To think customer service is SHIT in the UK

[PMTsickandtiredofyourshit]

•All phone lines are automated and take up to an hour to get through. They usually have some nonsense excuse answerphone message about Covid 19 causing ‘higher than normal call volumes’ that hasn’t been changed in years.

•restaurants are increasingly taking ages to serve and give the impression you’re on a time limit at your table. Wait staff less charming/ less people skills/ less cherishing of customers.

•Today I went to mountain warehouse to get DD some snow boots. Every question I asked the staff they couldn’t answer. I asked if they’d had shoe fitting training because I couldn’t tell which size DD should have. The staff just shrugged and said they had no training. Finally found a good pair but it had a sharp bit sticking out of the inside. I asked if they had the same pair without the fault and was told no but they’d give me a discount! Obviously I wasn’t going to buy my DD a pair of boots with a metal shard sticking out of the interior!

•Then I went to Aldi where they had loads of new self-checkouts which I was heartily encouraged to use by one of the staff, despite the fact I had a full trolly of food. It was a fucking nightmare and took a good 30 minutes. Every other item didn’t scan, there was no where to fit my DD, my trolly and myself without being in the way of the people trying to get out, there were boxes and crap dumped on the floor in front of the trolly. It was incredibly stressful and made me resolve to stop using ALdi and just bankrupt myself by using a nicer, less stressful supermarket.

•Finally I went to Neros where the queue was its usual mile long glacial paced scenario with three women behind the counter, one who was having a huge scratch of her scalp then serving pastries. She got in a huge muddle when selling me two gift cards and was completely baffled by the fact that the two gift cards were to be given to two separate people so I would need two separate gift receipts. I have no idea if these £30 worth of gift cards have actually been credited.

Even trying to book an appointment with my Dr, I have to be given the Spanish Inquisition by one of the receptionists who seems to be qualified to triage the doctor’s diary in the most brusk, patronising non-compassionate way ever. I’m sorry if I don’t want to tell you the ins and outs of my vaginal thrush problem whilst stood outside my office in earshot of my colleagues having been on hold since I was getting dressed at home Janet! FFS. 🤦‍♀️

I just don’t know what has become of customer service these days. It’s as though people who work with the public actively hate them.

How can this be changed!?

Perhaps customers are frustrated by being unable to get an answer to their query. Hanging on the phone and being told that ‘you can find answers to your questions online’ when you know fine well you can’t, which is why you’re trying to speak to an actual person, is intensely irritating.

There is no excuse for being rude, either way round.

Of course it isn't appropriate to take it out on the ordinary staff, but it's not surprising that customers are frustrated when large organisations have a deliberate policy of making it almost impossible to have any meaningful customer service interaction with them.

"Named day" form Fortnums, how we laughed, that day has gone and I am still waiting. Chat, emails etc all give conflicting but very polite advice.

The ordering from apps really annoys me too. I was asked in Pizza Hut if we wanted to order from the app but we said no and were served really well. It's nonsense otherwise your phone would be cluttered up with apps you might only use once.

It can be, but it can also be superb.

Based on my recent experiences, Octopus, Bank of Scotland and Sony have been fantastic (Vodafone and Yodel can get in the sea, though).

Of course customers get pissed when items are missed out of parcels. Particularly when it's the fourth order they've had that month with items missing! Most customers are happy to accept the occasional error however, as OP is pointing out, its not just the occasional issue, everywhere is going to shit and good customer service is becoming a rarity. A missed item to you might be a quick fix, to a customer who needs that item, its an inconvenience, an additional email (days to respond), phone call (which can take hours in queues), sourcing elsewhere (additional expense), concerns they won't get their money back...none of which needed if the correct order is fulfilled in the first instance!

Yes, I think I may have exaggerated slightly. But believe me, a high percentage of people calling really don’t need to. It’s not hard to see why queues are so high at times. I can understand why the automated message is there (do agree it’s bloody annoying when you know it’s a person you need to speak to, however I find it very rare for this to be the case personally)

Yes, of course I don’t doubt it happens and understand how frustrating it is but it’s hardly the person on the other end of the phones fault, is it?

I sound like I despise my job and that’s really not the case, I’m helpful and polite to all people who are to me. I try my best to help.

It’s relatively easy work and convenient as wfh, I only do a few hours a week and is just a temporary thing to top up our household income.

Does any of that justify being aggressive? No. A low cost item is a minor inconvenience, not a cause to threaten people. It hasn't ruined Christmas. It hasn't ruined your life. Yes, the packing team need a kick up the arse but I don't need to be threatened by email because of it.

People seem to think small businesses are Amazon. We can't provide 24/7 customer service, we aren't psychic about your delivery requirements, and people fail to comprehend basic information about their purchases or can't be fucked to look outside the front door. I mean come on - where's the real world in all this?

