How to Get the Customer Service You Are Entitled To As a Consumer

Although most companies have some sort of customer service department, not all are good at providing customer service. If you have an issue or problem and feel you are not getting the service that you deserve as a customer of that business, then you have the right to escalate your request to the next level. There are specific steps following a proper order of business for escalating a customer issue or problem with a company’s service or product.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

1. No matter how angry you are about something you feel a company did wrong, when talking to their customer service representative, be polite and friendly. Not many people respond well to rudeness or yelling, even when they are trained to deal with frustrated customers. As a customer you are entitled to be treated with respect, you get it by showing the same consideration to the person you are talking with. State your request as clearly as you can, providing as many details as you feel are needed to get your point across. Always ask who you are talking with so you can document the conversation and ask for this person again if you need to call back with more details or follow-up. If they resolved your problem, say thanks using their name. Otherwise, try the next step.

2. If your problem is not resolved or is not being worked on by the first person you talked with, ask to speak to someone else who may have more experience with your type of problem. Often there is a technical expert or product support person who is the second level of response for customer issues. If the service representative will not transfer you to another person, call back and hope you get a different person who is more willing to help or knows more accurate answers to your questions. If your issue is resolved, be sure to say thanks. If not resolved, continue to next step.

3. Stay calm even if you have talked with two people and get the same BAD answer or totally different answers, ask to be connected with the customer service supervisor. As a customer, it is your right to escalate your issue if you do not feel you are being properly helped. Typically the person at the supervisory level of customer service can provide more creative solutions then those the first line service representatives are aware of. Again, ask for the supervisor’s name and be sure to thank them if they are able to help you.

4. If you are not put through to the supervisor or they also appear to be unwilling to help resolve your problem, you can write a letter or email to a company leader. Include your documented information on what you have done so far to try to solve your problem with their organization, include names and dates. Send this letter or email to the Division Manager, Company President, or Corporate CEO. You may be able to find their name on the website for the company you are dealing with. Often you can mail letters to the address listed on the website and it will be forwarded to the correct office. However, you may not be able to find email addresses on the company website. If you prefer to send an email and the necessary contact information is not on the website, you can do an internet search for the name you found. They may be listed on a social networking site that you are a member of and you can contact them through that channel instead.

5. If all else fails, you can file a complaint with the Better Business Bureau (BBB) at http://us.bbb.org/. Consumer complaints typically must be filed through the BBB office nearest the location of the company the complaint is against. You will have to document everything you have tried to do to resolve your issue with the company in your complaint.