Re: Complaints to Virgin Media. How not to do it.
 

We'd get the usual same 7 or 8 types of caller and it's not exclusive to Tmobile - I'll bet VM has its own list of callers that most of its customers adhere to. It's not a negative thing, it's something focus groups put together to improve service and iad training where possible. In fact just about any reputable callcentre would have such a 'list'. But in your case I was talking about the type who will accuse the agent of lying just because you can't have what you want.

But how would you know if they were in a meeting or not? How could you deduce from that that the agent is lying? On what basis would you accuse them of being liar? Simply because you can't have what you want? If it turned out the agent was lying then they deserve instant dismissal. But YOU have no way of knowing at that point and no right to call them a liar.

Re: Complaints to Virgin Media. How not to do it.
 

If they tell me, for the third day in a row, that every single manager in the entire company is in a meeting, I can assume that is a lie. Because there is not a business, of this size, in the world that would call every single manager it has, into a meeting at the same time, for three days running, without leaving adequate cover. Do you think that VM is that incompetent?

If I get told that the call handler cannot transfer me to someone in the UK, because they don't have the facility to do so, whereas that same morning I was transferred to someone in the UK, I can safely assume they are lying.

Re: Complaints to Virgin Media. How not to do it.
 

OK you need to know a few things. Tmobile (and presumably other companies too) get all team leaders and above in to daily meetings. Usually twice on a shift, occasionally more - it might have changed recently but that's how it was when I left 3 years ago. The cover that's left in place would be the Senior Team Member, usually 2 on each team. These are people with numerous years' experience and have passed internal exams to prove their competency. Should a caller demand an escalation when one of these meetings is on, they'll get no further than an STM. If they're not happy at that they can wait for the TL to call them back.

So yes, it's quite feasible for a company to temporarily remove all management from the callcentre floor for meetings. Maybe VM do the same, I have no idea.

In any case I'm glad you've backed down from assuming someone is lying if they won't pass you on to a manager, to assuming they're lying if it happens 3 days in a row.

I'm assuming you're talking about Indian callcentres? Don't get me started on those :afire:

Re: Complaints to Virgin Media. How not to do it.
 

If you were put through to a UK support agent, then that was pure luck.
The call tree doesn't allow for transferring to a country unless its the 50Mbit support line.

Re: Complaints to Virgin Media. How not to do it.
 

Now there's some very useful inside info. :tu:

Flyboy, how safe do you suppose your assumptions to be now?

Re: Complaints to Virgin Media. How not to do it.
 

It's always worked for me...

Re: Complaints to Virgin Media. How not to do it.
 

Just as safe as they were before. It is not luck, because I get told by the UK call centres that there should be absolutely no reason whatsoever why the call cannot be transferred to the UK.

It is nothing to do with luck, VM is the country's second largest telecommunications company, Hutchison Telecom (Three Mobile) is probably the world's largest telecommunications company, I would imagine they would have the capabilities. In fact, I know they have the capabilities, because they demonstrated that and they have told me so.

What has the bandwidth got to do with transferring calls?

Re: Complaints to Virgin Media. How not to do it.
 

So, to summarise, your response is:

1. I'm going to pick and choose which staff member I listen to. I prefer the ones who tell me what I want to hear.
2. I'm going to arbitrarily decide what callcentre processes and technology a company has/has not implemented based on its market capitalisation/customer base/number of countries it operates in/other handy measure of 'largest'.
3. I'm going to wilfully refuse to understand the obvious connection between service tiers and the physical location of CSRs servicing those tiers.

Re: Complaints to Virgin Media. How not to do it.
 

1. If one tells me they are the manager and then the other tells me the other one was lying and he is the manager, one of them have lied. It is more likely that he second is telling the truth. If the UK tell me that here should be no problem with transferring the call and it has happened before, the call handler is lying. If the call handler tells me that every single manager in the entire company is in the same meeting....., need I go on.

2. When the higher level service departments in the UK tell me that here is not physical, policy or technological reason why my call should not be transferred to the UK, what conclusion should I draw? If the UK are not telling the truth, what should I coinclude?

