Customer Service (Call Centre) Standards...are there any?

Eurorunner

There is truely a race to the bottom as regards call centres. Is there some big convention that big bizz has gone off to on how to run the most dreadful call centre? :pac:

A couple of months ago it was travelodge (who clearly couldnt give a toss that they're drones were behaving like chimps). Now i'm dealing with the premier league of call centres - setanta. To be honest the over the phone thing i've tried with them and i'm trying to stick with email this time. (when setting up my subscription, I decided to make 3 calls with the same question. I got misinformation, followed by completely different misinformation - confirmed by her supervisor when I queried it..followed by something resembling the right answer even if it wasnt the answer I was looking for).

I have sent them about 5 mails over the past couple of months - with what should be a straightforward query for them. I always get an automated response immediately saying 'we will respond within 5 working days'.
But they don't. They have responded once - apologising for NOT responding and then asking me to send the query again as they didnt get it!.

How can I make them answer my bloody question? Is there any legal standard (probably not, right?). Is there any body I can complain to?

(Normally, I would just cancel my account but it just doesnt suit me to do that. If they will just answer a couple of queries I shouldnt need to bother with their poxy call centre again!).

mikemac

There's only one option

registered letter to the CEO.
But this shouldn't be your first point of call so be sure to include in your letter all the messing around you've put up with.
The manager of the department responsible will deal with your query asap

You only use this as a last resort

Count Voucher

did you try to post your comments someplace with more punch? like valueireland ?

amcalester

Best bet is to ask to speak with a Team Leader and send a registered letter to that person marked private and confidential.

Any letters sent to senior managers get diverted to admin teams or complaints departments to deal with but if you get a Team Leaders name they should deal with it.

A few pieces of advice (from someone who works in a call centre) most of the people you speak to do try to help (its much easier for us if we can solve your problem quickley) but we get conflicting info from the team leaders, management et al. so keep calm, if you act like an ass to the agent (not saying you did) then you will definately get nowhere, take the name of who you were speaking with and the times.

watna

mikemac wrote: »

There's only one option

registered letter to the CEO.
But this shouldn't be your first point of call so be sure to include in your letter all the messing around you've put up with.
The manager of the department responsible will deal with your query asap

You only use this as a last resort

Yep, if there is nothing else this is a good idea. I work as an administrator/assistnat to a CEO and we have received letters about our call centre staff. They were all acted on immediately and were take very seriously.

Where I work does have a lot of standards it implements though because we actually do calls/take calls for a third party so we have to report to someone on standards.

If Setanta report to nobody but their customers then their CEO might not give a sh*t either. It's worth a try though.

raindog.promo

Is it legal to record your phone conversations with call centres / Customer service phone operators?

I've had instances where I've been told something by X person on helpline, only to be told no, they definitely did not say that.

If you had a recording, you can say well, actually they did - here's proof.

You can state you are recording the conversation at the start of the conversation.

MunsterCycling

yes, once you state you are recording. Just do it the way they say their name and the start of a call, quickly and without warning and you're free to record away. My favourite line is to tell them its for cs standards control, they then have to decide if they hang up do you already have their name and can hang them out to dry if they do. Works like a charm.

MC

Sam Vimes

MunsterCycling wrote: »

yes, once you state you are recording. Just do it the way they say their name and the start of a call, quickly and without warning and you're free to record away. My favourite line is to tell them its for cs standards control, they then have to decide if they hang up do you already have their name and can hang them out to dry if they do. Works like a charm.

MC

It'd be worth telling them you're recording them even if you're not. They'll be much more careful of what they say if they think they can be held accountable for it

Cabaal

Calls are recorded anyway and you can request them under the data protection act

Sponge Bob

Eurorunner wrote: »

How can I make them answer my bloody question? Is there any legal standard (probably not, right?). Is there any body I can complain to?

There is , it is called the Fianna Fáil party . And there are some good call centres about , eg O2 .

MunsterCycling

Cabaal wrote: »

Calls are recorded anyway and you can request them under the data protection act

Calls that are not in favour of the company have a mysterious way of disappearing when asked for so it's better to have your own recording.

MC

Max Power1

Cabaal wrote: »

Calls are recorded anyway and you can request them under the data protection act

i worked in a well known call center in north dublin. In our case one out of about every 90-110 calls was recorded for call quality etc, and these were not made available to customers. the only way to be sure there is a recording of your calls is to do it yourself!!

jor el

Max Power1 wrote: »

i worked in a well known call center in north dublin. In our case one out of about every 90-110 calls was recorded for call quality etc, and these were not made available to customers. the only way to be sure there is a recording of your calls is to do it yourself!!

Often when you ring one of these centres, they say something like "Calls may be recorded", and other times they say "All calls will be recorded". I know the ones who say the call may be recorded, probably won't be recording it, but of the ones who claim all calls are recorded, I wonder how many actually are?

