Your 10-point guide to bossing Britain’s dismal customer services
“Hello, this is customer service agent X for company Y. How can I help you today?”
We are all familiar with the frustration of calling a company to sort something out. Life admin is tedious enough without grumpy customer service people or inane chatbots.
But jumping through the hurdles of a telephone banking system, or cancelling a subscription, doesn’t have to be as painful as you might fear.
Preparing and weaving around automated answering systems can often get you to the person who can fix everything in a matter of minutes.
From standing your ground to knowing when to escalate – and when to give up and send an email instead – Telegraph Money offers a 10-step guide to getting what you want on the phone without losing your mind.
1. Get prepared
While you might just want to pick up the phone straight away, especially if you’re going to complain, it can cause problems later on.
Having account details or statements ready will speed up the process, either if you have to enter them using the telephone keypad, or for when you get through to an agent.
If you have a paper trail of evidence about your complaint, make sure that you have it to hand. A brief summary of the key dates and facts on a notepad can also help you keep track of the main points.
Checking whether your query can be answered online can be a good time-saver. If you aren’t completely at home with digital communication, checking the documents you were sent when you opened the account or started the policy for FAQ pages is a sensible starting point.
You might still need to call after you have checked online, but it is good to get an idea of what the first responses to your questions might sound like, as it can help you get to the real problem.
Christopher Oatway, a financial adviser, says: “You would save even more time by giving the call handler details to look into your question and state that you have looked for help online and the answer isn’t there.”
Starting the call calmly is also useful, especially if your problem is actually an easy fix. If likely to prove more difficult, however, taking a few minutes to make yourself comfortable, with a cup of tea or coffee, before you make the call could help you keep control.
2. Find the right contact details
Some large companies will have a number of customer service teams. Banks, for example, often have separate bereavement and fraud teams.
If you are not sure which number is the right one, ring the main customer support line and ask them to transfer you to the right team.
If you are struggling to find a number, there are websites that list the numbers for some large companies, including Saynoto0870.com. Otherwise you can always try ringing the head office and asking to be transferred.
Searching online using keywords such as the name of the company and “customer service” (the quotation marks will help) can filter results more effectively.
For smaller businesses, social media pages often list phone numbers and email addresses where the owners can be contacted.
Many financial institutions have special lines for vulnerable customers, so if that applies to you or the person you are calling for, it can be worth making sure that you are calling the right number.
Steer clear of media or press contact details, as it is unlikely that you will receive a response unless you are from a recognised publication.
3. Get through the bots
Some companies no longer have phone numbers for customers to contact, instead preferring to direct clients through online chatbots.
This can be frustrating, but if the chatbot cannot answer your question it is likely to put you through to a real person.
Consumer champion Jane Hawkes says that the less formulaic your answers, the more quickly you will get to a real human, as the chatbot will be less likely to be able to answer your questions.
She says: “Type yes or no to every question in the chatbot menus. Choose random options to speed through the initial vetting process. Enter nonsensical answers to bamboozle the bot, or just type: ‘Speak to a real person.’
“Use keywords that are easier for bots to identify, including ‘account’, ‘billing’ and ‘cancel’, to get through.”
On the phone, saying “speak to a real person” or “thinking of leaving” can see you put through to a real person more quickly.
Ms Hawkes says the latter choice often puts you through to a specialist retention team rather than the general customer service team. Retention teams tend to be empowered to offer better redress in order to keep customers.
Entering made-up numbers if asked for account numbers can see you put through automatically. But this can also cause the call to end, so it is important to have your real details to hand.
4. Expect to spend at least half an hour on hold
While not all phone lines are busy, it can be difficult to judge how long a call will take, so make sure you budget enough time to speak to someone even if there’s a delay.
Enjoy the cup of tea you made yourself before the call and watch television in the background while you wait for the “Hello? Sorry for the wait” from the other end of the line.
This might not help to fix your problem, but it should definitely make the wait less torturous.
You can also try to reduce the likely wait by calling at off-peak times when other customers will be at work. Try not to call at weekends – many phone lines aren’t open and the ones that are will be busier.
You can also cut down the wait by avoiding calling at the end of the month, when more customers are likely to be having problems making payments.
5. How to speak to the agent
Once you’ve made it through to a real person, you should begin by answering their identification and security questions.
It is also important to signal early on if you are likely to need additional support during the call – if you need accommodation for accessibility or are classified as a vulnerable person, for example.
The identity questions typically include your age, date of birth and address, although for financial institutions the checks can be more stringent. Banks will often ask for the last known transaction on an account or an estimate of how much money is in the account.
Failing the security questions means that financial institutions are unlikely to help you. You may have to start again, which is why it is important to have the necessary information to hand at the beginning of the call.
If the reason for your call is that you haven’t been sent the correct set-up documentation for an account, passing the security questions can be difficult. If this is the case, explain the situation at the beginning of the call and offer as much detail as you can.
If you have been phoned from a number that appears to be your bank’s, end the call immediately and call the number listed on your bank’s website or printed on the back of your bank card.
The person who called you is very likely to be a scammer and no real bank employee would be upset with you for hanging up. Explain politely what you are about to do and end the call.
You should never disclose PIN numbers or one-time passcodes (OTPs) with anyone, even to your bank.