3. Does not answer the question, "What has the bandwidth got to do with transferring calls?"

Re: Complaints to Virgin Media. How not to do it.
 

You should try it... it works for me nearly every time :)

Re: Complaints to Virgin Media. How not to do it.
 

The 50Mb Support team is UK based and we are ring fenced and all 50Mb call come to us either through the direct line on 0800 052 0431 or via the internal transfer system.

But if you use the number and you do not have 50Mb then we have to follow process and put you back into the Technical Support queue, so do not think that it can be used to bypass the system.;)

Re: Complaints to Virgin Media. How not to do it.
 

The agent who I spoke to to sort my bill out with rogue VOD charges from a nicked STB was so helpful I asked to speak to his manager. He seemed quite shocked I was so grateful!

Re: Complaints to Virgin Media. How not to do it.
 

But that doesn't physically stop call centre operatives, from any company in the world, from transferring calls to the UK. So I dont see Chris's, Russ's and Xocemp's issue? :confused:

Re: Complaints to Virgin Media. How not to do it.
 

The is no option for UK agents we have 5 Technical Support Centres 1 English, 1 Welsh, 1 Scottish and 2 in Pune and Delhi and we have a single call tree which means that you get the next agent regardless of location.

Re: Complaints to Virgin Media. How not to do it.
 

But there is no bar to transferring the call to the UK. I know, because I have had calls transferred to the UK, not just with VM (call was transferred to customer relations????), but with most other companies.

Re: Complaints to Virgin Media. How not to do it.
 

The is no link on our systems that say UK call centre you just go into the queue, Customer Relations are all probably UK based but even they cannot transfer you to a UK agent.

If I want to transfer you to TV faults the is one option and that is the same for Customer Services and all I do is chose the department and transfer when it starts ringing, then you get to speak to whoever answers regardless of who you would prefer.

Re: Complaints to Virgin Media. How not to do it.
 

So, why then, when I had a problem with my V+ box and I was quoted ten days for an engineer, I was put through to the UK when I kicked up a fuss about having to wait ten days? This was no fluke, the call handler's manager (surprised I actually got one) offered the transfer to the UK.

Re: Complaints to Virgin Media. How not to do it.
 

No idea as the is no option for me to do it or any other agent as all we have is a menu with departments and we choose the required one to call or transfer to, maybe they dialled a number to which we have no access.

Re: Complaints to Virgin Media. How not to do it.
 

The only transfer to a UK agent for digital (TV) is to transfer to digi 2nd line.
Digi 2nd line take customer calls whereas broadband 2nd line do not.

Re: Complaints to Virgin Media. How not to do it.
 

There you go a fine answer to your question and mine.;)

Re: Complaints to Virgin Media. How not to do it.
 

How likely are you to hear if they have? I wasn't, however, talking about staff referring a problem to management. I was talking about customers asking to deal with the management..

Re: Complaints to Virgin Media. How not to do it.
 

If we get a customer calling in and the first thing they say is "I want to speak to a manager" the first thing we have to do is ascertain what the issue actually is as no manager will accept a incoming call without these basic checks being made.

If the is a fault I will ask do they mind if I can run some checks first, as you would be surprised how many calls such as this can be sorted out by the agent if they take ownership.

If after checks and sometimes even after I have sorted out the problem then I will raise it with a manager, and in those cases they either get transferred to the manager or receive a callback within 30 minutes.

The manager also updates me after the call as to the outcome.

Re: Complaints to Virgin Media. How not to do it.
 

Thirty minutes? I doubt that very much. I have never received a callback from a VM manager in thirty minutes, it is often a struggle to get them to call back within thirty hours, let alone thirty minutes, if they bother to call back at all.

Re: Complaints to Virgin Media. How not to do it.
 

Call center managers are there to manage people. They have 0 technical knowledge, they can not get your issue resolved any faster, if you want to vent then you'd be best speaking to the CEO.

Re: Complaints to Virgin Media. How not to do it.
 

I actually take ownership of any such call and ensure that the correct process is followed and give the manager the correct information and always get a confirmation back from them saying that the call has been done.