It’s been a bad day today!
I have had the misfortune to be on the receiving end of really quite poor customer service today from two organisations who really should know better.
The new bungalows at Abel Collins - without Gas!
One was British Gas Business – who are supposed to be relaying a gas main at Abel Collins Almshouses – where I am Co-Chair – and we have just built four new bungalows. As is usual with these situations you are given a price and you pay over your money and wait. In our case the money was £12,500 and we paid this in July. The story is quite boring – but the issue is that there has been a cock-up. No other explanation. But it seems that the issue is mine to sort out. My frustration with British Gas is that they are a faceless lot – and were very quick to explain that it was everyone else’s fault!
I can’t understand why they can’t offer a solution – not just offload their problems on me. I was told today that we may have to wait another 12 weeks…
And then I had the pleasure of an explanation from John Lewis – where I ordered a TV from 11 days ago. It was expected to be in stock 10 days ago and then 3 days ago. My irritation is that once again, I have to do the chasing. But then after my complaint today they did call me. The excuse was amazing. It was Philips fault! Not John Lewis’. They had been let down. But 35 were arriving tomorrow – they think. But they can’t tell me if I am 4th in the queue of 36th (the former would be ok, the latter not!).
And the outcome – Philips (not John Lewis) have restricted the TV’s – and it might be Christmas!
The internet threatens stores – and unless they offer great customer service they will lose out. But in the case of British Gas – they are a monopoly so they have the ultimate protection – you can’t go anywhere else! So you know what you can do if you don’t like it…
I won’t bore you with the experience I had in John Lewis at the weekend in the cafe – where I had my invisible cloak on for three or four minutes – waiting for breakfast. But if I told you I would sound like a grumpy old man. But then again…If the cap fits?
Great customer service doesn’t cost anything and is not difficult.
UPDATE
1. Agents for The Highways Agency are upset with me for involving Nick Palmer MP. Oh well.
2. My TV has nearly arrived. Not quite but nearly. But I had to call John Lewis again.
November 7th, 2009 at 18:39
[...] think that this is the beginning of the end… But just like the date for my gas supply pipe at Abel Collins, I’m not holding my [...]
November 18th, 2009 at 20:05
[...] my capacity of Co-Chair of Abel Collins Almshouses I have managed to find out. You might recall I blogged previously about some really bad customer service from British Gas Business – look at their [...]
October 21st, 2010 at 06:11
A year on from this, it would appear that great customer service is even harder to find. I’m not sure it is too easy to deliver great customer service over and over again and one thing Internet sales have done is fragment the market. There is no longer any single source of great pricing let alone great customer service.
And that has the potential to again increase customer choice.
October 21st, 2010 at 08:14
Great customer service left Jessops (as it will always be known!) when they shut the restaurant that was a hidden gem many years ago. The new restaurant boasts noise and exceptionally grumpy staff. And from me that is some accolade!