Ashley Posted January 6, 2011 Share Posted January 6, 2011 I applied for a career and professional development loan months ago. They acknowledged receiving it in October but only gave me the money after I chased them up (once again) just before Christmas. They is Barclays btw. I put in a complaint because I was annoyed/curmudgeoney after ringing up numerous times and being fobbed off. Got a phone call today offering their apologies, to discuss the matter and they offered me £30 to cover my call expenses. Huzzah! Genuinely surprised, at best I thought I'd get a "soz" out of them. Although they're sending it by cheque rather than crediting but whatever. Anyone else actually received anything from complaining? Usually I don't as I'm pretty easy going (believe it or not) but after three months of being broke I got annoyed. (see, not every bit of good news has to go in the 'Best Thing' thread ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbob Posted January 6, 2011 Share Posted January 6, 2011 Earlier this year, i had to wait 9 weeks to get paid from work. Yes, you have read that correctly. I just started as well and knew i had missed on the last pay-date, so i knew i'd wait about 4 weeks. But i was told by my boss that i'd have to wait 9 weeks due to the program i was on. There was no way i could last that long with no money, as i had enough money worked out for 3, possibly 4 weeks. I asked to see the person who was running the program and said that 9 weeks isn't good enough to wait to get paid. I hadn't even recieved the starting forms or any paperwork, which is part of the story. I couldn't believe their responses to my questions, it was like they didn't give 2 shites about me. Even tried fobbing me off about that they had to wait that long to get paid, which is a pack of lies. They also said something about i was lying about my financial status just to get money, which i wasn't. So at the end of 4 weeks, i ran out of money and couldn't get into work. Had the company i was working for calling me asking where i am, so i told the truth and said i got no money and can't get into work. Think i took 3 days off before any paper-work showed up. Even was given a months travel-pass so i can get into work, and a written warning for failing to show up to work (thats from the people on the program who gave me the warning). That was written off because it wasn't my fault i couldn't get in. All sorted within a week, after i wrote a lenghty letter stating my displeasure about the system and gave it to the J/C (who sent me on the program), NCC and the boss of the company. Couldn't believe they couldn't be bothered with sorting out my contract, bank details or even my security clearance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Mad Monkey Posted January 6, 2011 Share Posted January 6, 2011 I always complain about things, I don't like getting fucked around and always make an issue out of it, nine times out of ten I get a result as it's just easier for them to give me my money back/what was advertized/whatever than it is for them to put up with me. Recently my bank stung me with a charge for being overdrawn, I complained, not only because it was their fault I'd gone overdrawn (taking money from my account when it wasn't there) but because they'd made me go overdrawn again doing it. Within ten minutes on the phone I got an apology, the money refunded and a promise that there would not be another charge for making me go overdrawn again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ramar Posted January 6, 2011 Share Posted January 6, 2011 I recently complained to GAME, long story short they sent me an email saying my Cataclysm pre-order had been reduced to £50, then a few days later claimed it was an error and that it was still £60 whilst giving me a £5-off code. I complained that they'd gone against their word because their emails state if the price goes down you'll be charged the cheapest even if it goes back up (I had two emails state that). My complaint got me an extra £5 worth of loyalty points. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guy Posted January 6, 2011 Share Posted January 6, 2011 I once found a piece of chicken in my New Covent Garden vegetarian soup and launched a complaint on Facebook. Still awaiting the outcome, I'll keep you guys posted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ReZourceman Posted January 6, 2011 Share Posted January 6, 2011 I once found a piece of chicken in my New Covent Garden vegetarian soup and launched a complaint on Facebook. Still awaiting the outcome, I'll keep you guys posted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EEVILMURRAY Posted January 6, 2011 Share Posted January 6, 2011 After noticing that my wages hadn't gone up with the (at the time) minimum wage increase I set on a pr0 complaining programme. Informing my boss who didn't really do anything. Citizens Advice Bureau who informed me I had to contact the tax office or something. Then got a bollocking from my boss for going over his head, Bullshit if he thinks I'm going to be waiting for the £100ish I've already worked for. Finally got my money, around £290 by the end of it and that was when I'd actually left. Persistance pays off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ashley Posted January 6, 2011 Author Share Posted January 6, 2011 Evidentially complaining doesn't always work Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dannyboy-the-Dane Posted January 6, 2011 Share Posted January 6, 2011 And here they threatened to delete "meaningless" posts with only this image in them - they even did it at least once! Now there's none of that. Perhaps it's not so meaningless after all? