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Re: I think Kwatts wrong
Sorry Martin, I’m not for or against the article. It does not represent my work and I accept that it might represent someones, somewhere. Its not too gloomy or untrue, its just not what I run into in the course of my business.
If a member of the public reads it….they still have to make up their own minds and this is a view they’ll consider.
Currys(mastercare) on the extended side now run a 6 week “no repair exchange service” and perhaps ken will update the article to that extent.
kevin
Oh no Martin, I’d far rather it was challenged as not but then you pretty much know that anyway.
You are correct in that I can publish what I want I suppose, either in that section or indeed in the forums, but then so can you pretty much. What I tried to get across in that article and I hope I did, was that there is no point, as a customer did to Craig yesterday, keep him in the house for a quarter hour demanding that he call the manufacturer and request a replacement be sent. Or the one I had yesterday that demanded I cancel pre-booked calls to accomodate her wish for a first call as she’d been waiting spares, then called the insurer to complain about me because I refused. The examples I could cite are legion.
This is what we are dealing with on a daily basis now, engineers and reception staff are supposed to be up to standards worth of a UN representative in diplomatic relations with customers. I think that an engineer is there to do a job to the best of his ability and do all that is possible to satisfy the needs of the customer, but the caveat of “within reason” simply has to apply to that.
Don’t get me wrong there are a lot of great customers out there that are great to deal with, but equally there are herds of unreasonable ones.
There is no veil being drawn, perhaps the wording of that line was a little too final looking, I would welcome any comments that anyone has.
Kevin is it 6 weeks now or still the 28 day rule? If you can confirm that I will update the article.
K.
Re: I think Kwatts wrong
Yes on the contract(year 2 to 5) side its 6 weeks, on the initial sale its still 28 days. I have to say that the sale of goods act still applies etc etc…….
kevin
Re: I think Kwatts wrong
Well, I’ve read the article three times now, and this thread several times and confess that I am at a loss to see what the fuss is about.
I thought the article was a very clear overview of the how, why, where and potential pitfalls of trying to get an exchange. The part looking at customer attitudes amused me, but may be a salutary warning to those looking to change a machine.
Short of just printing out the Sale of Goods Act and others (zzzzzzzz…) what more can you do beyond outlining the basic provisions?
The personal feel of the article makes an interesting change from the faceless, bland impersonal stuff that churns out from manufacturers, retailers and the other “formal” parts of the industry. And lets face it, the informal, natural, personal nature of UKW is part of what makes us stand out! A punter will read the article and think it written buy a real person, not a marketing committee.
If someone would LIKE to do the sanitised, press release version and put it up, I’ll lay odds as to which will prove to be more popular!
I say leave it alone.
Chris.
Re: I think Kwatts wrong
Penguin45 wrote:Well, I’ve read the article three times now, and this thread several times and confess that I am at a loss to see what the fuss is about.
As have I ,A lot depends on the customers that you meet during your day ,When I was working for GBDAR it never ceased to amaze me how many cust’s wanted to spend approx £200. for a washer but wanted Miele style back up ,and reliability,It is also a personal opinion ,A lot of people put a disclaimer at the bottom of there posts stating personal opinion Surely this is no different ,if anyone feels it is unbalanced then post an alternative
Penguin45 wrote:
I thought the article was a very clear overview of the how, why, where and potential pitfalls of trying to get an exchange. The part looking at customer attitudes amused me, but may be a salutary warning to those looking to change a machine.Because of the likes of Which, Watchdog etc the customers have an awful lot more information BUT a lot of people misinterpret this legislation to suit there aims
Penguin45 wrote:
I say leave it aloneas do I
kwatt wrote:
The mantra that “the customer is always right” only stretches so far.aying goes, the best policy.
K.I work on the principal that the customer is right when they are right and if they are wrong then I will politely inform them of there misconception of the situation ,I have had too many calls from manufacturers asking why I told there cust that there aplpliance was a write off etc etc when all I did was ordered parts
Lawrence
Re: I think Kwatts wrong
To me, the article is a mostly balanced and a realistic view, with a few long over due home truths that the customer’s need to know about. However, I can also see that in small parts (as pointed out) it is possibly attempting to over compensate for the way things have swung too far in the customers favour. The overall impression (mostly by one paragraph – quoted later) is that it’s virtually pointless asking for a replacement, which depending where you bought it from is not necessarily the case. Many major suppliers “will” replace machines to retain customer good will. This practice is understandable but further distorts the customer’s perception of their rights.
