named & shamed

All day I've been trying to find time to write a good old rant about what a terrible week I've had thanks to some truly appalling customer service. I was going to name and shame, I was going to lay out all the gory details, the rotten attitudes, the poor workmanship, the trials & tribulations. Take that, Audi - and take THAT, Citroen.

And as for HSBC bank, don't even get me started! Why? Because they are so bad? Actually, no. Actually, after I had a little tantrum at them about my complaints, they did everything they could to keep my business. And so they did keep it.

The other shining light in my week was the service I had from Enterprise-Rent-a-Car. On the coffee table in their waiting area was a couple of copies of a book called Exceeding Customer Expectations which was written about the success of Enterprise and their terrific people-orientated policies. Well, let me just say, I concur. Great service, guys, thanks. And in a week when I really needed it.

It's very telling that in most large British companies, when you phone the so-called "customer services" department, you reach a call centre on the other side of the planet staffed by polite but clueless computer operators. Need to save money? Put 5000 miles between you and your pesky customers. Gosh, if it weren't for our customers, wouldn't our jobs be so much easier?

So, yeah, I was going to do all that in great detail. But I'm just too tired.

Suffice to say I've had a tough week, made tougher by some awful news from a friend. Here is something that made me smile:



Now THAT guy is an adventurer!

Distance - 4.75 miles
Time - 1.45
Dog(s) - Neka & Keskiyo
Weather - mainly sunny
Could I do another 5? - no