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goafer Posted January 6, 2011 Share Posted January 6, 2011 Not exactly complaining, more a case of "negotiating". When my car was stolen, the insurance company rang to settle a price. Some background first: I paid £900 for the car and had £600 of declared modification, so the car owed my £1500. Their first offer was £600. I said that would have been OK if it was just for the car itself, but I had declared to them the modifications as well. She put me on hold to "talk to the mechanic who had inspected the remains of the car" (probably put the kettle on) and came back and said something like "Ah, we couldn't tell about the modifications due to the condition the car was left in. Our offer is now £1200". I won at the insurance game. Got more for the car than I originally paid for it (if you ignore the modifications). The car I bought as a replacement cost exactly £1200 and it was in much better condition than the one that got torched. I totally beat the system. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guy Posted January 7, 2011 Share Posted January 7, 2011 (edited) I only did makeshift thanks for shits and giggles at the time because I was kinda bored. Also for partly the same reason I made the thread about rep points way back in the day, I just wanted to see what you guys would do. I'm flattered it is actually being used. In honesty, like most of the random stuff I do, I'd forgotten all about it until now and moved on to some other pointless crusade. Stay tuned. Edited January 7, 2011 by Guy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dannyboy-the-Dane Posted January 7, 2011 Share Posted January 7, 2011 I only did makeshift thanks for shits and giggles at the time because I was kinda bored. Also for partly the same reason I made the thread about rep points way back in the day, I just wanted to see what you guys would do. I'm flattered it is actually being used. In honesty, like most of the random stuff I do, I'd forgotten all about it until now and moved on to some other pointless crusade. Stay tuned. Oh, I know. I was having a slight go at the Coloured Ones since they're obviously not as harsh on the use of your makeshift thanks as they were when it was created. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ashley Posted January 7, 2011 Author Share Posted January 7, 2011 We were never harsh on the usage but rather the notion that you needed to use it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr_Odwin Posted January 7, 2011 Share Posted January 7, 2011 I don't remember harshness either, but if anyone argues against me now I'll delete all their posts and pretend that my word is the final one on the matter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dannyboy-the-Dane Posted January 7, 2011 Share Posted January 7, 2011 You specifically said that if a post contained nothing but the makeshift thanks, it would be deleted. I used it once, and it was deleted. Since you're not doing it now, doing it then just seemed a bit like flexing your muscles to show off. But I'm really not bothered. I just like to tease you. I love you all, really. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jayseven Posted January 7, 2011 Share Posted January 7, 2011 Once at a 'spoons I ordered teh deluxed beer-and-a-burger, doubled up. The meat was really dry, I'd been waiting over an hour for the food. I munched at one of the patties unconvincingly, ate a couple of onion rings and a few chips, then decided to take it back. They gave me a free pint and dished up another deluxe beer-and-burger doubled up. Much nicer this time. Probably all that phlegm in it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shorty Posted January 7, 2011 Share Posted January 7, 2011 You specifically said that if a post contained nothing but the makeshift thanks, it would be deleted. I used it once, and it was deleted. Since you're not doing it now, doing it then just seemed a bit like flexing your muscles to show off. But I'm really not bothered. I just like to tease you. I love you all, really. I would like to make a complaint.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ashley Posted January 7, 2011 Author Share Posted January 7, 2011 You specifically said that if a post contained nothing but the makeshift thanks, it would be deleted. I used it once, and it was deleted. Since you're not doing it now, doing it then just seemed a bit like flexing your muscles to show off. But I'm really not bothered. I just like to tease you. I love you all, really. I have never in my life used the expression "makeshift thanks". You sir are a filthy little liar. Once at a 'spoons I ordered teh deluxed beer-and-a-burger, doubled up. The meat was really dry, I'd been waiting over an hour for the food. I munched at one of the patties unconvincingly, ate a couple of onion rings and a few chips, then decided to take it back. They gave me a free pint and dished up another deluxe beer-and-burger doubled up. Much nicer this time. Probably all that phlegm in it. Reminds me. Jodie and I were eating at a Chinese fast food place in Selfridges. Ordered food and waited ages. Asked where it was and they blatantly forgot so offered us free drinks. Jodie said "I'll have another red wine please" and I said "the same please"...which he took to mean the same as what I had before, which was a coke. D'oh. