Can you complain without hurting an individual worker

[Victoria J]

While I'm on the subject of complaints about call centre workers (posting all over the place about this today) I wondered if anyone knew a good way to make a complaint without hurting the individual worker involved.

I think todayis only the second time I've complained (and I make a lot of calls), it isn't something I do lightly. I did however recently suggest my mother make a complaint. She called her gas company and spoke to an absolutely lovely woman who gave her completely incorrect information. Had my mother relied on this information and not on me she would have had a substantial financial loss. We really don't blame the woman who was obviously trying to help (and went above normal "good" service to try and do so), but she obviously was not properly trained and kept up to date.

We feel a complaint should be made because if the incorrect advice is given to others people will lose out - and (because of the issue involved) they'll be very vulnerable people. But we really don't want to hurt the individual worker. While the complaint would be about the need to train and would emphasise that the women was helpful most companies don't take criticism so well and do look to blame the individual for company failures.

The company concerned would know everyone my mother had spoken to (tracked with account number) so it's not like we could just not name the person. An anonomous complaint won't be taken very seriously though.

I suspect this is a no win situation, but any suggestions. Particularly from those who do (or have) worked in call centres.

Victoria J

[AccountingDrone]

call back, ask to speak with a supervisor, and be absolutely polite.

Go ahead and tell them that miss X handled a call <insert time and date> so they can find the call log/call recording, and explain that while she did her best to be helpful, she did make <insert type of error> and that while you may have caught it, others may not and it may cost the company business/money in the future. Gently suggest that perhaps reconfirming the correct procedures may be helpful to that operator for future calls that have similar issues.

[bainsidhe]

This is just me being cynical, but are you sure she didn't do it on purpose? I've dealt with overly friendly CSRs who seem sincere, but lie to me for the sake of commission or because they don't want to get in an argument. Trust me, I'd rather find out about problems ahead of time, finding out later will really upset me.

[Victoria J]

AccountingDrone - but how many companies would still penalise the worker ?

My mother seems to have taken up complaining as a new hobby, but she is unfailingly polite and never hesitates to say the good things about service received. I know she can make an appropriate complaint I just don't trust the company to deal with it correctly.

This is just me being cynical, but are you sure she didn't do it on purpose? I've dealt with overly friendly CSRs who seem sincere, but lie to me for the sake of commission or because they don't want to get in an argument. Trust me, I'd rather find out about problems ahead of time, finding out later will really upset me.

I'm pretty sure she was.

My mother is very ill at the moment - and because it's largely a problem with her breathing and airways she sounds very ill. It really isn't unusual for people she phones to be pretty sympathetic and extra helpful - particularly (as this sounded to be) older women.

This also wasn't someone on commission.

Basically my mother was paying her gas by direct debit and unfortunately ended up paying bills based on estimate after estimate. My mother is disabled and cannot physically read her own meter due to where it is located, she also worked full time meaning that she wasn't likely to be there when they called unannounced - so I guess it's not that suprising she ended up with all estimates.

Unfortunately they finally got round to scheduling an appointment and reading the meter and sent her a bill for over £1000 (significantly over I think). Basically a bill for half the gass she's used int he last 2 or 3 years.

Which wouldn't have been so bad but they sent it just after she (a) had much worse health problems, (b) had stopped being paid by her employer, and (c) her employer had discovered that they had paid her too much sick pay and that she now owed them over £3000.



So my mother was literally sick with worry about this. But this is my kind sort of problem and I told her that (a) though the company will try and get the debt paid within 1 year they will agree to split payment over the same length of time as the misestimated bills if pressed (without any special sympathy), (b) they can set people on government benefits on installments of current usage plus £3.10 a week (directly deducted from benefit if necessary), and (c) that the company also funds an independent charity trust which will make donations towards clearly debt with them and can send out application forms.

The woman my mother spoke to was aware of none of these things. These are most definitely rules (though not ones the company necessary rushes to apply), at work I have a number for a special management team at this company and I know my way round their procedures.

What she did do was bend the rules and agree to split the payment over a much longer period than she should - but at a rate that was still going to take half my mother's weekly income. When asked about the charity (which my mother knew the name of etc.) she wrongly stated it was currently closed and wouldn't restart until the new financial year. She appeared from what my mother said to have confused it with a completely different scheme for "vulnerable" users - she was very keen to see my mother on this as soon as possible (though my mother probably didn't actually qualify).

She was kindly, she was helpful and she absolutely pushed the limits of what someone of her level could do without actually using the 3 policies that would have helped. It certainly sounds like bad training to me.

I later helped my mother to apply to the charity who awarded her over £1300, much more than we had expected and paying not only the full bill but a little bit extra. It was unbelivably appreciated given what a hard time she has been having, and literally helped her sleep a bit better at night.

Victoria J

[AccountingDrone]

ouch, that is a lot of money to be going out on short notice, I couldn't scrounge up that much myself ... Maybe there could be someone from a local charity/church that could possibly read her meter for her and send in the information? We have this spiffy transmission system, they drive down the road and radio beams take care of the information. So much nicer than reading the meter ourselves =)

I can only hope management takes the information and uses it appropriately, I feel that since I am not acting like a jackass, they will be more incline to be nice and not get attitudinal towards the CS person.

[Dips]

It honestly sounds like the greater good will be done if your mother complains with an emphasis that it is the training.

Can you know for a fact that the company won't take it out on employee? The answer to that is "no."

Doing the right thing sometimes involves having faith that others will also do the right thing. And you can never be 100% certain about it.

[dbuzman]

You keep saying the employee was helpful but if she gave out completely wrong information then she wasn't actually helpful. Who knows how many other callers she "helped" the same way.