A Small Suggestion To Everyone

[NightAngel]

Okay, here's my friendly reminder to everyone:

If you have a video card in your wallet PLEASE, for the love of *whatever*, keep your phone number updated on your account! Even if you never-ever rent!

Why, you may ask?

Because about 2-3 times a month I get phone calls from people who have found other people's wallets and want to return them. People do not keep their own phone number in their wallets but, by golly, OUR phone number is on the back of the rental card- so they call us!

I attempt to call the customer and inevitably it's an out of service number.
Usually it's a cel. phone and the person has no listed number.

If I can't reach you with info about your wallet- who the Hell knows what happens to it after that?

Thanks.

[Kogarashi]

::sheepish look:: I only recently updated my Blockbuster card (it was at least 4 years old, which puts it back when I was still single and about four apartments ago), because Hubby and I wanted to rent The Truman Show here in CT (last residence was in UT). The card still has my maiden name on it, for some reason.

But that sounds like very good advice. Though, to imagine getting a call from a video rental place about your missing wallet....

[lordlundar]

Too much of a geek. I read video card as for a computer, like from ATI or Nvidia.

[Maevis]

So true!

Another good reason to keep your phone number updated is just in case you return the DVD case, but the actual DVD is still at home in your player.
If your phone number isn't current, the store has no way of contacting you so that you can rectify the situation in a timely manner.

Also, if you haven't kept your information current, please do not scream obscenities at the clerk behind the counter for not knowing that you've moved three times this year.

[NightAngel]

Maevis, you also make good points. I had a woman yesterday who was angry because we had an outdated phone number on her account so we had not been able to contact her about the $150.00 in movies and games she hadn't returned that she rented in AUGUST. Of course now it's all outside the 30 day grace period and we won't accept the items back she has to pay for them.

Her: "I haven't received any calls about it."
Me: "Computer generated calls on *days* and letters on *days*."
Her: "What phone number do you have for me?"
I tell her.
Her: "Well! That hasn't been my phone number in months! You can't charge me because I wasn't contacted!"
*If she got the letter that she was calling me about last night chances are good she had received the other 3-4 letters as well.*
Me: "It is your responsibility to contact us with your current information. We have no way to know when you change phone numbers or addresses. Had you done so we could have resolved this issue back in August however, now it is too late and you owe us $150.00. Period."

The wallet issue was on my mind as I was attempting to contact someone last night for their wallet and I couldn't.

[Maevis]

As an aside to Nightangle, does this ever happen to you?

CSR: Sir, I see you have an account balance of $xxx, the last movie you rented was returned two days past due.

SC: Why didn't you call me? If you had called me, I would have turned it in on time!! YOU can't charge me a late fee. It's YOUR fault! You didn't call me!!

CSR: Sir, I think you've mistaken me for your mother.

[NightAngel]

It used to happen, yes.
I work for Blockbuster, we don't have late fees and our computer does automated calls to remind people to return their stuff. Some people get really mad that they get reminder calls.

Go figure.

[Kogarashi]

It used to happen, yes.
I work for Blockbuster, we don't have late fees.

Yeah, don't you just charge the difference between rental and purchase for unreturned movies now?

I went looking for a Veggie Tales DVD for my hubby last year for Christmas, and one place I found that actually had some was Blockbuster. Unfortunately, all they had on the sale rack were ones Hubby had already, so they suggested renting one from the rental shelves and then just not returning it. (Though thanks to the helpful employee at Blockbuster, whose sister worked for Media Play, I found a VT video he didn't have yet during MP's store closing clearance sale and picked that up instead, which has sold me on going to Blockbuster in the future.)

Dang, Movie Trading Company needs to move further north....

[AFpheonix]

As an aside to Nightangle, does this ever happen to you?

CSR: Sir, I see you have an account balance of $xxx, the last movie you rented was returned two days past due.

SC: Why didn't you call me? If you had called me, I would have turned it in on time!! YOU can't charge me a late fee. It's YOUR fault! You didn't call me!!

CSR: Sir, I think you've mistaken me for your mother.

Gah, I get that but in the pharmacy. If I called on every little thing, my wait times would be astronomical! As it is, we're on the phone quite a bit. I will make a point of calling if I'm completely out of a med, but not if I have at least a few days' supply for you. I will also not call you if it's after 9:30, unless you just left the store. I will call you if you dropped off an accutane prescription and haven't completed your IPledge survey online.

I will not call you if your insurance kacks itself. You are responsible for knowing if your insurance is active or not. I will cash out your script and rebill when you come and bring me new info. The automated system calls you at least twice when you have a script ready. You should know this already, as you either set up autofill or you called in yourself, or you talked to your doctor about something new. No, I will not call you personally, that would mean anywhere from 300-600 calls a day. Hells no.