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Every interaction with someone in a customer service position I've had today has been horrible!

I sent a letter to Toyota a couple weeks ago because my 2007 4Runner has been nothing but problems. Transfer case crapped out at 24,000 miles, doors rattle, gas door scratched the paint off the body, etc. Both my 4Runner and my wife's '06 Solara have been thorough disappointments from a company that used to pride themselves on quality. So, when I had a message to call them today about my letter, I thought, hey, now we're getting somewhere! They want to make it right! They want to fix my darn SUV! No, the cocky kid I was connected with when I called back said they just wanted to acknowledge receipt of my letter and no further communication was necessary; thanks for writing.

I had also sent a letter to Gap around the same time because what used to be my favorite store now looks like an Abercrombie or Hollister or other teenie-bopper store with outrageously expensive and overly trendy clothing. I begged for the old Gap to make a comeback. I got a form letter.

My wife is back in school and yet Sallie Mae refuses to process her loan deferment. Call after call after call! Despite the notes in the account and our meticulous records of who we talk to when, they continually pass the buck between departments and remind us that the late fees are piling up and we had better keep making payments until they get around to processing the deferment. The lady today told me we should just be thankful they were here to loan my wife money so she could go to school!

As part of her going back to nursing school she had to get a few immunizations and a hepatitis B titer proving she's had the vaccine. Her doctor's office mistakenly sent in the lab work for an MMR titer rather than Hep B. She called the office and went in to have it redone and the nurse apologetically said she'd make sure we weren't charged for the MMR titer. Well, we were, and the billing people refuse to adjust the bill off because it was sent to an outside lab and they don't want to eat the cost of their mistake!

On top of ALL THAT, I'm disappointed in Triumph, but not from a customer service standpoint. I talked to my dealer today to get my Thunderbird color chosen and found out they are only offering three colors! For a bike that's all about customization this was pretty disappointing; I figured they would have a good selection of accent colors if nothing else. I'm going with the jet black and maybe I can get a local body shop to add some Sunset Red to the tank to make it look cooler!

Grrr - time for a beer!

hope you have a better tomorrow!

Don't despair - there are remnants of impeccable service out there .

I can think of one that's very close .

I have a friend who is an expert at getting companies to settle. One of his adventures was a new Buick he bought. The dealer(s) could not get rid of a vibration at 68 MPH. New wheels, new tires, alignment, balance, etc. Finally he went to the better business bureau and demanded arbitration. One year later he got a new car and gave back the other one. No cost to him at all despite put 30,000 miles on the first car. As he puts it, you are always nice, but persistant, save all of your paperwork, and be prepared to resubmit your claim over and over. The companies always shuffle people and tell you your claim documentation has been lost. He believes they just try to wear you down and hope you will go away. His favorite saying is "If you cannot make this decision, please let me speak to your supervisor, perhaps they have the authority to make the decision."

Call the local Toyota dealer and ask for the name and number of the District Service and Parts Manager.

Hey Matt

Don't know if you have "Talk back Radio" over there, like we have downunder.

This is the best way to raise problems, A little bad publicity on national radio goes a long way to achieving results.

Years ago I had a Toyota Tarago, and 3 small boys, the freezer fan blew up. So when a major engine overhaul was done I got the mechanic to order the fan, well guess what, not available. So I rang the GM of Toyota Australia, His answer was none in the world, they had to wait for the parts manufacturer to produce one.

So I ring the biggest talkback host in the country, who happened to be the "face" of Toyota. Well didn't the tihs hit the fan. Toyota then agreed to pay for the total installation when the fan was sourced. 3 months later it arrived and my mechanic made good bucks from the job.

About 20 some years ago my wife took her Jeep Cherokee to one of those 10 minute oil change places. They ended up putting the wrong oil filter on it and it blew right off the bottom of the engine as she was driving down the freeway at 65mph. By the time she was able to get over to the side the road, the motor was toast. (BTW, we determined that it was the wrong oil filter by the work order)

"No problem", said Econo Lube and Tune, as they said that their Farmers Business Insurance would take care of replacing the engine.

Two weeks went by as Farmers gave us one runaround after another.