Once the customer service agent has determined your identity, you can begin with a brief summary of your problem.
If you want to cancel your account, say so. You don’t have to offer a reason, although some agents will ask. If there is a cancellation fee, the agent should make you aware of it.
With more complicated problems, it is important to explain what has happened clearly and slowly. Start from the beginning and offer as much information as you can, especially about any communication you have had from the company or previous conversations with customer services.
It may be that the agent has not experienced this problem before. If this is the case, ask to be transferred to a more experienced handler or to a specialist team.
This is when it is especially helpful to have done your research before calling. If you know your consumer rights and can cite them, you may be more likely to get the result you want.
If you feel that your issue is likely to escalate, it is a good idea to keep notes of what you are told on the phone to help you remember in case of a formal complaint.
6. When to escalate
If the agent is not helpful or says they can’t assist you, there are a number of ways to escalate the problem. The first step is to ask to speak to their manager or supervisor.
Call handlers can be reluctant to pass you on, so you may need to ask a few times. Ms Hawkes says: “Show you mean business and don’t be fobbed off. Companies rely on customers falling at the first hurdle with the first, ‘No’.”
If the agent refuses and the call is being recorded, a more assertive response is: “For the sake of the recording of this call, are you refusing to put me through to someone more senior as I have asked?”
While it can be uncomfortable to keep pushing, the likelihood is that a manager will be able to override processes that the customer service agent cannot, and may well be more helpful.
Ms Hawkes adds: “The way to win is to play hardball and show you mean business. Your serve needs to be better than theirs to ensure a game, set and match win.”
Expect to be placed on hold while the call handler locates a manager and expect to begin the story from the beginning once more when the phone is picked up again.
While it can be difficult, try to be firm without being aggressive. Call handlers regularly report horrific abuse from customers and it is not likely to get you the result you want.
State your problem clearly and the outcome or solution you would like. If there are special circumstances, such as a divorce, a death or other forms of hardship, make them clear.
Sometimes playing on the heartstrings of the agent can get you discounts or special treatment that you wouldn’t have been given otherwise. But it can also play an important role in any later complaint, as you will need to have flagged the support you needed earlier in the process.
7. Threaten to complain
Most companies take complaints seriously. For those that make complaints data public, each new one counts towards them having a bad year as opposed to a good one.
Complaints also cost companies money, as they need teams to investigate them, so they have an incentive to come to a solution with customers without it getting to the complaint stage. This all means that any threat to complain should see your problem taken more seriously.
You can ask the customer service agent to put you through to the complaints department directly. Sometimes they will be able to solve your query without the need for a formal complaint. Otherwise you’ll be able to make the complaint more quickly.
However, it is sensible to follow up a complaint in writing so that you have a permanent record of exactly what you have complained about. Keep notes of any phone conversations and include notes from them in any formal correspondence.
Many companies have online complaint forms; you should also be able to write to their complaints department by email or letter. Complaints processes are not always quick, but if a business finds in your favour it may offer compensation for your trouble.
8. Take it public
While not everyone is comfortable posting on social media, complaining about a bad experience online can bring it to the attention of customer service teams more quickly, especially if you have struggled to get through on the phone.
If you are going to publish a post, make sure that you tag the relevant account (if the company has one) so that they see it quickly. If you are complaining about an international company, make sure you get the account for the country you are complaining from.
Include as much detail as you can, including any reference numbers you have been given and the date when your problem occurred. It is likely that the company will reply by asking you to “DM” – direct message – or email a customer service helpline.
If it is experiencing high demand this probably won’t speed up the response, but in quieter periods it can be effective.
Be aware that if you post about a problem publicly you might attract attention from other social media users, including nasty comments.
You can adjust the privacy settings on most social media platforms, including restricting who can comment, which can reduce the likelihood of this happening.
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9. Go straight to the top
If you have no luck, Ms Hawkes recommends going straight to the top of the corporate ladder with complaints. This can flag the problem to more senior managers who can put pressure on the relevant people to speed things up.
She says: “Escalate complaints to chief executive level to expedite a response from company executive teams. I don’t mess about going round in circles. Go straight to the top sooner rather than later.”
But don’t expect a direct response, especially if you are one of many complainants. Inboxes can quickly become swamped and many public chief executives’ email addresses will not be monitored by the person in charge.
10. Win – or write in
If you have followed all or some of these steps and have fixed your problem or cancelled your account, you can hang up and celebrate. If the agent has been helpful, don’t forget to thank them, no matter how many others you had to go through to get to them.
Customer service can be a thankless job, and while it is reasonable to hold your ground, that doesn’t mean a thank you couldn’t make someone else’s day.
But if you aren’t satisfied with the outcome, there are still options available to you.
Lodging a formal complaint with the company concerned often means that an internal investigation will be held, meaning that more pairs of eyes will see the problem.
If you still get no solution you could complain to the relevant ombudsman or regulator, although you typically need to wait for the company’s own complaints process to be completed before they will consider cases.
If you bought a faulty product worth more than £100 and less than £30,000, and paid for it with a credit card, you should be entitled to a refund under Section 75 rules. Contact the credit card company to ask for your money back.
If that doesn’t appeal, you can email the consumer experts here at Telegraph Money on money@telegraph.co.uk.