Oh please, an "aggressive" email? Customers have every right to be angry.
How much of a snowflake must you be to feel "threatened" by an "aggressive" EMAIL.
"Can't be fucked to look outside front door". No parcels should be left outside front doors unless requested. People shouldn't have to check outside front doors. The delivery service you employ reflects YOUR company. If they provide a shit service, tell them, then do better.
It doesn't matter if the item is worth £1.99 or £1999, its an item someone has paid for and they expect it to be included!
You can't use the excuse "small business". We run a "small business", 20 years, we have never missed an item out of a package, if we have made an error, WE apologise, if a customer is frustrated, it is because WE have not been clear, or provided adequate service or product.
Take some responsibility!

@AffIt I'm glad you had a good experience with Bank of Scotland as mine was the complete opposite. I wanted to invest a large sum but because I already had an account with TSB and they come under the same umbrella they couldn't do it.
I wanted to speak to they guy who'd originally tried but the call centre said there wasn't a phone number for the branch. She then said I could try xxxxx number which was the number I was calling her on!

I gave up and Nationwide got my money instead. 20 minute appointment and all sorted.

Honestly, I have had some great experiences recently. Even our GP's have got their act together. I suppose as always, it depends where you go and where you shop. Try to stick to independents, and villages and town centres rather than big retail. Our local EVRI delivery guy is fab, as is our postie. Guess we are lucky.

*lightinthebox · 03/12/2023 19:43

So staff admit they aren’t getting necessary training and you choose to blame them*

But some things people should know. For example there aren’t 31 days in February (Tesco Customer Service counter)
When they (multiple CS personnel absolutely insistent that there is 31 days in February) were told to give the refund it was made clear they wouldn’t be doing it again and it was a one off (despite their policy stating that you have 30 days to return)

That £256.89 minus £247.00 doesn’t equal £634.27

How much training do people need

I have just been back to the UK and saw it from the outside looking in
Apart from the NHS, I think people are NICER than before covid. Especially when you slow down or give way in the car, genuinely smiley thank yous. I thought people were keen to talk and chat more and generally even though it was rhe manic Christmas season, customer service was great. The only exception was in small cafes where I felt like a naughty child being shouted at because of the endless rules about what you can order and where you can sit! And the cabin crew said I was their best 2023 passenger for saying as soon as I boarded that I won't need any meals and don't drink alcohol and would like to have a cup of tea then sleep for the flight, please wake me up for cup of tea at the start of the descent. It was a packed business cabin of really annoying people (in my opinion) including Ms I miss my kids so want to show you photos, the rate of which I show increases with every wine and Mr and Mrs we PAID for this, give us more champagne and my personal best so far in all these years, Sir drinks and farts and smells alot with a stomach bug. So whilst some areas of the UK are not their best, I think people apart from when flying, are much nicer than most x

People have been convinced over the years that they don't want or need customer service and we are all now reaping the rewards of the mass abandonment of small businesses

@Catza you have succinctly written what I wanted to say ! I have had some great customer service this week in a restaurant, and from British Gas , who wished me a happy new year at the end. I’ve seen people being awful towards waiting staff, grumpy, unreasonable and downright rude , I like to think it’s a relief when I smile at them, but it shouldn’t be like that. The older I get the more I think people should just be nice to each other.
@Elfandwellbeing Exactly !
To say we are descending towards being a third world country is actually quite insulting towards those countries as we are clearly a lot better off than them. Not that we should ignore genuinely poor service but a bit of give and take would help.

Absolutely this. Reaping what people have sown. Lonliness and isolation, very little human interaction on a daily basis because everything is done by chat bot or whatever

You’re definitely not wrong. For me the pinnacle has been multiple staff at a train company claiming to me that day travelcards don’t exist instead of admitting that their app isn’t working properly and escalating it. I think even mother Teresa would have been frustrated in the calls to them in which I read out the terms and conditions of the ticket and they repeatedly denied it meant what it said. It beats even the lows of parcel deliveries.

I get brilliant service in Protyre and car dealerships. Their customer service for women has improved exponentially over the years. But I’ll tell you what helps. Being polite and asking intelligent questions. HTH

It really does feel this way now sadly.

They eventually closed the customer restaurant in sainsburys where I worked as it was HORRENDOUS!! it seated about 200 people and for god knows what reason was often at full capacity at lunchtime despite its bad reputation. They only put on the minimum amount of staff and it was really stressful. Why people would see a really overcrowded restaurant and expect great service was ridiculous. Of course we had the elderly regulars and nice customers but many were really rude

One of the strangest changes since covid is not being able to get a hot drink in Nandos. Whyever not?! I always have a coffee after a meal instead or as well as dessert. And if I'm driving I'll have a hot drink rather than a soft drink that's full of sugar or sweetener.

The vast majority of the customer service issues I have seen are a result of understaffing. Lack of staff is a huge problem since COVID, particularly in hospitality.

@Bleakmidwinter1977

Please don’t play the “small business” excuse. I’ve run a small business for 20 years and double/treble check all our work for errors etc. Being small doesn’t give you a get out of jail card. Customers are entitled to what they pay for. If you can’t do it, then give up and get a job!