Rude Call Centre staff

[frugal fifer]

GGGGrrrrrr......... I am a calm and polite person, maybe too polite for my own good sometimes, but yesterday I was so annoyed. Why? phone calls from god knows who looking for my ex, he must have enquired about something online ages ago and I am still getting calls, not as many as I used to but they are so flipping rude and hang up. The one that really got my back up was an Irish guy calling on behalf of BT to give me a good deal, I listened to his sales pitch and decided it was not for me and said thanks for the offer, but I have a good deal already and am happy with my provider. Oh no, he argues, we will save you money each month, but I politely tell him no it's ok I do not want to change so he hangs up! If calls are supposed to be monitored for training purposes, surely this is not good practice for a large company. I know when I worked in a call centre we could never hang up on a customer, unless they were being abusive and we had given them a clear warning that if they did not stop the call would be terminated.
Rant over :sigh:

 

[avisk]

Registering with the Telephone Preference Service should eventually stop most unsolicited calls.

TPS Registration

And remember - if they called you, you have no obligation to listen to them! Say no thank you, politely, and hang up before they have the chance to say anything else.

 

[Donnie46]

Thank you avisk, I have just registered our phone number with the TPS Registration - so hopefully our 'nuisance' calls should stop now.

 

[frugal fifer]

Thanks Avisk, but I am already registered with this and the mail preference and have been for ages, what annoys me the most is the ones who don't even give you a chance to ask them to remove your number from their list. The calls have died down, but some days you seem to get loads.....it was worse with the silent ones, at one point my ex even thought I was having an affair till I explained I got them too.

 

[malaika]

I am also registered but the odd calls still get through
A couple were particularly funny. I am registered as a bookkeeper, on many free sites so I do get random calls trying to get me to pay for advertising. Most accept a no thank you, not interested, but one "expert" from Google called using his best selling pitch. When I told him I was not interested he went on to say unless I paid for advertising I would never get near the top when people googled me... I told him that I already am on the first page, for free. He insisted he was an expert and that was impossible. I told him to try while I waited... a few seconds later he came back and all he said was "ok then" and hung up!!
Another one was from BT offering me a better deal than I have. I am with BT and said I already am happy, he said said "What!!, you are not interested in getting anything better?" When I said NO, he told me I am not realistic, at which point I hung up!!
Another classic is the one from a bed company who insist that that I was interested in one of those fantastic beds, and had asked for further information, and due to that I have won one of their beds and could I give them the delivery address.. after them not listening to me, I hung up. This call is repeated every few weeks and we have received mail saying the same things! I am not remotely in interested in their beds and have never inquired about them. Would be interesting to see how they got my number and address!

 

[Circes]

You should just tell them to hang on a sec while you switch the cooker off, put the phone down to one side and don't go back!

 

[IreneH]

I have also been registered for a long time but still get many 0800 numbers ringing. I now have a caller display telephone and do not answer anything with a 0800 number on principle.

Irene xx

 

[malaika]

You should just tell them to hang on a sec while you switch the cooker off, put the phone down to one side and don't go back!

That's brilliant! I had a boss who used to ask the caller to hold on as there was someone at the door, and never went back.. you brought that back to me, and I will definitely do that the next time!

 

[malaika]

I have also been registered for a long time but still get many 0800 numbers ringing. I now have a caller display telephone and do not answer anything with a 0800 number on principle.

Irene xx

I also have a caller display phone, but most of these numbers are number withbeld or international calls. As a lot of our relatives are overseas, or use the number withheld system I feel I have to answer, and then I get the garb!

 

[Starlight]

I dont even give them a chance to get started. Soon as I realise theyre flogging something I just say 'Thanks not interested' and hang up while theyre in mid flow

 

[avisk]

Unfortunately, the TPS service doesn't stop all calls. There are other options, see their FAQ page
TPS Registration (that is a different link to the one I gave you before, although it looks the same on here).

I had a call today, wittering on about a subscription to the Daily Telegraph. I have told them dozens of times that I am not interested, and it makes no difference, so this time I just put down the phone very very quietly. I am hoping that the person on the other end didn't notice and went on talking to herself for ages!!

 

[Pickle87]

If I get gas or electric companies calling I lie and tell them its student housing and the landlord controls it all.

 

[judimac]

I use the door trick too!

 

[*EB*]

I have calls from recorded messages - usually waiting for me when i get in from work - 'are you in debt...call this number, we can help you....blah blah blah!'

I am not in need of these services!!!!! - ive just regsitered on TPS and hope these now stop! xxx

 

[henna!]

I have calls from recorded messages - usually waiting for me when i get in from work - 'are you in debt...call this number, we can help you....blah blah blah!'

I am not in need of these services!!!!! - ive just regsitered on TPS and hope these now stop! xxx

I have had this one about 10 times this week! It is so annoying! We are already registered but still get them! Everyday i have got home to 4 missed calls each one numberwithheld so how am i meant to know who it is!!!

 

[Mrs V]

If you are registered with TPS, tell the caller that you are and that you want to be taken from their data base. They have to do this and are breaking the law if they continue to contact you.

 

[melissa87]

Just thought I would add to this thread. I have worked in call centres for the last 3 years, both as a customer service agent and telesales.

With the telesales, you really are pushed from management to get as many sales as you can, and at the end of the day, it was my job to do so, just like traffic wardens have to give tickets etc.

On the other side of the coin, I now work in Customer service in insurance, and I can say that I have never spoken to ruder customers. They think they can just talk to you anyway or say any thing they like as it is over the phone. They would never dream of doing it face to face!

I'm in work now and just had my first rude customer of the day. Not going to be the last either!

I do understand though with the telesales, as I get them myself "we can help you with an I.V.A etc! and sometimes I just want to tell them to f off! hehe

 

[cheraus]

I agree with Melissa- I also work in customer service and people are so rude but that's ok- they're problems just go to the bottom of my 'to do' list! :sign0151: It amuses me how many people think that by being a complete arse they will have you jumping hoops for them- you just do the complete opposite. Now nice customers- they get the best treatment...

The sales department in my office are constantly getting pushed more and more to meet their sales statistics and targets and if they don't 'push' they can lose their jobs so i can't help feeling sorry for people that call me trying to sell.

 

[StacieG]

I had an experience today with the rud call centre bloke... the TV licesnce was behind, because they buggered it up and I was paying for two accounts.. so i told them I wasn't going to pay it until they sorted and the bloke today said well if you won't bring it up to date then we are going to cancel your account and you will be watching TV illegally. So i asked to speak to a supervisor to try and resolve the problem and he said 'No, we have 800 calls waiting you will have to wait until next week... I said I am at work and can't take phone calls and he said..well it's not my fault you are in arrears is it!'...needless to say I didn't talk to him again after that.

 

[Toots]

I am always polite whilst talking to customer services as I know that you catch more flies with honey - plus there is not point in being nasty for the sake of it.

HOWEVER - in response to the posts re these poor mites selling and how they are pushed. NOT MY PROBLEM. It boils my p*ss that they phone MY house at daft o'clock on a saturday - my one lie in - they don't take no for an answer and are frankly pushy and rude - sympathy flies out of the window and my half asleep foul mouth takes over