What Happened to Training Those Working in Customer Service?

What happened to the good old days when you had an issue and more than likely received some resolution in a timely manner?

For me, I  have no luck even attempting to resolve a problem in nothing less that 3 phone calls and possibly a Chat or two.  Individual thinking is out of the question as it appears that everyone is reading from as script but has no grasp on how to solve a problem.

Let's take Xfinity for an example.  I  happen to have 2 Xfinity accounts in 2 different states and a problem arose at one location which wasn't resolved only to find I  had the same problem with the other account.  I  had spoken to 3 different agents, each one telling me something different until I  totally lucked out and the 4th agent resolved the issue in 5 minutes.  Good Luck getting this one agent again!

What I was being told to do would have resulted in even bigger problems so needless to say I  am grateful to that last agent.

Then one day I  receive an email that a bill is overdue.  I  start a chat to say that I  have been enrolled in Auto Pay for over 4 years so what happened?  No resolution other than I  had to go back into my account to re-enroll.  In the meantime, the  chat agent was more than happy to take my payment and I agreed.

A week later I go to the website and check my bill only to see a fee added but it does not state "WHY."  Again I  start a chat.  It seems that when an agent takes payment, you are charged a Convenience Fee.  Well, did anyone mention that to me?  I  complain to the agent and he concurs that I was not informed so he will remove the charge.  

In the past 2 months I  would say I  have had spent at least 7 hours dealing with various issues.  And why so many hours...no one knows what they are doing when they try to resolve the issue.  It is as if just having a body available to either chat or speak with is the solution.  And the classic line is that they are so sorry that I  am having an issue and will work to resolve it.  Resolution doesn't happen often enough considering what Xfinity service costs.

Then there is Land's End.  I  ordered an item and the very next day the price point was lower.  I  called and was told that they would issue a credit vs my cancelling the order and then reordering the item at the new price point.  That was over 14 days ago and still no credit adjustment after writing and calling 3 more times.  

I  don't want to bore you with more stories but suffice it to say that it seems I  spend way too much time on the phone or chatting with companies all due to issues which could be easily resolved if people did what they say they will do to rectify the problem.

And to add insult to injury, each time I  chat or call, I then get an email or a pop up for a Survey.  Do they even read customer comments?

Enjoy shopping but be vigilant.

No More Cuisinart Products

Did you ever buy an item which had an expired warranty date as you were purchased it?

I have and this is what happened:

I purchased a Cuisinart Toaster Oven from Bloomingdales on October 28, 2022.  In February I  noticed that the words on each push button were worn off.

Called Cuisinart and they asked me for the serial number, which I gave them and then was informed that my warranty had expired.  HOW could that happen with a purchase date of October 28th?  The rep told me that the store I bought it from must have had old ones for sale. Cuisinart does not go by your purchase date, they only use the Serial number and the date which it is attached to.

In all the years I have purchased products, this has never happened.  I didn't even know that this could happen.   So then the rep tells me that in order to cover this and send me a new one, I had to CUT the electric cord, send them a photo that I  cut it and then they would send me a new unit.  Think about this, they wanted me to destroy a working toaster oven which I could have donated, just because they obviously do not trust their consumers to return the defective item once they received an replacement.  

I asked the rep if she would be willing to break her cell phone and then wait 10 days to get another one as she told me that it would be 10 days before a new Toaster Oven would arrive.  Her answer was, "That's company policy."

So I called Bloomingdales, a store I have shopped in since getting my very first job after college!  The rep was surprised at my story, saying he never heard that before and was very willing to make good and send me a replacement and a return label for the one I had.

That is how a reputable store should respond!  After this I just crossed Cuisinart off my list until they honor a warranty from the date of purchase!