OYSTERCARD - Transport For London Crooked Dealing

cjgoodsell

peterbaker wrote: »

The companies I criticise here on MSE do not deserve a moment longer to consider how they will rectify things.

You obviously belong to a generation with a limited outlook (UK only I imagine) that has no idea what proper customer service looks like and has therefore never practised it in business.

So don't come on here lecturing me with puerile views based on thin air.

For the record TFL Oystercard have done absolutely nothing since I last spoke to them which makes them total idiots since they told me what they would do and then just failed to do it.

I will slam my complaint back down in their faces again at a time to suit me, thanks.

Do you actually know anything about me!?!!?! No you don't I've expressed my opinion!! Obv like others said you dont like it!

As for Customer Services I have worked in a Customer Service role for 9 years (since I left school) and have been recognized by the company (big companies) for my customer service awards... Also put thru various course and substantial training...

When it comes to customer service you have always put yourself in both the shoes of the customer and the representative of the company!!!

For them not doing what they said give them a few days send your complaint in WRITING! outline how you want it to be resolved and give them timescales etc... Maybe this way you'll get a much better response!

peterbaker

A Customer Service role for 9 years? WOW! That means you might even have had a taste of what customer service was at the end of the last century

At the end of last century there was no customer service worthy of the name in the UK. There hadn't been any since the mid 90s when some bright sparks decided that computers could be used to facilitate call centre offerings and after that, customer service in the UK soon flatlined. So what you have been practising, training and receiving awards for must have been something else

I don't do complaints in WRITING except when it suits me, like HERE :money:

cjgoodsell

peterbaker wrote: »

A Customer Service role for 9 years? WOW! That means you might even have had a taste of what customer service was at the end of the last century

At the end of last century there was no customer service worthy of the name in the UK. There hadn't been any since the mid 90s when some bright sparks decided that computers could be used to facilitate call centre offerings and after that, customer service in the UK soon flatlined. So what you have been practising, training and receiving awards for must have been something else

I don't do complaints in WRITING except when it suits me, like HERE :money:

Well thats your look out... from experience complaints in writing get better treatment... purely because you dont have the customer ranting at you on the phone or in your face which influents your decision on how much/how its resolved and makes that representative less helpful! In turn making you more upset! vicious circle!

Also call centres can be a good thing majority are trained in just data input! However you do have trained staff to support the customer service roll! As for majority of companies they ask for comlaint in writing ... thats good just do it special delivery (not recorded as we have royal mail giving us post as recorded and not asking for a signature or just shoving it thru the letterbox) that way you know its in their office and if its lost something else you could add if you have not had a response!

By all meets rant/warn people on here! But take into consideration there views and dotn run them down! your not hte only person on this earth!!

DCFC79

Whos next on your list then PB

peterbaker

Well tonight I have rationalised my thoughts on TFL's Oystercard.

During the recently described episodes I have actually bought some additional Oystercards to avoid the Pay by Cash surcharges on TFL.

One big difference from previously is that I haven't linked my Oystercards to Credit Cards. I am now thinking 'Why would anyone want to, anyway?' because it is so easy now to top-up at the many machines in central London stations without risking TFL's crazy Auto Top-Up muggings :money:


One of my recently bought cards got down to £0.20 tonight and I so I used a second backup on the bus.

When I got to the station at the end of the busride I thought well actually I have one too many Oystercards in my pocket - I wonder how easy it is to get my £3 deposit and £0.20 credit back on the spent one at the ticket office.

Easy as pie actually. It took moments.

So why oh why have TFL's "Oystercard Team" (sic) taken my Auto Topped-Up version of the card and snaffled my £6.70 with no sign now that they intend to give it back??


I have a suggestion for the Mayor, several actually:

:idea: 1. Scrap Auto Top-Up.

:idea: 2. Be Fair to your customers - your station staff are fair people. Empower them.

:idea: 3. Sack the Oystercard Team (all of them including the crooked accountants) and then offer any good ones a chance to apply for proper customer service jobs in the stations.

:idea: 4. Give the responsibility for all Oystercard customer service and discretion on refunds and reversal of penalty charges back to station staff overseen by station managers on duty who are NOT incentivised to deliberately restrict fair refund policy.

:idea: 5. Instruct the Oystercard Team to check their records and track down peterbaker's complaint once and for all and send him £6.70 tomorrow without fail and make sure they don't actually owe him £26.70 (because he isn't actually sure himself right now!)


There's one reason why Boris and TFL won't do this of course:

There's a massive pile of pre-paid Auto Top-Up credit sitting in TFL's bank account, some of it completely 'orphaned' from its original owners because it is forgotten about, some taken wrongly as latent "No Touch Out" penalties. Some may even be in Iceland :rolleyes:.

The crooked accountants whose jolly wheeze it was to trap that pile of money and hold on to it, just can't bring themselves to give it back.

I don't begrudge TFL the £3 deposit money and any benefit they get on encouraging customers to buy more than one £3 card and more than one back up (one in the suit top-pocket, one in the drawer at work, one at home) but Auto Top-Up? Don't make me laugh (or cry)

omen666

They do not encourage customers to buy more than one card for themselves, again a factless statement by you. If they lose the card then rightly so they should lose the £3 paid for it, it is afterall a deposit for the card in question. Only a dumbass would by several for the sole use for themselves. There is no benefit at all in doing this.

You post utter drivel on here and when people give advice you throw it staright back at them and let rip. You need to get a life knobjock

Freddie_Snowbits

The only thing crooked about Oyster card is the card creep who tried to clone my card and use it in London. You failed as Oyster card noted the transaction and flagged this to my bank, hence stopping the fraud.

DCFC79

peterbaker wrote: »

The crooked accountants whose jolly wheeze it was to trap that pile of money and hold on to it, just can't bring themselves to give it back.

there you go again calling people crooked when they're not crooked

peterbaker

Yes DCFC, they will remain crooked in my book until they decide that they really ought to investigate this complaint properly and give the refund, don't you think?

You will have noticed that I have no compunction in labeling people/companies crooked when I think it is so, challenge them and then they do not do the things they say they will do to rectify the situation. You have to live a little to get to that level of confidence and sleep nights, and surprise surprise, I have and I do.

I am perfectly happy to retract my comments the moment I see evidence to the contrary. That would be receipt of a cheque for £6.70 in tomorrow's post and a note confirming that actually no £20 Top-Up succeeded beyond the £3.70 credit and the £3 deposit on the confiscated card.

And omen, try reconfiguring your mind as a fare-paying customer who wears more than one suit, inhabits more than one room in London each day for once instead of as that dumbass as you put it. I was not criticising Oystercard for encouraging people to hold multiple PAYG Oystercards. They don't directly, or at all perhaps. What I meant was that I would not mind if they did, so long as it was as easy to get refunded credit and deposits as it was last night when I cashed in my NON-Auto-Top-Up Oystercard.

uktim29

He's worse than Victor Meldrew!