Look, I understand how frustrating it can be to have a car that needs to be towed and have to wait for hours for someone to show up – especially if you pay for a roadside service.
I also understand how frustrating it can be to work customer service phone calls when your hands are often tied.
OP is used to dealing with angry or impatient callers. One day, a woman was in a big hurry and was arguing with OP about whether or not her roadside service should be covered.
I work in Roadside assistance as a 3rd party for a lot of insurance companies.
Like most customer service jobs we get a heck of a lot of abuse.
But the most of it comes from long wait times and/or not being fully covered.
This happens often but I very rarely am in the position where I get to see the fall out.
Recently I had a woman call in. She was completely pleasant but in a huge rush so she was a little snippy.
No worries I get it.
But then it comes to letting her know that she is not covered for assistance and she has a huge out of pocket expense.
When OP explained she didn’t, and gave her the amount, the woman said “just cancel it then” and hung up.
OP tried calling her back to confirm but the woman ignored her calls and sent her to voicemail.
She whines about the fact that he knows she has roadside. Then that she supposedly set up the service earlier so not only am I trying to charge her but it’s taking too long.l and therefore the price should be waived.
Finally she gives up and tells me I’m useless and says “Just cancel it and hangs up”
Being the good rep that I am I call her back to confirm the disconnect was intentional. She picks up then hangs up immediately then sends me to voicemail on follow up calls.
So, OP canceled the service request and went on with her day.
So as instructed I cancelled the job request.
A few hours later she got a call from the same woman wondering where her service was. OP said she was told to cancel it and tried calling back to confirm.
I should note intake doesn’t take long but it’s annoying to go over and of the customer doesn’t know their exact location like being on a freeway it takes can take some time.
A few hours later I get a new call from an angry customer wondering where her service is at.
I apologize for the frustration ask for her reference number and inform her that unfortunately there isn’t any service in the system.
She starts going off. I do my best to calm her down and extract the needed information.
Half way through the call I realize it’s the same angry pants woman as before.
When we start going over location I remember the drop off location and she gets excited and says oh, “you found my service? Is the driver on the way? It’s ridiculous that it’s taking this long, you should get this prioritized or expedited.”
To which I reply in my nicest CSR voice, “No Ma’am, your service isn’t in the system. I remember when we spoke earlier.
As you requested I cancelled the job at that time so it is only getting opened now and the amount will be X”
The woman was angry – but not as angry as she was once she learned not only was she going to have to wait longer, it was going to cost more as well.
Her – that’s more than it was earlier.
Me – yes the pricing changes through our the day to continuously match the market, stay competitive, and incentive drivers to continue taking jobs at unpopular times.
Her – silent
Me – also we have longer etas at this time so you will want to get this payment taken care of ASAP so we can find a service provider to avoid a longer wait. I can send a text message to you to complete payment.
Her – Stutters… But but I never told you to cancel it before.
Me – (starting to lose patience) Ma’am our calls are recorded, I notate obsessively, and I called you back multiple times trying to confirm.
OP felt like it was a tiny little victory, and doubts the woman will take the time to file a complaint about her, either.
Her – I want to speak to your supervisor… (Ranting to make me scared)
Me – No problem, one moment… It looks like there is currently a 20 minute wait for a supervisor I’m happy to wait with you.
Her – fine the. Get my service started
Me – certainly I’ll send the text for payment…
She finally broke down and paid it and gave up waiting for a supervisor. She swore up and down that she was going to report me. Either way I felt vindicated with my tiny bit of malicious compliance.
I want to give this lady a high five!
The top comment kind of wishes things had played out until the end.
You learn how to play the game when you take incoming calls.
Literally everyone has been there.
I mean, they’re just there to help.
People love to say things in anger.
I do not miss my days of taking incoming calls.
But the war stories are fun to tell.
If you liked that story, check out this post about a group of employees who got together and why working from home was a good financial decision.
Source: https://twistedsifter.com/2023/12/woman-finds-out-why-you-shouldnt-anger-the-person-who-is-ordering-your-tow-truck-as-instructed-i-cancelled-the-job-request/