Thursday, January 17, 2008
The Poverty Trap -
I had only two quid left, I had to raid my personal poor box again - sifting the silver from the brown, I found 20 x 5p coins (20 shillings in old money) equals a pound - this got me another day's bus pass. Must get a monthly when I get paid. I still have two tins of ministrone soup in work, so I scrounged a couple of slices of bread to have the soup. Then I contacted the bank to attempt negotiate something that will not make me so impoverished towards the end of the month. After loads of padding around the key pads I got put through to the call centre in some exotic place where the call centre operatives earn about 1/8th of my salary but live the life of Posh Spice and David Beckham. I was given another phone number to ring which turned out to be a fob off (fuck off). Rung the bank again, exotic call centre with that Byzantine approach to dealing with customers. More waiting and more holding with incredibly trashy music which was really getting on my nerves. After about an hour, I was told I was told that I must go to my branch to renegotiate things!. Why the fuck did they not tell me that in the first place. My bank has made thousands out of me and other poor saps, I hope I win the lottery and then I'll show them. I hope my bank goes the way of Northern Rock - bastards.
Labels: banking, byzantine, Call Centres, poor, poverty
Wednesday, August 22, 2007
More Fun with Communication
Privatisation of public services has brought about wondrous changes - even more shoddier goods and services. I have already complained about British Gas and their poor communication - press telephone keypad as if one is channel surfing with the television. Then the interminable wait, being told that one will wait for 45 minutes to before one's call is answered.
I have this electricity charge key which I have to top up from time-to-time to ensure that I have to get electricity. On Sunday I put £5 on the key, on Monday I was without electricity - I charge up the key again. No light. I phoned up the supplier, EDF energy. I was told by the young woman answering the phone that I had come through to the wrong section - I had contacted the emergency line! Well, I never thought that being without is not construed as an emergency by EDF. She said that she would give me an alternative number but warned that the lines are quite busy (whenever you hear this, don't believe it, it means that call centre is clearly understaffed - remember that shareholders come first). I gave up on following this avenue of enquiry, my mobile phone did not have enough electricity nor credit to endure the interminable wait. I thought that I should give the key another try, cleaned and bingo, I had electricity.
It occurs to me now, what happens when vulnerable people encounter the same problems. Do these companies, which make millions of pounds, give a shit about their customers?
I have this electricity charge key which I have to top up from time-to-time to ensure that I have to get electricity. On Sunday I put £5 on the key, on Monday I was without electricity - I charge up the key again. No light. I phoned up the supplier, EDF energy. I was told by the young woman answering the phone that I had come through to the wrong section - I had contacted the emergency line! Well, I never thought that being without is not construed as an emergency by EDF. She said that she would give me an alternative number but warned that the lines are quite busy (whenever you hear this, don't believe it, it means that call centre is clearly understaffed - remember that shareholders come first). I gave up on following this avenue of enquiry, my mobile phone did not have enough electricity nor credit to endure the interminable wait. I thought that I should give the key another try, cleaned and bingo, I had electricity.
It occurs to me now, what happens when vulnerable people encounter the same problems. Do these companies, which make millions of pounds, give a shit about their customers?
Labels: British Gas, Call Centres, Communication, EDF Energy, Public Services
