Quality verses quantity ...

How many times have you heard the above phrase?

It was a constant, key theme for me in the CAB service.  Any bureau with a good level of service will have queues - both on the phone and in the waiting room.  The problem with hurrying through the clients enquiry is that you might miss an important piece of information that could resolve their problem ... and more often than not, it would be in a complex area of law.  So as an advice worker, casework supporter or manager - it was essential that all the relevant facts were explored.

When I look at customer services operatives in companies nowadays, it's clear that they all have a deadline to meet per call.  They're under pressure to end the call, relevant information isn't then digested, assumptions are made based on misinformation and 'bang!' - they're trying to terminate the call.

I had to phone up 'Nectar' this morning because my account had been frozen.  I couldn't access it on the net.  I was told by a phone operative that the account had been closed because I hadn't used my card in the last 12 months.  I told him that wasn't the case and that I had been purchasing fuel regularly from the station around the corner.  He said that I had probably accidentally used someone elses card or key fob instead of mine.  After having explained to him why that was not possible, he said that he would open up another account for me.  Luckily I found a receipt that listed a 'Nectar' account number from the last time that I'd swiped mine ... and it wasn't my account number.  It resulted from swiping my fob though.  We ended up on the 'you must have swiped somebody else's fob by mistake'.   I'm thinking - 'yes, that's what I do - I forget the fob that's on my key ring and I reach back to the person behind me in the queue and I swipe MY points onto THEIR cards for the hell of it.

I eventually get to a call supervisor - surprise surprise - the version of events that the manager has bare no resemblance to the facts of the complaint.  So I start all over again!

If you have a Nectar account - check your statements as this is a regular occurence and it stems from this:  Operatives from retail outlets are told to 'Scan' your cards or fobs - NOT to swipe them on card readers.  When they're swiped - your points may end up on someone else's account - so swiped indeed!  So insist on your nectar fob being scanned! As directed by Senior Nectar Customer Services operative.

Best way to check if your account is active is to log in online, as they don't send you any notification to say that they've closed your account down.  http://www.nectar.com/my-account.points is the link you need.

I had to persist to get them to address the issues raised here.  They're going to check the other account - setup a new account for me and transfer the points they closed down - plus all of my points that have been going to this unnamed person somewhere in the country.

Have a good Monday,

Wolf