Qwest: Bad Corporate Customer Service Example

I have just spent the last few days in Qwest hell. The original problem? My six-month old wireless modem blew out. It was under warranty, so Qwest shipped me a new one. Nevermind that it was a huge inconvenience and that I couldn't work and my kids couldn't do their homework for six days...that turned out to be the least of my worries. The rep told me they would ship me a new FREE modem. Say it again. FREE.

So I finally received my FREE modem and Jim hooked it up for me. Got a couple of new computers and hooked them up, got everything all re-networked with the new FREE modem and my wireless printer. All in all, all this re-wiring and re-configuring took HOURS.

So, then I lose my job and all that. So of course, I start checking my bank account everyday to make sure I have enough money in there. Then on May 7, a mysterious debit appears. It's called "Qwest" and the amount is $181.75. This is neither the amount of my normal deduction, nor any combination of my normal deduction times two, three or even four. So I call Qwest. Qwest, by the way, only has customer service between 8-6 on weekdays. Pretty much bankers hours. So I call them, and get RayLynn on the phone. RayLynn was very nice, but she could not help me. So she dutifully took down my cell phone number, told me she would talk to her supervisor, and would call me back. Guess what happened next? ABSOLUTELYFRICKINGNOTHING. She did not call me back on that day, nor the next day, which was a Friday.

So I called them back on Monday. This time I got Chris in Sioux City, Iowa. Now, I love Sioux City. One of my favorite places on Earth. And once again, Chris was very nice. But she gave me the corporate line I was expecting. Yes, it was our fault (like it could be my fault!), and no, we can't give you your money back. The only option was to give me a credit on my bill. Now why on God's green Earth would I want to loan a jazillion-dollar company like Qwest $141 dollars for the entire summer? Especially when I need every penny I can get? By the way, if I hadn't had a few dollars in my savings account to cover the withdrawal, they would have overdrawn my account.

So Chris asked if I would like to talk to Enoch, her supervisor. Enoch, once again, was very nice. He also told me that I couldn't have my money back because they physically could not reverse the charge back into my bank account. I called bullshit on Enoch. Why? Because I used to work at a bank and I know that money flows pretty easily both ways. You have to know the EFT (Electronic Funds Transfer) people at your bank. They are pretty powerful folks. They make money appear, and they taketh money away.

So once I put on my mommy voice, and very carefully explained to Enoch why I needed my own money back (like I should have to explain that!), a little lightbulb popped up above Enoch's head. It happened right after I told him that the Director of Public Affairs for Qwest in Iowa is my Facebook friend. I didn't even mention that I was a blogger. I didn't want to send Enoch's head spinning around before I got my money back. Michael, if you are reading this, aren't you proud of me for not calling you first? :~)

So Enoch FINALLY got me in touch with Doris in the EFT department. Doris, not surprisingly, was also very nice. By now, I had been on the phone with them for an hour, and it was 5:35. You guessed it! My bank was already closed. Doris dutifully wrote down my cell phone number, and promised to call me back the next day. By 4:45 yesterday, no Doris. So I called the 1800 number AGAIN. Guess what? Doris was "not working that day." I didn't catch the name of her co-worker, but she dutifully wrote down my cell phone number. Doris called me back about an hour later. But alas, my bank was closed, and we could yet again not "verify" that the money had indeed been stolen out of my account. Doris promised me that she would call me today at 2:00.

I am pleased to report that Doris did indeed call me at 2:00 today. Then we three-way called Angie at my credit union (I felt like Gretchen Wieners on Mean Girls) and Angie verified that indeed, those little red numbers that appeared on my online banking screen that indicated a withdrawl, indeed were real, and that I was not making it up. Qwest had indeed stolen $141 out of my account! I'm so glad I wasn't hallucinating because I have enough problems without hallucinations. Doris then told me my paperwork would be processing and within 24-48 hours my money would make the reverse trip to my bank account.

I have compiled a few tips for my friends at Qwest to improve their customer service experience. I hope they are listening!! By the way, a free month (or eight) of service from Qwest would go a long way to assuring that I don't completely pull the plug!

1. Stay open longer than 8-6 every day. Real people don't have three hours to spend explaining their problem to 15 different people over and over again.
2. Empower your customer service reps to solve problems the first time.
3. Fix your computer systems. The reps I spoke to took at least 15 minutes to piece together the information from my internet and phone service account. It took another 15 to figure out that my modem was indeed under warranty and another 10 to figure out the amount taken out of my account (even though I told them).
4. Asking me to verify my identity by giving my home address does not give me comfort. It just annoys the hell out of me. Who couldn't get my home address?
5. Take care of the problem and APOLOGIZE for the INCONVENIENCE. APOLOGIZE for taking away the nearly four hours of my life that I will never get back. APOLOGIZE for taking the money out and not even having a clue how it happened.

I sort of feel better now. But only sort of. The only redeeming thing I get out of this situation is that I can use this personal example in all my presentations and classes now instead of someone else's. Screen grabs already done.

Comments

[Brian]

Hello there, my name is Brian and I'm a manager for Qwest. I ran across your blog post here, and read through it. I'm really...really sorry that this all happened.

I am curious if everything has been completely resolved, or if there is anything else I may be able to do for you. If so, please send me an e-mail to TalkToUs@Qwest.com, and put my name in the subject line.

Thanks,

B

[Claire Celsi]

Hey Brian:

Thanks for responding. I got my money back, but not any of the time I spent resolving this problem. If I were Qwest, as I suggested in my post, I would be giving me a couple of free months of service. Seriously. My time is worth that. I lost a lot of time on resolving this problem. A personal letter would mean a lot as well. Your comment was very nice and all, but there's something about that personal touch from upper management. They HAVE to care about customer service in the competitive environment that they're in.

[Paula Myers]

I honestly feel Q-west only hires the stupid ! 3 Weeks ago they called me to make sure my services were the best they could be. Guess what. I have had to call them 3 times because they dropped two service by MISTAKE that I wanted to keep. It still is not taken care of. Today when I called in to report that my call waiting wasn't working, I was told that it was turned off and she didn't know why. It will take them 24 hours to turn it back on. Then she had the balls to ask me if she could take my time to check over my services to " make sure I am getting the best service". Stupid!

[chen]

Recently qwest internet often has disconnection with my router blinking or completely off. Called the company, they have no 24 hours customer support. I am thinking of switching to other companies, which one is the best at middle west? Camcost? Not Quest for sure, especially after merged to Centrallink. I think if you feel a company you have never heard before, most likely they are not good. I have never heard about the Central link.

[Kelsey]

I understand your frustration. I used Qwest for two months before I moved, when I moved I called to have the service transferred and the lady I spoke with assured me that the internet had been transferred to my new apartment. Guess what? I attempted to get on the internet and there was no internet to be found. It took me two weeks for them to tell me that they didn't service the area. We switched services and I mailed back my motem to Qwest. This was August. It took until November for them to cancel my account for me and stop charging me. My last two calls to Qwest took three hours each, and like you, they had to re-fund me money because I wasn't using their services. I didn't even have my motem and every time I called in the rep I spoke with said my account had been closed. Finally I just kept asking for a manager and I was mailed a check. Never again will I use Qwest when I move back to my hometown.