I have had Foxtel for the
last two years. I love Foxtel - I love the Real Housewives, I love
the footy, I love TCM. I love IQ and the fact I can use an app to record shows
when I am out and about. When I was in rehab last year after breaking my leg
Foxtel was a lifesaver - the Woody Allen marathon that I watched meant that I
had things to talk about at dinner parties other than bone density and the
state of physio in the public system (very good but limited to rehab only, no
ongoing care). At times when it felt like I was the only person in the world at
home on a Saturday night watching the Real Housewives cheered me up and made me
smile again. I think Foxtel is great! But it is a luxury and, as a poor
student, luxuries are the first thing to go when budgets get assessed. So, with
great sadness, when my half-price offer expired a few months ago I rang up to
cancel my account.
It's not easy to cancel an
account with Foxtel. The person I spoke to asked me if she continued the
current deal I had, would I stay? I wavered (..the Real Housewives really are a
lot of fun..) but remembered my upcoming car service and stuck to my guns. Then
the operator brought out the big guns and said 'What if I offer you an even
better deal for three months...?'. I'm not going to give you an actual amount
(because you will want to murder me with jealousy - it was that good) but this
offer was gold. It was much too good to refuse and I signed up straightaway,
but not before I made her repeat it twice to make sure I hadn't misheard. I was
ecstatic.
However, the first bill
came. I'd been overcharged. So I rang up and spoke to an operator. Let's call
her J. The conversation went like this:
Me: I've been overcharged.
I was offered a contract at this amount but the bill is for a different amount.
J: That's because you were
on X deal. It says it on your notes.
Me: No, I wasn't. I was
offered X deal, but I said no and I was then offered Y deal. Here are the
details of the call I had if you need to listen to it to confirm I am correct.
J: (sigh) Fine. I'll
credit your account.
Me: Will this issue be
fixed for the next three months?
J: (sigh, possibly rolls
eyes at the temerity of customers ringing and asking her to do stuff). Yes.
Me: Great. Thanks.
You see where this is
going. Unsurprisingly, all three of the bills in this contract period were
billed incorrectly. Rather than ring up and speak to another J, as charming as
she was, I wrote a complaint letter. I included dates and times of the calls so
they could be checked and my information confirmed. This morning I received a
call from B from the complaints department. The conversation went like this.
B: In your letter you said
that you were overcharged. However, I checked your notes and you were charged
that amount because you were on X deal.
Me: Me: No, I wasn't.
I was offered X deal, but I said no and I was then offered Y deal. Did you
listen to the call?
B: No, I didn't. (My
head exploded a little bit at this point)
Me: So would you like to
listen to the call and ring me back?
B: I don't need to because
I read the notes. Since you are so unhappy with your Foxtel service, would you
like me to arrange it to be disconnected?
Me: ARGH!
Let me recap this for you.
I've complained about a legitimate billing error that occurred repeatedly and a
representative from Foxtel who didn't even bother to research either of the
two calls I made rang me up to tell me I was wrong and offer to
disconnect me. No apology, no offer of compensation and no details of how I
would be refunded. I asked to speak to B's manager, L.
L: I understand
your frustration. However, the notes clearly say you are on offer X.
Me: *head explodes* LISTEN
TO THE CALL PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE LISTEN TO THE CALL!
L: We don't do that. What
we do is forward your complaint on to our executive team, who Follow It Up. If
we listened to all the calls we recieved we would have as many call-listeners
as we do people working in the call centre. That would be silly!
Me: You don't have to
listen to all the calls. Just listen to the one I made. The information about
it is it in the letter I wrote.
L: We’re not going to do
that. Sometimes, errors get made. Sometimes customers don’t understand what the
operators say. I appreciate we’re you’re coming from but you’re on a really
good deal. If you don’t like it you can always cancel your service.
Me: I would like to be
compensated for the time I have spent ringing you and writing to you about
errors your company made and did not rectify.
L: Well, we’re not going to
do that. What, you want us to pay you $25 an hour for your time?
*HEADDESK*
Foxtel, you are not doing
your customers a favour by allowing them to purchase pay TV from you. Customers
are an integral part of your business model and without them, you wouldn’t have
a business. When a customer contacts you with a legitimate complaint about an
error that your company has made, take the time to research the error. Once you
have actually done your research, treat your customer with respect. One way to
start a call might be “Thank you for taking the time to contact us. We’re sorry
that our error inconvenienced you. What can we do to make it right?” rather than "You're wrong. Please go away now."
I would have been happy
with an apology, a refund for the amount I was overcharged and a free pen.
Instead I got attitude from a company who couldn’t even be bothered doing basic
research about my complaint. I could have been so impressed with Foxtel and how
they dealt with me that I decided that they were worth spending money on and I
should trim my yarn or book luxury budget rather than my TV money. Instead, I
am wondering why I would give my money to a company that thinks so little of
their customers. Shame, Foxtel, shame.
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