Well, one bright and sunny day after those two weeks elapsed, I had FINALLY had it with the Farmers Claim Office personnel and their continual, "Oh! I'm sorry sir, but you need to talk to [fill in the new name here] instead of me" routine over the phone, and the LAST person that told me THAT, I told HIM.....

"LOOK Mike(or whatever his name was), HERE'S the DEAL, young man! THINK of THIS as a FOOTBALL. You like football, don't cha?! And sooooo, I'm the Quarterback here, AND I'm about to hand YOU this FOOTBALL, AND I expect YOU to RUN with this FOOTBALL across the line of scrimmage, AND I expect you to GET A TOUCHDOWN for me here BY having a CHECK for the cost of the engine replacement all READY for me WHEN I ARRIVE at your office TO-MAR-ROW!!! Ya GOT THAT???!!!

The check was waiting for me the next day.

(yep Rob, you're sure right about being persistant, alright...and it ALSO helps to finally "put your foot down, once and for all" occasionally TOO!)

Thought I'd be the devil's advocate here, just for fun. I totally sympathize with people who are taken advantage of by souless corporate entities. On the reverse side, I have helped my dad run a small, local bicycle shop for thirty years, and let me tell ya, the customers have changed too! Rudeness is the norm, and there are plenty of customers who refuse to be satisfied. My dad also has a small retirement business wherin he travels to small carnivals and flea markets, peddling toys and trinkets for the little kids. You wouldn't believe the theft problem, and if he catches one of the litte devils, the parent throws the toy on the ground and stomps off while loudly proclaiming, "C'mon litle Billy, we don't want none of that junk anyway!"

Well Rich, don't me started on THAT subject now!

You know, I started in the Airline Biz BACK in the days when folks would actually dress up to get their butts on airplanes and who generally acted somewhat civilized...and ended up retiring in an era when Bubba and his wife would show up LATE to the airport dressed in tank tops and flip-flops and would SOMEHOW get angry with ME because they missed their BUS...err...I mean FLIGHT!!!

(yep...don't get me started on the subject of the general decline of civility and common sense out there today, dude!)

Why you whippersnappers TODAY have NO IDEA how much WORK IT WAS to wind-up them big ol' rubber bands that made them ol' aero-planes FLY back in the day, BOY!!!

Recently when I ordered lunch at a "quick healthy food" place, the counter girl was surprised (and smiled broadly) when I said please at the end of my order.
She said "no one ever says please".

She gave me the max discounts too.

Customer service is much worse than even 20 years ago, particularly at large corporations. I still remember, back around '83-'84, a Parker pen leaked and ruined an expensive shirt. I sent the pen and a letter of complaint to Parker, and their president called me on the phone. He said they hadn't found any residue on the pen, but they would reimburse me for the shirt anyway. He was true to his word, and I received a check a week later.

Fast forward to the '90s and '00s, and I have had major issues with large companies that should be doing much better. In one case, I fought Delta over a $1,000 refund that was due under the terms of the ticket I bought, but which they steadfastly refused to honor. Nothing worked (including a claim through my CC company) until I wrote the FAA. In another case, Nikon damaged a SLR I sent to their California service center. The service center wouldn't admit fault, and the New York corporate HQ wouldn't even acknowledge my certified letter. I did get credit for the charges to my CC, but still took a loss on the camera. Two months later, I decided to sell all my other Nikon gear, including dozens of high quality lenses and film bodies, and I switched to Canon. Just by luck, Nikon boned me just before I went digital. I would have hated to have discovered how bad Nikon service is after spending another $3-4K on their newer gear. Guess there's a good side to almost everything.

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Every interaction with someone in a customer service position I've had today has been horrible!

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Sometimes I feel like that... Reckon any business that can supply a great product, reasonable price, fit for purpose, doesn't break down or decay or if it does before a reasonable amount of time offers a no quibble efficient and caring customer service; They're going to do very well and very quickly.
Trouble is a lot of businesses have lost sight of the big picture and just look at the figures; Key performance indicators, pounds per sale, remakes, refunds, where can we cut corners? Where can WE save? Important I agree, but not to the point of loosing the service to the customer, without whom the company would go bust...
It's getting the balance and just a bit of courtesy, targets and money isn't everything philosophy would go a long way...