A rather strange Vodaphone service experience

Vodaphone is a UK cell phone supplier, with whom my wife and I have a contract. We also have in the house a 'SureSignal' device from them, which is quite handy as we're out in the country and get little or no signal. The SureSignal plugs into the router and does the mobile phone stuff via the internet. Usually it works well but then it worked only intermittently and finally stopped working. So I found my way to the online chat with their service folks who were very helpful, though I had to sign off and wait for resets and things several times. Eventually, they concluded that the box on the wall was dead and I needed a new one. Fortunately, it was just about within warranty. They offered to send me one, but I was going to be away for a while.

And this is where it started getting strange.

I asked the online agent if my local Vodaphone store had a SureSignal device for me. Yes, they said. It's there. So I drove into town (I'm out in the countryside). The chap in the store was very friendly but rather confused by the assertion that I'd been promised a device there. No, the online agent must have misunderstood, he said. But hang on, he said, I'll check if there's one in the next town. Type, type, type. Yes, no problems. You can go there to pick it up. But I'm going away, I said, could you get them to send it here so I can pick it up when I'm back? No, said the nice chap. We're not allowed to move stock between stores. Strange, I said. How about if you order one in for me? No, he said, he couldn't do that either. Even more strange, I said. So I drove to the next town and picked up the SureSignal, took it home, installed it and now it's working just fine.

In a time where customer service is critical for such businesses, I'm baffled that they have such policies in place. It's just bizarre. Their entire business is based on delivering service to customers, and yet they can't ship stock between stores and can't even order in a replacement product for me. Some people might get angry about this. They might demand compensation for having to drive to another town. But I just didn't want the stress of anger. So I wrote a blog instead.

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