Computer error
That is the general panacea of the twenty first century costumer service.
Whatever happened to you, no matter how blatant a company's incompetent service is, they will always blame it on a computer error.
Yup, I was just told so. I was also a victim of a computer error.
Forget logics, forget ethics, forget competence. Blame it all on the damned computers.
Look at my case: I applied for a promotional service by means of an automated phone service, those horrible things that read the menus to you and tell you to press your phone keys according to your options. After a successful application I got a confirming SMS on my cell phone. Ten days later the service was charged to me. A month later bonus calls I should have earned are nowhere to be seen. I called the costumer service and was given the computer-error-answer.
The error: “the system failed to complete your registration and there is no record whatsoever of your application, but we can see the system has sent you an SMS so we’re going to correct this situation”.
Does this creature have a brain? How come she fails to see the lack of logics?
If the system failed to record the application how could it charge for the service afterwards?
I called a service supervisor. He said they are soooooo very sorry, the problem is that there were so many people applying for the service that they are taking too long to get things running.
"No, no, no, there is no computer error, that is just a way to avoid lengthy explanations..."
Well, everybody knows cell phone companies do their best to rip us off.
Come to think about it most big companies do the same.
But must they all take us for brainless idiots who take the computer-error-answer without questioning?
After the call I wrote a letter to the consumers association, I also forwarded all the data for my lawyer, just in case they don’t fix things.
Whatever happened to you, no matter how blatant a company's incompetent service is, they will always blame it on a computer error.
Yup, I was just told so. I was also a victim of a computer error.
Forget logics, forget ethics, forget competence. Blame it all on the damned computers.
Look at my case: I applied for a promotional service by means of an automated phone service, those horrible things that read the menus to you and tell you to press your phone keys according to your options. After a successful application I got a confirming SMS on my cell phone. Ten days later the service was charged to me. A month later bonus calls I should have earned are nowhere to be seen. I called the costumer service and was given the computer-error-answer.
The error: “the system failed to complete your registration and there is no record whatsoever of your application, but we can see the system has sent you an SMS so we’re going to correct this situation”.
Does this creature have a brain? How come she fails to see the lack of logics?
If the system failed to record the application how could it charge for the service afterwards?
I called a service supervisor. He said they are soooooo very sorry, the problem is that there were so many people applying for the service that they are taking too long to get things running.
"No, no, no, there is no computer error, that is just a way to avoid lengthy explanations..."
Well, everybody knows cell phone companies do their best to rip us off.
Come to think about it most big companies do the same.
But must they all take us for brainless idiots who take the computer-error-answer without questioning?
After the call I wrote a letter to the consumers association, I also forwarded all the data for my lawyer, just in case they don’t fix things.
posted by DCveR at 8:37 PM
11 Comments:
It took me so many phone calls to get two new phone numbers for the new place, I was about to give up! But without phones the business would be crippled! I have at last got one and hopefully noon tomorrow the other one will be activated!
No joke! There was a computer error, I was told!
Computers don't make errors. Even a poorly written program always does what it is (incorrectly) programmed to do. If anything they should blame the programmers.
That's correct :) (if only the chip is designed correctly, but anyway - it does exactly like it was built :D)
Polish national telecom company (their workers at least) has the same 'computer error policy' :D
And I have to agree with tacit - looks like you're right, unfortunately.
One thing that really pissed people off when I was doing customer service work at a cable company was the constant phrase, "I apologize for that" or "I understand your frustration" or some similar placation. In reality, we were required to make "empathetic" statements to the customer. Like many customers said to me, "You are so good at understanding my frustration. Why don't you do something to fix it!?!?" And for me, the worst part of it was that my hands were utterly tied by the over-weening coporate policies which dictated my response to every possible scenario. I was literally NOT allowed to do what was best for the customer, I had to follow policy blindly. In truth, we were nothing more than verbal punching bags that hopefully - if we took enough pummeling - would prevent the customer from disconnecting. Ugh!!! ("Computer errors" were not uncommon excuses....)
actually dcver, i have to disagree with you being so irritated with your wireless company. yes the call center people are trained to give fake answers to avoid lengthy technical conversations with the public that for the most part won't have any clue anyway. yes, their systems goof up sometimes, yes sometimes you're over charged or whatever, but you have to remember that you're holding a piece of plastic in your pocket which you can take out at any MOMENT, just about ANYWHERE and call another dude half way across the globe!!!! now its a MIRACLE we are even ABLE to do something like that!
- so if there are some discomfort in executing administrative stuff, or goofups, no need to be pissed, just be a little patient. :)
tacit: And it is all our fault. No really, think about it: companies treat their clients just the way most clients allow them. Isn't it nice?
cream: Get the contact of the person who told you about the computer error, send them an invitation to a different restaurant, preferably one no longer open. If they get back to you, tell'em it was a computer error.
viking: Who said anything about the guys who carve the code? The issue very seldom is a real computer error. The phrase is just an excuse. The black box spewed the wrong product, but it is too mysterious for us mortals to understand... bs!
shyha: Usually the main problem with computers are those pesky little viruses that sit with hands on the keyboard looking at monitor. ;)
bunny jo: But they didn’t get to keep your soul! I bet from now on you’ll be a more demanding client, after all you’ve seen the dark side and manage to fight it!
ale: Life is a miracle. Birth is a miracle. Beauty, pleasure, friendship, nature, those are miracles. A damned cell phone is nothing but human technology. It’s not even cutting edge tech anymore, at least for the most part. The profits cell service providers make are ludicrous. There really is no reason for them to fleece costumers the way they do, but most of all there is no reason for them not to keep to the contracts and finally there is no reason for them to treat costumers like morons. This said, I believe I am a very patient guy. :)
i have only had one good experience with a "customer representative." so pathetic considering the amount of hours i've spent on hold.
Oh, how I wish everybody would have your attitude ! We get those answers because companies (and everybody else in general) are USED to deal, not with "brainless idiots", but with normal people acting as such.
BB
My mother would laugh if I read this to her.
The tax people here made a mistake with her payments and said they are not in the computer, and told her that the computer doesn't lie.
It's a good thing she's sarcastic or they'd push her around.
cadiz: "thank you for waiting..." ain't it annoying to listen to that when one has no choice but to wait?
ariadne: Normal. I don't really like normal. Normal is bad. At least normal understood as conformity, apathy, one more in empty head in the crowd being herd along without questioning.
GG: That's right, computers don't lie, but there's always that computer age saying "garbage in, garbage out". Computers do according to what they were given to work with. Your mama pushed around? Don't really think so, from what you say she seems way too witted for that.
There is no cell phone company worse in this world than Cingular!! I think the tehcnology of cell phones came so quickly to the forefront of our lives that their customer service has not had a chance to catch up yet. It seems to be true in all countries.
Check your email, I am sending you an interesting essay on the "Dark Underbelly of Technology."
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