The Rant Man

Considering the amount of people posting on the blog about their problems with various companies, I thought it might be useful to add some simple advice for those who wish to complain. You may think these points are all obvious, but after many years of being a complainer, I’ve fallen foul of every one of them.

Please feel free to add your advice to this page, but please keep it relevant. Anything other than advice or additions will be deleted. Sorry, but I don’t want this page to go off at a tangent.

Reading this info may make it seem like a lot of work. It isn’t. Much of what you read below will take seconds, but will save you a lot of time and heartache later. Believe me, I know from painful, past experience!

Firstly, my advice for how you should prepare for any call:

Always have paperwork, bills, receipts, letters etc. to hand before you pick up the phone! How many times have you gotten through after being on hold for hours and been asked for an account number that’s on a (now invisible) letter somewhere in your pile of unfiled paperwork?

Stay calm at all times. This is really important. Shouting abuse at the person on the other end of the line, no matter how tempting, will get you nowhere! Not only will you cease to make any sense, but they hear it all day long and you instantly become just one more bitching customer. A calm and polite tone is probably a novelty and is more likely to be given a sympathetic ear by the drone at the other end.

If the drone you’re speaking to can’t or won’t help, then ask to speak to a supervisor, team leader or manager. The common response to this is “There is nobody available”. This is bull. There will always be someone in charge. If they’re in a meeting, get them out of it! Don’t take no for an answer.

Here’s my (probably incomplete) list of things to do when you get to the point where a telephone complaint is in order.

Who, what, when, where, why? – When you speak to a large company on the phone, you’ll probably get someone different each time. You should never rely on them making notes about your conversation, so if it’s a complex issue, be prepared to explain it in detail every time you ring! I think we’ve all had that nightmare experience. So, as soon as you get a human on the line, ask them for some or all of the following details:

• Name – first and last. “John” or “Susan” is just not enough! Some of these drones will be very reluctant to give a last name and may even refuse. I suspect this is because they don’t want you complaining about them by name rather than for any reasons relating to confidentiality! If they won’t give you a last name, demand to speak to someone else who will. Better still, ask a manager to explain why they refuse. Remember, when they cut you off because they can’t be bothered with your call any more (as they frequently do!), you can ask for them by name (or their manager).
• Department – Very important to know this, particularly when you’re talking to a company like BT who seem to have hundreds of them. Do you know everyone who works for your company by name?
• Region – Not the obvious question to ask perhaps. However, many organisations have spread themselves throughout the UK and have call centres in many different regions. So, speaking to “Joe Bloggs” is fairly meaningless unless you know where his bum is parked.
• Country – India being a favourite place for farming out our jobs means that you aren’t necessarily speaking to someone in the UK. A “foreign” sounding accent doesn’t mean they are not British! Check.
• Time/Date – Again, it may seem pointless now, but think about future calls. If you can quote the exact time and date back at them, then they cannot deny the call, nor who you spoke to. Not to mention that if needed, they can also listen to the recording of the call at a later date. Many/most call centres record calls these days, so you can help track a conversation when things go pear shaped by noting these details.
• Subject – It’s all very well having to refer to all the above info a few weeks or months down the line, but unless you have a super memory, it’s unlikely you’ll be able to recall exactly what you spoke about in detail. A few notes on this will help.
• Reference numbers – Depending on the nature of the call, you may be given a reference number of some description. Always make a note of this.
• Chief Exec – If you’re really upset and want to complain in writing, ask for the full contact details (full name, address etc.) of the Chief Executive or proprietor of the organisation. Do this last though. Tell the drone (once you have their name) that you will be writing, including their name, to the ultimate boss with a formal complaint and explain why. You’d be amazed how many times this tactic has made a huge difference! Also follow up on your threat. Write the letter and see what happens.

I really cannot stress enough how much pain I’ve saved myself over the years by following most or all of the points listed above. The difference in response from a company when complaining is astonishing if you can quote all this information. They know you are well organised and mean business if you can tell them all this. You are far less likely to be fobbed off when you can tell them that you’re writing to the Chief Exec to complain and intend use their name and details!! By making it personal, you are no longer just complaining about the company in general. You are now actually holding an individual employee responsible for doing the job they are being paid for. See the difference?

I really hope someone find this information useful. Above all else, keep smiling

In part 2, I’ll add some details of how to complain by other means, will give you some links to useful resources and an example of something very disturbing that happened to me recently which prompted this new blog page.

All the best,

Jim