I know this is not about kitchens but the issue is customer service, this is something we all deal with on a day to day basis whether it be in kitchens or retail in general.
I have been a very long standing Vodafone customer and in general have had very few issues that I can say would spring to mind if I was asked, however all the major problems have descended on me in one week:
Firstly I get a text message thanking me for my upgrade and my new phone will be with me as per arrangement. At this point I thought I had received somebody else's message but to be sure I logged into my online Vodafone account to find that my contract had been upgraded to a completely new price plan and that I have ordered a brand new phone, which incidentally will be posted to an address 90 miles away in Birmingham.
My question is this how could somebody order a new phone and price plan without going through some security questions, like mothers maiden name etc..This leads me to believe it is an inside job.
I telephoned the Police in Birmingham and gave them the address the phone was to be delivered to and also informed them of my suspicions of an inside job. They took the details and said "they would look into it" Hmmm.
As soon as I saw this I contacted the call centre and spoke to a pleasant guy who stopped the phone being delivered and cancelled the upgraded contract, he also said he would inform the fraud dept.. great service so far. He then asked me if I was actually interested in upgrading my phone and contract, I told him I was happy with my current phone and plan but that I have another contract that I would be interested in upgrading i asked if he could call me in an hour's time to which he did.
When he called me back he advised about the options on price plans available and recommended a Sony Xperia T phone, again excellent service so far. the phone was sent out and I received a series of text updates informing me of when the phone is to arrive, again great service. the phone arrived the next morning but it had an iPhone sim card in the pack, I rang the call centre who apologised and said they would send the correct sim out (upto 3 days). Two days later 2 sim cards arrive which I did not get until I got home from work so I thought I would sort it all out the next day (today Fri 12/10/2012). I followed the instructions on computer by transferring my old style sim details to the new micro sim but it kept coming up with error sim not transferred, I then phoned the call centre again for help, the operator went through a series of tests and telling me to do this and do that with the phone, the final conversation was to switch it off and leave it for an hour then switch it on again and the operator will phone me back which he did, he informed me that the sim card is live and activated bit thinks the problem is traffic, now I have been stuck in traffic many times but none have been as frustrating as this, M25 eat your heart out. I was then advised to switch it off again and switch it on every 2 hours to see whats happened.
I keep swicthing it on and off but nothing happens, I tweeted @Vodafoneuk about the problem and even gave them what the phone was saying, that was an hour ago 1.37pm it is now 2.50pm and they have not even acknowledged my tweet.
We are none the wiser do I have a faulty phone who knows. This is an important phone line because it is an emergency number for a vulnerable elderly lady from a help contact centre who will phone me if there is a problem and a school number for our daughter.
I am on the phone again to Vodafone now, and have been told that the sim is switched on and to just keep switching on and off and it will all be Ok.
If I was informed in the first place that it could take upto 24hrs for sim to activate then I would not be writing this blog.
Businesses need to manage their customers expectations. There is a say prevention is better than cure and I think Vodafone have not prevented or cured anything today.
Not happy with Vodafone.
Russell
