So my better half works for a local college. She writes databases and such like, and develops custom software for them. Tomorrow she has to go out of town on a training session, so about a month ago she tried to book the train tickets online. It's not the first time she's used that booking company so after two weeks she was surprised that the tickets still had not arrived.
So she rang their Indian call centre and explained that none of the tickets had arrived. But was told there was nothing they could do until the day before the journey. She just had to wait to see if they turned up until then.
So another two weeks later, today, and she's due to catch the train at 6 am tomorrow morning. She rings up the call centre. "What is your name? Oh I am sorry madam, we cannot speak to you, we must speak to the card holder only."
"But the tickets are in my name. I booked them."
"Yes but you are not the card holder. And due to data protection we cannot divulge information to you."
"I don't want any information. I already have all the information. I booked the tickets a month ago. They were addressed to me. They havn't arrived, and my train is tomorrow. I need you to sort it out."
"Oh I am very sorry. Please have the card holder call us."
Apparently someone else in the office did ring back and claimed they were the card holder. "Oh yes Sir, we will send the details to the station office. You can collect the tickets in an hour." That should be all that is necessary shouldn't it? The tickets will be at the station when we get there right?
Later that day then we went full of optimism to the station, expecting to find the tickets. "Sorry love, nothing in that name here."
"Well maybe they are in the card holders name. Can you check that name."
*rummage through paperwork* "Nope, nothing of that name. And nothing even going to that destination. Let me try ringing the booking company." He picks up a phone and gets though to the Indian call centre, quotes a reference number...."No I'm not the card holder, I'm the station master..." *more murmering* "..okay then. Thank you." *hangs up* "Sorry love, he won't talk to me. You'll have to get them to fax us to give you the alpha-numeric reference code."
We this is pretty rich. She's ordered these tickets a month ago, they never turned up, so she tried to talk to them herself only to be fobbed off until the day before and then told they won't speak to her anyway.
Oh did I mention that she had used a college credit card to book these tickets. It's registerd in the vice principal's name. So she has to ring the vice principal up after work in the evening and ask him to call an Indian call centre to sort out the tickets?! Oooooookay then.
Well this was about my limit. I decided to take the bull by the horns. Got my mobile out, and called the number. "Right look her my man. I have a reference number here, number xxxxxxxxx, you see. Now it seems there has been some cock up and the tickets have not arrived and they are not at the station as promised. Now I jolly well want something done about this, what!"
"Okay Sir, now to comply with the data protection act, can I ask you some questions?"
Damn I can see where this is going.
"Ummmmm, yes."
"Are you the card holder?"
Now have you ever seen that Simpsons episode where Homer wants to quit his job and writes Mr Burns a letter. But then later regrets it and wants the letter back? So he goes to the post office and puts on his most plummy voice. "Hello, my name is Mr Burns. I believe you have a letter for me?" "Yes Sir? And what is your first name?" Suddenly I see this scene flash before my eyes.
"Are you the card holder," asks this Indian chap.
"Umm, yes of course"
"And what is your name"
Shit! *turn to my other half* "Shit! What's his name." She tells me.
*back to the mobile* "It's
"Yes Sir. And what is your registered address."
*gives college address*
"Okay Sir, let me see....."
What!?! I got away with it? Probably eventually I will go to jail because of this. However, 10 arduous minutes later I managed to get this guy to fax the station the details the station needed to print and release the tickets. And another 15 minutes after that the fax had finally arrived and the tickets secured.
I don't really know why this had to be so complicated, and quite what the point of quoting "data protection" as the reason they could not help, yet it seems so easy to bypass. What on earth was that supposed to prevent? Do they think that after I get the tickets sorted out I was going to ask, "Oh one more thing. I seem to have forgotton my mother's maiden name and the name of my first pet. You couldn't remind me could you?"
If there is a moral to this, it's don't use QJump to book train tickets. Probably also somewhere I should be repentant for impersonating the Vice Principal of the local college. Although considering it was such a f**k up and 11 hours before the journey there were still no tickets and they still refused to do anything about it, strangely I don't feel bad.
No comments:
Post a Comment