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Re: Customer chance meeting!
Martin wrote:But in my case it always pays to ask sometimes, you never know who or what your customers are?
The very reason I don’t ask, I know what a lot of them are but I’m not gonna say it in public! 😆
K.
AFAIK, the original sender of the email is responsible for the loss of data but it may be dimished if you don’t have some virus protection.
But then again, if it’s a private mail address and that’s the only source of emails.. 😕
Internet law is young and unclear in places, there seems to be many grey areas, best checking with a good solicitor.
K.
This is getting depressing, I’ve had three phone calls and two emails about slow or non-payment from…
Guess who? 😉
K.
Re: CC Report On Extended Warranties
Some interesting reading for you:
http://www.competition-commission.org.u … tm#summary
K.
To me recall implies that you did something wrong or incorrect, which I don’t object to at all if I have which I do, we all make mistakes.
What I don’t like is the way that it is sometimes potrayed that it’s my (or my engineer’s) fault that some totally different fault occured. A problem that is particularly relevant under warranty as the customer will almost always come away with the “it’s the same fault” line in the hope that it gets exchanged. 😕
K.
Re: Site News & Updates
You may have noriced that we passed 300,000 page views today. 😀
Google advert thingybob has produced $49.86 thus far, but they pay it in USD cheque, so by the time the bank takes a cut (as they do) and the exchange rate is taken into account that will just about buy a beer! 😆 I’m gonna let that one build up in an account somewhere though and perhaps enlist JP again. 😈
Actually the Google thing has produced some very interesting results statistically, but more on that some other time.
K.
Re: A Scary Thought For The New Year
It’s not really that hard to work it all out Lawrence, it’s having the time to do so and not accepting some of the rubbish that we get fed by manufacturers,insurers and WP’s. I have yet to see one single contract in this industry that has an annual rate review or inflationary increase built into it and yet, in many other industries, this is perfectly normal or the rates are reviewed on an annual basis to allow for re-negotiation and adjustment. In this industry it just doesn’t happen all we get is, “that’s it, take it or leave it and tough we can’t pay you anymore”.
Correct me if I’m wrong.
That little exercise took about an hour but I think it highlights that even taking out the FACT that chargeable work is well on the wane and much profit from spares sales (both on contract in margins and to the public at large in volumes) has substantially dropped in the past decade, that we are not even being paid realistically now in labour for the job let alone taking into account other factors. The kicker for me is that I remember working out ten years ago that the warranty rates were too low then never mind now, in many cases we are all working for nothing or next to it, the numbers don’t lie.
Those inflation figures to 1998 are taken from government publications and from 1999-2003 from historical data from one of the financial websites. The 2004 figure is taken as one of the anyalysts predictions for this year for the FT (IIRC) so they are not just accurate they’re a matter of fact with the exception of 2004. All I did was to apply them to the rates from 1994 and see where it ended up, nothing hard in it.
What I think it will show (on top of the fact that we’ve been shafted over the years on the spares margins and ratios of work levels) is that I very much doubt that any of us are earning what we should be from virtually any contract we service. Remember, when you start to calculate in the increased double call rates (dropped first hit rates) that we’ve been discussing elsewhere, the drop in chargeable work, the loss of spares margins and revenue, increases in basic costs and all the other factors where do you end up?
Even taking the very basics of those figures you had an average call cost in 1994 of £33.19, today that should be an average of £43.58 before you factor in all the other bits ‘n’ bobs which is what I’ve been banging on about for ages now. I would doubt that many, if any, of us are achieving that sort of figure today.
Professor of economics, no. Gradute of real-world economics learned the hard way, maybe. 😉
K.
Re: Reviews
eastlmark wrote:just as well one of us keeps backups eh!
Have re submitted it but you may need to find the photo.LOL, yeah very true. The picture is still there in the site I’ll tick it back on there and adjust the total views for the page. Thanks.
eastlmark wrote:By the way, should these reviews be aimed at a potential buyer or a service person?
Your call on that, I’ve tried to aim them at a consumer’s point of view with a bit of a service slant on them as best I can.
K.
Module??
Is that not one of those daft Merloni things where the “timer” is really just a slave for the module?
I’m not sure as I’m not that familiar with the newer Merloni products from that stable but the Servis ones seem to be going down that road as well now. 🙁
K.
Re: Site News & Updates
Well two days into 2004 and we have our busiest day ever…again!
Added a “self-help” section in the articles, if anyone can add or correct me please feel free to open a thread somewhere and do so as it’s a work in progress, like all the rest. 😉
Also sorteed the reviews out and added a few, please feel free to add to these as well. Don’t worry if it’s not gramatically correct or long, I can soon sort that and flesh it out by editing.
Can someone please do some reviews on Zanussi, Whirlpool, Hotpoint (WMA would be nice :twisted:) and Hoover products? Love them or hate them you lot must have some opinions on the products!
K.
Sent by email as well, but the body of the text I used is below. Basically the trick is to put the onus on the customer and that it is at their behest that we continue:
The Owner/Occupier
Dear Sir Or Madam,
Our engineer has determined that the manner of either your appliance installation or the fittings surrounding it is installed in such a way that damage may be caused by attempting to remove it. For this reason our engineer must decline to attempt to remove and repair your appliance.
Although we can, at your request, remove the appliance please be aware that we are acting upon your instruction not of our own volition. Our engineer will have already made the attempt to remove the appliance and cannot safely extract it without the risk of damage being caused to carry out any necessary repairs. Acting on instruction from his superiors, the engineer cannot proceed with this work without your permission to attempt to remove the appliance and we would appreciate if you could sign the copy of this letter as proof that you have given this instruction.
Please be aware that this in no way negates your rights as a customer of N. W. Appliance Repairs Ltd., manufacturer or insurer.
Sincerely,
On Behalf Of N. W. Appliance Repairs
Attending Engineer …………………………………………………………………….
Customer …………………………………………………………………….
Date …………………………………………………………………….In all honesty though, once they see this they usually tell us to leave it and that they’ll call the installer back! 😉
K.
