Customer service reaches new frontiers in Austria!.

[ClubMed]

C l u b m e d T i m e s: Vienna, Austria. 26 March 2002.

At around 11:30 today I pick up the phone and dial 11812, the international operator in Vienna. I am calling to ask about the phone number of Western Digital Customer Service, I know they are in Germany but not sure where exactly.

A young woman picks up, and after the compulsory greeting I finally get to ask her about WDCS. I notice a slight impatience, and ignore it for what I think it is, the famous way that customers are treated in Austria. I am then put on hold while the automatic voice informs me that they are doing their best to get the number. After about 15 minutes I get thrown out of the line. This is not a toll free number.

Since I am a human being, this naturally annoys me, I dial again, and this time, the impatience is coming from me. The same young lady replies in a very pissed off voice that she did not understand a single word, and that without giving her the name of a place in Germany she can't help me!. So I ask her in all honesty whether she has a problem. She replies, in what seemed the same honesty "No!, you have a problem!". And she kindly hangs up.

I am left with no option but to call again, and I do, this time a slightly older woman, with the same friendliness as the first answers and informs me that they can't help me, I am given a different number to call.

And that my friends, is how customers are treated in Vienna, Austria, Europe, the West, Civilised and Advanced part of the world.

Nice.

[RustyGT]

LOL! CM.
The last job I had involved a lot of ETAs.
Estimated Time of Arrival.

When we got the Job we had response times, Eg 2hrs, 4hrs etc..
So we would set an 'ETA' with various "helpdesks"

On site: Ring the helpdesk, get put on hold for 20 mins...
Get thru to helpdesk:
Hello, like to log an Onsite.
What time?
14:00.
But it is 14:20, you are 20 mins Late!
No, I've been on hold for 20 mins.
You cant have been, you're late.
Etc Etc...

Cant imagine why, I quit that job...

ChrsR.

[TheBurningCat]

Hehehe, ClubMed.

BTW, this might be the number your after: WD Technical Service and Support group at 1-800-275-4932

[ClubMed]

Thanks TheBurningCat, but the number I am looking for is for European customers and it turns out to be in The Netherlands.

Called them and got my probs sorted out

[TheBurningCat]

Oh yeah, I found that number after i posted, I was wondering wethier i should come back and report it just thought i would wait for yor reply.

BTW: where the dudes in The Netherlands nice?

[ClubMed]

Yup, the guy was very friendly and helpful. I have a problem with one of their WD HD's, this is the seconed time this happens. So I called for a RMA.

I'll be sending them the HD in a couple of days for a replacement drive.

He wasn't impatient and pissed off, and so I too wasn't impatient and pissed off

[RustyGT]

There is probably a thread begging here.

What's the best, "lousy excuse you have gotten from a helpdesk?"

Like the one I got from CentreLink* yesterday.

Me:Why hasn't my dole application been processed yet?
Them: It's still on my desk.
Me: Why?
Them: Because I've been on Front Counter for a week, so I haven't been able to do my paperwork.

Hello?!

Unbeleivable.

R.

* Aust Social Security

I had a bank problem. My account was frozen. So I rang the bank (no branches in town). After only 15 minutes of "your call is important to us. You will be put through to the next available operator", I got put through to a lady with such a thick accent (Japanese, I think) I could hardly understand her, and had to get her to repeat every second word. How she got on a helpdesk in Australia I have no idea (the bank was a US one, BTW). Maybe we have lots of Japanese customers ring the helpdesk?

Anyway, after about 20 minutes of too-ing anjd fro-ing she worked out they had frozen the wrong account for us (we just settled a rental property with its own account, which was to be closed). So I ask how we are gonna live now because they froze all our money. She says, Oh, it's only for five more days. I say, get real, have you lived with no money for 5 days? She says Of course not (at least, I think that's what she says). So I say, can I speak to your supervisor please, and she's like, oh, that's not necessary, I'm sure I can clear this up now.. we go around like this for another 10 minutes until my wife gets out her mobile and rings the helpdek, gets another operator, and gets put through to the supervisor. Got fixed straight away. Wasn';t like she was rude, just a bit thick I think.

Sometimes I wonder why they call them 'Help" desks. Is it because they need help??

[CERuppel]

Utter and total agreement, Mickwish.

Help Desk: Where the helpless are helping others get less help...

[TheBurningCat]

UM, I rang telstra(MY ISP) last night becuase the silly name server that you log into had gone down, To cut a long story short i was transfered to a call centre in India. The person sounded really friendly and ended up talking me into buying ADSL(like i needed talking) but they did have an incredible indian accent and it found myself just going "uh huh" and "yes"

The sadest thing is that Tesltras largest call centre is 6Km from my house, I should have just gone down there and demmanded help.