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dannyboy-the-Dane Posted January 7, 2011 Share Posted January 7, 2011 I would like to make a complaint.... Don't worry, I'll stop now. :p But we need to keep you on your toes so you don't go all power-hungry and megalomaniacal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iun Posted January 7, 2011 Share Posted January 7, 2011 Here's the text of a letter I wrote to the manager of the most expensive Five-Star Hotel in Shanghai, after I won a writing competition in a magazine I was given a complimentary stay: "Thank you for having Mrs Hockley and I stay at the Peace Hotel on Saturday 25th December, I would like to express my extreme dissatisfaction at the service rendered by the staff during our stay. On arrival, the doorman had his finger in his nose, he opened the door for us more as an afterthought than as an expression of welcome. For the rest of our stay, he was either chatting with the parking attendant or preventing the collapse of the building by leaning against the wall. This was surprising. Upon entering the building, we met Charles, who was extremely helpful in securing us a parking space. During the check in process he was extremely polite and welcoming and made us feel we were in for a very satisfying stay. Sadly, he was the sole bright spot. The lady who introduced us to our room did no more than open the door, say "here's your room, any questions?" then she disappeared. We were left to discover all the functions, fixtures and fittings by ourselves. The room was beautiful, though no-one had bothered to empty the bins before our arrival. After a quick nap, we took a shower and went out for a walk. After which we decided to take a rest in the Jasmine lounge and order a few drinks. The lady was pretty insistent that we should go up to the Cin Cin, I had to ask her if the Jasmine Lounge was still open, which we were relieved to find, it was. We planned on settling in for a long evening, however, after the first glass we found it rather difficult to locate the staff who were always out of our line of sight and chatting with their colleagues around the corner. No-one came to check up on us or ask us if we wanted another drink. We did, but after frantically trying to attract their attention we decided to pay and leave. The bill was certainly very quick in coming. On leaving our room, we had pressed the service button to have housekeeping make up the room. Two hours later, the room was in the same state we had left it in. We called for housekeeping who arrived ten minutes later - it was around 8pm now. The young gentleman actually seemed like he was offended to have been called, and made us well aware that he would rather have been off discovering a cure for cancer or perhaps solving a few diplomatic squabbles at the U.N. I asked for a softer pillow, as during our nap I had found it difficult to get comfortable and sleep. I asked for a softer pillow, and the look I received was absolutely priceless. Had I asked to sleep with the young man's sister, I would have expected a slightly more amenable attitude. But he was polite enough to agree to get another pillow. he then asked what he should do with the room. Which given that the bed had clearly been slept in and that the room was in a state of mild disorder, should have been fairly obvious. We stayed for about two minutes in the room, until we felt thoroughly unwelcome and decided to go for a walk. We found a secluded nook of the hotel on the same floor and took a seat. After twenty minutes the young man walked past us again, didn't acknowledge us, but was pushing his trolley. We took that to mean that the room was ready. We were wrong. The bed was barely made, the bins still hadn't been emptied and the towels we had used and placed in the tub for replacement had been kindly hung up to dry, they were suspiciously soaking wet having been merely damp a few minutes earlier. Settling down to sleep, I found that the replacement pillow was still thick and uncomfortable, but I decided to try to bear with it, not wanting to disturb housekeeping and their endeavours to end world poverty. After about 11pm however, I couldn't stand it any longer, and called housekeeping, who again arrived in about 20 minutes with a pillow exactly the same. The gentelman told me "it's the softest one we have" and walked off. What followed was the worst night's sleep I had since my first survival weekend with the Royal Navy. I cannot believe I had more than an hour's rest for the entire night, and the headache I rose with is still with me. Perhaps breakfast was coloured by the poor night's sleep, but the sandwich showed a distinct poverty of meat and an overabundance of greasy fried egg. The whole thing