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Comcast Employees Change Customer Names To 'Dummy' and Other Insults
An anonymous reader writes: According to customer bills and screenshots submitted to and reported by blogger Chris Elliot at BoardingArea, Comcast employees have repeatedly changed the names of customers to insults like "dummy," "w***e," "a*****e," and "b***h." Elliott notes although reasons and consequences for this behavior are unknown, "one thing is clear: At least one person, and maybe more than one person, really doesn't like Comcast's customers. Enough to put it in writing. Repeatedly." Comcast has apologized and is looking at ways to prevent it from happening in the future.
Serious libertarianish social conservative here...
Anyone who thinks there exists more than a Potemkin Village level of competition in this industry is either an idiot or a liar. Exhibit A? You're looking right at it in TFA. In a modestly competitive market, stories like this would get Comcast eaten alive.
If I were a major executive at Verizon, I'd see if we could find these people and if they're anywhere near FiOS. Why? Because I'd order the construction crews to build out to their neighborhoods and then offer them two years of free service just as a publicity stunt to show how much more Verizon cares about its customers than Comcast.
Absolutely right! At VCC, we took pride in getting things done, even when management decided that technical support included sales. If I wanted to be a sales rep, I'd have been on the other side of the building working on commission. But I wanted to "fix broken stuff", but management figured that everyone including the janitor should be selling.
Anyone who explodes here in rage probably never worked in support. You get your share of assholes. Actually, you get more than your share of assholes. Because you are in the mind of some people the source and reason of everything that ever befouled them. If you treat the customer support badly, don't expect good service. Your 5 bucks a month are not paying his paycheck, your call is not his reason to exist and you are essentially of no particular interest to said customer service rep. He's there to HELP you. With a problem that may or may not be caused by you, but one that absolutely certainly was not caused by him or her.
I can only guess what happened here. My guess is that Comcast suits forced support to be nice to even the most obnoxious waste of oxygen calling, and this is their only outlet. If you ask me, a very, very tame reaction. I've seen people actually resort to physical violence.
We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
Because you are in the mind of some people the source and reason of everything that ever befouled them. If you treat the customer support badly, don't expect good service.
"Hi, I'm the lowest-level support guy, I've got this menu I have to go down before I give up and connect you to someone who understands your problem."
"Let's start. Unplug the modem, wait 60 seconds, and plug it back in. Does that solve your problem?"
(Several steps later)
"Okay, now unplug the ethernet cable from the modem and computer, switch it end-for-end, and plug it back in again. Does that solve your problem?(*)"
This is what I have to go through before I can talk to someone about their system bouncing an E-mail I sent.
Your 5 bucks a month are not paying his paycheck, your call is not his reason to exist and you are essentially of no particular interest to said customer service rep. He's there to HELP you. With a problem that may or may not be caused by you, but one that absolutely certainly was not caused by him or her.
It's a psychology thing. When you need to give someone instructions or ask for help or whatever, you have to communicate the situation and what you want done.
I've never had a problem with level 2 support, they understand the problem, ask some pertinent questions ("but you can otherwise access the internet OK, yes?") and fix the problem.
If the level 1 person continually misunderstands what you are describing, misdiagnoses the problem, or stubbornly avoids dealing with your problem getting angry is a natural consequence. They are wasting your time, and doing it on purpose.
It's OK to get angry at stupid, stubborn people.
(*) Not making this up. An actual Comcast level-1 support request.
Doctors are the worst in that arena, even if they know you're American they feel that they know more than you do about your job and you're some shiftless loser lackey barely able to answer a phone. The doctors like this even demand you call them "Dr. SoAndSo" because that is their title. The power trippers like to scream at you
Posting as anon, for my safety... but as a hospital IT employee, I can totally attest to this. Doctors are the most demanding and entitled people I've ever met. Most nurses on the other hand are quite civil and reasonable. Only occasionally will I have contact with a "bitch" nurse.
Well, this is simple. If I get a bill addressed to "asshole", then it is clearly not to me. (My name is different.) So it goes unpaid. And they will not be able to collect (by collecting agency/authorities) until they fix the name either.
And when they eventually fix the name, they can't add surcharges for late payment - I never got any bill on time . . .
Clearly you were just a shitty support tech. I did tech support years ago and never had a serious issue with any customer because I knew what the fuck I was doing.
I agree w/ you, but how exactly do you 'fire' customers? Refusing to sell them the product/service in question?
Just just either ask them politely to take their business elsewhere or you charge them a rate so high that it will accomplish the same end. If you have control over pricing you can give them a "go away quote" which basically charges a ridiculous rate. If they pay, fine but then at least you are being compensated adequately. We have a pain in the ass customer at my business and we simply keep raising rates on them to compensate us for the time we have to spend. Sometimes though no amount of money is worth the problems some customers cause.
I have on two occasions however told a customer in no uncertain terms that due to their behavior we no longer cared to do business with them. One was sexually harassing one of my employees and on the other occasion they had someone who simply was rude well above and beyond what his business was worth to us.