Any time sensitive information is being discussed, or where a contract is being entered into, or when you're ordering a product/service, the call should be recorded. If it's general inquiries, then I can't see how it would be a requirement, apart from training or quality checks.

Cabaal

Max Power1 wrote: »

i worked in a well known call center in north dublin. In our case one out of about every 90-110 calls was recorded for call quality etc, and these were not made available to customers. the only way to be sure there is a recording of your calls is to do it yourself!!

Its certainly changed recently, at least in the UK...I know OFCOM reg's actually mean UK company's must record every call.

MunsterCycling

Yes but we dont have any type of regulation in this contry, period.

MC

Cabaal

MunsterCycling wrote: »

Yes but we dont have any type of regulation in this contry, period.

MC

Might be an idea to get onto Comreg :pac::pac:

MunsterCycling

Do the words: Coat, Door and NOW have any meaning????

Eurorunner

Count Voucher wrote: »

did you try to post your comments someplace with more punch? like valueireland ?

Thanks Count. I had found an english based site that deals with forwarding on complaints and went through their process...although this was going to Setanta UK - they may feel they have an excuse to ignore rather than get their irish colleagues involved.
However, I wasn't aware of Value Ireland and will try it.

Eurorunner

amcalester wrote: »

A few pieces of advice (from someone who works in a call centre) most of the people you speak to do try to help (its much easier for us if we can solve your problem quickley) but we get conflicting info from the team leaders, management et al. so keep calm, if you act like an ass to the agent (not saying you did) then you will definately get nowhere, take the name of who you were speaking with and the times.

I understand this amcalester - and am at pains at times to double check myself in my responses - so as not to upset call centre staff. I know they are being hung out to take all the flack that middle management should get a good dose of.

I have not bothered going the phone route this time - purely through email - as I have proof of whatever response they provide - and they can't backtrack then.

Fnergg

I have some experience of the call centre industry here, in the UK, and in the USA.

Call recording is not a feature of every call centre but generally is with financial institutions where any error with a customer's request (say, to transfer money) could have very serious consequences for everyone concerned.

Other centres may or may not have call recording - if they do they are required to advise callers of the fact and they may not record all calls, just a sample.

The main purpose of call recording is for staff training and development and in the interests of improving customer service. Supervisors/Team Leaders listen to a sample of calls on a weekly basis to see how staff are interacting with customers and to make sure that proper procedures and processes are being implemented.

I would be very surprised if any call centre would send an actual recording of a call to a customer. What has to be provided, if requested under the Data Protection Act, is a transcript of the call - if one was made - but almost certainly you will not be given the recording.

I certainly would not advise any call centre agent that you are recording the call. It would immediately start off the conversation on the wrong foot and the agent would be extremely ill at ease to say the least. Don't be the customer from hell - being pleasant and calm will get you better service. Call centre staff are flesh and blood people - they are not automotons.

The vast majority of call centre staff in any company want to provide good customer service. If you fail to get it ask for a Supervisor/Team Leader or Manager.

Most of the regulated utilities (e.g. Bord Gais in the gas market and ESB in electricity) have regulatory targets to meet in relation to speed of answer and the like and these targets invariably help to increase the rates of customer satisfaction.

Regards,

Fnergg

MunsterCycling

If you do not advise they are being recorded then you cannot then use the recording as evidence of what was said as it would be illegal iirc

MC

Fnergg

MunsterCycling wrote: »

If you do not advise they are being recorded then you cannot then use the recording as evidence of what was said as it would be illegal iirc

MC

There is nothing to stop you, the caller, recording the conversation for your own records. It would however be illegal for a call centre to record your calls without informing you. I just wouldn't let the call centre agent know that you are doing so as it does make for a very difficult call from the agent's perspective.

It shouldn't be necessary to record the call in the first instance unless you are at your wit's end trying to get something resolved, what you claim to have been discussed during previous calls has been disputed, and escalating the problem to a Team Leader or Manager has been to no avail. Then, yes, I would record it but I have to say I have never come across such a situation.

Cannot use your recording of the call as evidence? Maybe not in a court of law but surely nobody is thinking of such a recourse.

Regards,

Fnergg

Sam Vimes

Fnergg wrote: »

It shouldn't be necessary to record the call in the first instance unless you are at your wit's end trying to get something resolved, what you claim to have been discussed during previous calls has been disputed, and escalating the problem to a Team Leader or Manager has been to no avail. Then, yes, I would record it but I have to say I have never come across such a situation.

The problem with that approach is that by the time you start recording, the disputed thing has already been said and there is no proof of it. By the time it gets to the stage you're talking about there's not much point recording it. I'd be onto registered letters by then

Musha

If you are going to record the call you have to inform the CS agent, They can refuse to take the call, and you have to hang up and try again