Realistically, if national company like Comet or Curry’s loses a customer, they are potentially losing many thousands of pounds in future business from not only the customer, but their immediate family and maybe even friends. I believe this may be an additional reason for customers getting more exchanges than they are entitled to and perpetuating the myth that if a product breaks down it should be replaced.
It is true that most customers have an over inflated view of their rights and many milk the system and try to bully and intimidate engineers and suppliers. I too have heard the phrase, “I’ve been in touch with Watchdog” so many times that I struggle not to laugh. In 99{e5d1b7155a01ef1f3b9c9968eaba33524ee81600d00d4be2b4d93ac2e58cec2d} of cases I am convinced it is an idle and clichéd threat. Besides, Watchdog would not be interested in the overwhelming majority of complaints, they are looking for sensationalism – they are not a charity, they are commercially driven TV programme makers.
I haven’t “studied†the article as such, but I think there is only one paragraph I would object to and it is this –
“If you refuse the repair then get ready for a bit of a battle as you will probably be coerced into having the repairs carried out. If you really want an exchange you’ll have to tough it out without the use of the machine until such times as the matter is resolved and with many retailers and manufacturers, don’t expect it to happen quickly or by itself.â€
Without this paragraph the article seems fair, realistic and needed to me.
Re: I think Kwatts wrong
Andy, that’s the “Tesco” approach to marketing, not many people subscribe to the theory outside of the supermarkets. I may explain that one day but it’s a lengthy thing to go into.
Lawrence is absolutely correct. The vast bulk of appliances that are sold from what i can see are low to mid-range appliances and I experienced exactly the same with Servis as well. It is, IMO, a cr@p product that is sold into a band of comsumers that actually need a decent appliance as many of them are low-income families that are either large or involved in manual labour, which equates to a lot of washing. Yet the appliances are not built, again IMO, to handle the workload and yet the customers are available for same-day, next-day service calls and they expect it. Why?
Why should the customer buying a cut-price appliance recieve top-notch service on it? I don’t get it at all. Surely, like most things in life, the service recieved should be relative to the amount paid for that service or the product, or am I missing something here?
Fine when the customer is paying for it as it’s then down to the individual company to determine the level of service offered to the customer, but when you’re on a flat rate that is often far less than others as is the case here, really is there any sense in it?
A large part of this phenomenon can be laid squarely at the door of the retailers, but also with us as we’ve been stupid enough to pander to these people for years. Now we’re reaping what WE sowed. My view is that it’s time for a change.
Lawrence is also totally correct in that customers will often, shall we say, distort the truth a little to get their own way. I too see this on an almost daily basis, some of it makes me laugh and some of it really angers me as the customers often make me or my engineers out to be liars or put words into our mouths that were never uttered. Thankfully almost without exception, the manufacturers and other clients that we work for now know this only too well and get our side of things before answering the customer. The personal relationship I have with many of them goes a long way to making that work far better than it has done in years.
The article I wrote may well not be perfect, it may not be 100{e5d1b7155a01ef1f3b9c9968eaba33524ee81600d00d4be2b4d93ac2e58cec2d} factually correct in law but it is totally correct in sentiment and delivery as far as I am concerned and I will make no apologies for it. Customers have to realise that they are not always correct and that as soon as they start to issue threats that there is no magic wand being waved that will get them what they want. If they want what I suspect most of them do, then they should have paid the extra £300 for a Meile!
K.
Re: I think Kwatts wrong
:lesson: :lesson:
Miele 1400
Energy Efficiency AA
Wash Class A
Spin Efficiency A
Service Quality AA
Servis M3016W.
Energy Efficiency B
Wash Class A
Spin Efficiency AA
Service Quality DNice label…….
I am a very bad Penguin and will find a suitable way to punish myself. After I stop giggling…….
Chris.
Re: I think Kwatts wrong
😕 Energy efficiency labels ❓ Surely Kens not got that wrong as well as he?
Please explain a little more so the elderly (me & rs that is) can grasp it too 🙄
Martin
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