was dry and flavourless, Mrs Hockley tells me her eggs were nice but the salmon must have been a baby when when cooked, so half a gramme of meat was to be expected. By the end of our stay, we were eager to return home. And that is possibly the most galling feeling: when you stay in a luxury hotel, you should be sad to leave. We have stayed in the Ritz in London, the Ritz-Carlton in Hainan, the JC Mandarin and Four Seasons in Shanghai, the London Marriott in Grosvenor Square and the Pudong Shangri-La. We have consistently returned to these hotels over the years - in fact we had lunch at the Shangri-La on Saturday and it was wonderful, the welcome was outstanding, the service superb. But on Sunday morning, both Mrs Hockley and I were desperate to be in our own house again, and that just shouldn't happen. I realise that this was a complimentary stay, so very little money changed hands, but what was to be a roaring Christmas ended up as an enormous let-down. There's a famous quote by James D. Miles that reads something like "You can judge the character of a man by the way he treats those who can do nothing for him" and I think this applies." Yeah, I know it was a free stay and all, but I get really grouchy when my sleep is interrupted, and seriously, that headache lasted for a full week. The upshot is, we got another free night's stay. Actually not sure if we want to go back to be honest. Then there's this one here - this time at the Radisson. We paid £80 per ticket for the buffet and there was... nothing there. Low quality, bad tasting and poverty of choice. Note: "Laowai" in Chinese means "foreigner". It's not supposed to be a insult, but if you go to a hotel and the staff are constantly calling you "foreigner" you'd feel unwelcome, no? "I am writing to express my extreme dissatisfaction at the Christmas Eve dinner buffet held on the 24th. Firstly, the staff constantly referred to me as "laowai" within earshot, for example "hey, that laowai asked me for another fork" or "That laowai wants something, go and see what's the problem" and "That laowai can speak Chinese!". Now, while I realise that "Laowai" is not considered a derogatory term by most Chinese people, I believe the correct mode of reference is "Gu ke" for a guest. Having eaten extensively in the 5-star hotels of Shanghai, I have never once been referred to as "Laowai" befiore. The experience was novel. When my wife and I ate at the London Marriott, my wife was only ever called "The Guest" or "The Lady at table no. x". Which brings me to another point: my wife was variously described as "Her with the laowai" or "That Laowai's Wife" or "That Laowai's secretary". Very welcoming. The food itself suffered from an extreme poverty of choice: it seemed to consist mostly of noodles and man tou. Which is interesting, considering the 800RMB price tag per ticket. Meat was being handled with torn gloves and bare hands and most dishes were cold on the "hot plates". Had the quality been good, it could have been forgiven, but frankly I have eaten better at business hotels in Shandong. The turkey was spongy -like eating raw meat, the aforementioned hot dishes did not taste at all fresh, the desserts were about the same quality as the cheap cakes bought in the Chrsitine bakery in the metro stations. What made this worse was that the very next day we ate lunch at the Shangri-La: the price was cheaper (on Christmas Day!) there was a much, much greater variety of food on offer and all of it was served with an attentive and welcoming attitude. That we paid more for less is in and of itself is galling, but the attitude of the staff was just the icing on the cake. " they offered us a do-over. There's no way we're accepting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryuk Posted January 8, 2011 Share Posted January 8, 2011 (edited) I use to use Barclays for card cards, one day i had a knock at the door and it was a balif man, I was happy to pay him £5 a week to pay my debit off, I manged to pay for two weeks before the guy stopped coming, 5 weeks past then I rang the balif company up and asking why the man hadn't been turning up, to my suprise the bank had brought back the money i owe.. You would think it'd be professional for the bank to send me a letter stating they had done this?... I rang Barclays up and complained no apolygies as of yet, (this was a year ago). Edited January 8, 2011 by Ryuk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shorty Posted January 8, 2011 Share Posted January 8, 2011 Why would you present entire paragraphs of prose in bold? My poor eyes. And I am positive it would've been very entertaining. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iun Posted January 10, 2011 Share Posted January 10, 2011 Why would you present entire paragraphs of prose in bold? My poor eyes. And I am positive it would've been very entertaining. Because I'm Clelebrating 13 years of N-Europe? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cube Posted January 10, 2011 Share Posted January 10, 2011 Why would you present entire paragraphs of prose in bold? My poor eyes. And I am positive it would've been very entertaining. This is no place to complain. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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