it if you've been there.
I used to run a small business making wedding dresses and went in this shop on multiple occasions. I don't think I ever had good service there. Every time I brought fabric or trimmings to the desk for cutting I'd get "huff huff". On one occasion I asked if there was more of a particular trim and got an eyeroll and a huff as a response. Thankfully there was some more and it was grudging sold to me.
I have to admit, I found it hilarious. There were other fabric shops I went in that would practically fall over themselves to give good service, but not this place. I actually miss going there and being given dagger looks for wanting to give them money!

Went into the bank to get two years of bank statements, and said I needed them for a mortgage application. The worker looked me up and down and said 'you won't get a mortgage'. I hadn't even told her my name, never mind my bank details at this point, so there was no reason for her to jump to that conclusion other than her thinking that I didn't look 'worthy' enough. I was youngish and had my DC in a pushchair. Anyway she had a cats bum face when I explained it was an application to remortgage my existing buy to let. I didn't assert myself at all though and it still pisses me off when I remember it. Even though I shouldn't have given a fuck about what she thought it still reinforced to me that everyone must be judging me for being a young single parent.

Over 10 years ago I went into a furniture shop with the intention of buying my daughter a princess themed bed. The male shop assistant suggested I went home and spoke to my husband first to get his permission to buy it. I was so shocked I left the shop,

I applied for a loan from a bank to buy a car, an assistant from the bank rang me and asked why I didn’t ask my husband for a loan. I was fuming!!

There's a lady who works in the post office and I hate her. She was once a proper dickhead to me when I said I didn't want Dd's passport checked and sent by them because I'd paid for it before with my passport and they'd sent it missing some stuff and I had to pay to send the stuff again.

She got really arsey and said 'well how are you going to pay for it then?' So I said I was going to pay with my card? And she said just said 'nope' with like the most smug, shitty arsed look in her face. So I asked why I couldn't pay for it with my card and she was like 'well I'm not checking and sending it so I won't be telling you what you need to do'. Her attitude was just so disgusting towards me that I just took the form and walked out. I'm the most softly spoken, polite person ever and I hate confrontation and I wouldn't dream of being rude to anyone so I know I didn't give her any reason to be a dick with me.

I went back the next day after googling what to do and went and asked for a postal order to pay for it and for it to be sent recorded delivery. She was rude to me again and said it was going to cost about £1 less to do it that way than if they sent and checked it. I said no thank you, I'll send it this way. She said 'well don't be shocked when it comes back because you've not filled it in properly' and carried out the transaction rolling her eyes, slamming stuff about and she threw my receipt at me. I was so angry by the time I left, I was shaking.

I avoid her window now and will let people in front of me even if it means I'm stood at extra ten minutes for the other window!

I just can't stand the miserable shop assistants who ignore my smile and polite hello, have a face like a slapped arse and make me feel like my custom is an inconvenience. It doesn't take much to fake a smile or say hi.

Every story you’ve got I’ve got ten about shitty snotty fucking customers who think they’re better than shop staff.
Nasty thread.

Every story you’ve got I’ve got ten about shitty snotty fucking customers who think they’re better than shop staff.

I've no doubt you have, but that isn't an excuse for staff to badly treat the majority of customers who aren't awkward/arrogant etc.

My worst customer services story is from the other side. Years ago I worked for an internet florist. We sent box flowers out by City Link. One of their vans crashed on-route and one of the bouquets wasn't delivered. We arranged for replacements to be sent out.

A few months later, we received a call for the recipient. She was really upset and angry. City Link had decided to deliver the parcels from the crashed van. She received a mouldy, dry and rotten bunch of flowers from the chap that had cheated on her the month before.

SCS are just the worst to deal with. I ordered a settee - they told me 12 weeks for delivery - it took almost 6 months. Then I realised that they had sneaked a fabric care kit onto my order for an extra £50. I’d never use them again. Dishonesty is just the worst for me.

I ordered a latte in Victoria train station Manchester from one of these Delice De France stands, he poured it and I went to pay and he said the card machines broke, I had no cash and no cash point in the station and train due. I then remembered I had a full loyalty card from them in my bag for a free coffee so asked to use that and he said it's only for a standard filter the loyalty card and proceeded to pour it down the sink!

Just had really crap service after buying a car from local Nissan dealership.
Even when I escalated to head office they admitted the dealership never return calls. Really rubbish as made what should have been exciting a painful experience with catalogue of lies 😕

Plusnet a few months ago. Managed to balls up a very simple task, resulting in cutting off my phone line and broadband for weeks, ignored my messages and outright lied to me repeatedly. I spent about 7 hours on the phone to them in total and was reduced to tears by them on a few occasions. Just appalling - I have no idea how they can run a business like that!

The staff in the post office collection office. They can see you waiting & ignore you then when they finally come to the window it's all huffs & puffs & launching of parcels at you.

From the original post, who should have paid for the drinks ordered for you by your friends?

Ordered an expensive camera from Amazon. It never arrived. Contacted them and they said it had been delivered to a neighbour (actually an address halfway down the street, not exactly next door). I had not given safe place or neighbour as a delivery option by the way. Went to the address and they denied any knowledge of receiving a parcel. Endless emails to Amazon so called customer service where they kept getting details wrong. Eventually took complaint to Resolver. Amazon responded to say they would not reply any further to the complaint as there was no customer account associated with my email address (which is bullshit as I have been a customer for over 20 years and have used the same email address for the last 15 years, have screenshots of my account proving this and order history and dozens of emails from previous orders all archived in gmail). Lost £500.

Took my car to guy salmon to get it serviced (it’s one year old) this week. Drove along the next day and the engine underguard fell off one side and was dragging along. DS Was in the car and it was terrifying as I thought that the car was falling apart. Called guy salmon and the man I dealt with the day before gaslit me completely on the phone, lied to me and said that just isn’t a part of the car they would have touched. Took it to my local garage who I trust, who confirmed it was absolutely a part they would have touched. Lying little toad.

5/6 bolts to attach it were missing!

IKEA - tried to deny me a refund because I'd not returned a rug with the plastic shrink wrap it had come in (totally useless once removed). Rug in perfect condition, had the receipt. Bought in store. They tried to argue their online returns policy (which said all packaging had to be returned in order to get a refund) applied. Unfortunately for them their in store catalogues (available when I visited for the return) stated that you needed to return the packaging "if possible" and no mention about packaging requirements on the refund signs at the till points. Argued with them for nearly an hour, they eventually caved but tried to fob me off with a gift card. Continued arguing and eventually got a full refund. It's made me very very reluctant to shop with them again.

HSBC, lost £5k payment. Took 2 months to get it back and then they decided to close my accounts with no reason given. After 20years

JohnLewis credit card, similarly lost payment of £2k, took months and many phone calls and messages to get it back.

British airways/American Airlines, lost my suitcase 4months ago, ruined holiday, still waiting for compensation