Poor Service = No Patronage

It must have been one of those days today... Firstly, I tried upgrading my laptop to the latest beta of Office 2007, given the upgrade on my desktop at work had gone so well...

BIG mistake - 4 1/2 hours later, I had a functional copy of Outlook 2003 back on the laptop (with a Send button), to be greeted with a wonderful e-mail from our Corporate Cards, advising I was late on my Amex bill...

Bit of a story behind that... Last month, my statement advised I owed Amex for a years worth of "Membership Rewards" program, despite having asked them last year to cease the membership... Fair enough, people don't do their jobs properly, or computers screw up, and it costs us money. I can handle that, so I logged into my Amex Online Services portal, to find that yep, no reversed charge. Whilst on the phone to the Corporate Services lady, who this time DID reverse the charge out, I decided to check out my personal card.

Interesting - my personal cards last 5 numbers apppear to have changed, so I ask the lady if she can take a quick look. She's only in corporate cards, but can transfer me to the personal cards area - fair enough, so she puts me through to a service desk somewhere in Asia.

After taking 5 minutes to work out that I am me, the conversation transpires:

Me: I'd like to inquire about the card ending in 21006 that appears in my online services portal - My card ends in 11006

Her: Oh, we issued you a new card, as you hadn't used yours for over 3 months.

Me: Actually, you issued me a new card in March, and I used it in April.

Her: Oh, well, you must have filled out a marketing offer, so we sent you a new card.

Me: No, I don't fill those out, as I only use my Amex for online purchasing.

Her: I don't understand. Please hold sir.

Me (thinking): got a winner here

Her (after 5 minutes): Yes sir, it appears that you requested a replacement card.

Me: No, the only card I ever had replaced was when my wallet was stolen in 1993.

Her: Oh, well... Can I place you on hold again...

Me: Why not?

Her (10 minutes later): Thank you for waiting, it seems that you requested a new card.

Me: Can I speak with your supervisor please?

Her: Can I help you with something else?

Me (thinking again - someone who understands the English language would be good): No thanks, just someone in a more senior position, to whom I can voice my displeasure.

So, after re-iterating my story again, and being placed on hold for at least another 20 minutes, I was still being advised that I had asked for a new card, filled in a marketing offer, or that the marketing people had sent me a new card, due to my not using mine in (now) 6 months! After the supervisor finally working out that she didn't know how to answer my question, she told me she'd look into it further, and call me back...

10 minutes later, I get a phone call from Dad... Amex had called for me at their house, despite having confirmed my mobile number 3 times... So I call back Amex, and she's gone home, my card is still on hold - although the operator I'm talking to now can activate the card I have in my wallet - how, I don't know, seeing as I've been told earlier that it was cancelled, and that all the senior staff are in a meeting, but someone will call me back (I'm still waiting 4 hours later)

Where to go from here?

Well, the way I see it - I get my personal Amex re-associated with their Membership Rewards program, I transfer all the points away from Amex, to the Qantas Frequent Flyer Program, and cancel my personal card, and give my corporate card back.

And if ANYONE from Amex does ever decide to call me back, which I doubt will happen, I'll no doubt have to go through the entire process all over again.

To me, offshoring ANY kind of helpdesk to a service center where English is NOT the first language is a huge risk to a business.

The first person I spoke to was in Sydney, and spoke the same English I do, and understood my requirements 100%, and fixed my problem.

The following 3 people I spoke with are no doubt located in Singapore or Malaysia, and were struggling to understand what I was saying, let alone what I wanted.

The end result? American Express lose my custom, and I pass on the word as to how bad their customer service is.

Very disappointing, and I'd really like someone to yell at who has a sufficient grasp of the English language to understand my problem!