A week ago, I posted a story about my friend Lulin's unhappiness with Singnet when she tried to give some feedback to the service provider. She was asked so many questions, including personal ones, that she finally gave up.
I alerted Singtel to my post and yesterday, received an email reply that I thought was so strange. The writer said the email was not from Singtel but he ended the message with his name, designation and company's name.
His email was to thank me for giving him the feedback and to advise customers on how to guard against online dangers.
This is his message:
"I refer to your email of 26 July 2012.
Thank you for your feedback. Please be informed that this email is NOT from SingTel and we recommend that customers do not click on the links or volunteer any information. To safeguard your interests, we recommend that customers ignore emails from unfamiliar sources and exercise caution when providing personal details online and in competitions, lucky draws, surveys and feedback forms. For more information about phishing, please visit http://www.singnet.com.sg/help/phishing.asp
Please do not hesitate to contact me at +65 6838 4367 (DID), or email feedback@singtel.com if you require further clarification on the content of the above correspondence. I will be glad to help you.
Yours sincerely
Dhan Guines (Mr)
Customer Relationship Executive
Customer Management, Consumer Operations
for and on behalf of:
Singapore Telecommunications Limited"
Thursday, August 2, 2012
Thursday, July 26, 2012
Lulin sends feedback to Singnet but ends up doing all the work
My friend Lulin's intention to do a good deed has left her totally exasperated. She wanted to inform Singnet about a possible scam but was put off by a whole lot of boxes to fill including some personal info.
Here's her beef about Singnet: "I received an email on my Yahoo account asking me to verify my account by clicking an URL.
"The email came from a Singnet address. I know about such scams but thought I should inform Singnet as I also have a Singnet address.
"At the Singnet website, I clicked "contact us" which led me to a short form. Typed my name, IC number, tel and email. For "type of feedback", none of those offered fitted mine and I chose comments, suggestions etc. And I typed my story about the hacking email into the feedback box.
"The short form expanded and I had to type in a whole lot of other personal info and the form expanded further. Finally, I thought that was it, but a box popped up and asked for my ADSL number. What the heck is that?!!
"Surely with my email address, Singnet can check the ADSL number (whatever that is). If this is a way of discouraging feedback it sure works! If the ever-expanding form is to help Singnet divert the query or complaint to the different departments, it is nonsense!
"Why make the customer -- who is already taking the trouble to send the feedback -- do the work? Why can't Singnet read the feedback and forward it to whoever? NOT good enough, Singnet!
"If they are still interested, the email I received is: Webmail Administrator
Dear Account Owner
July 24, 2012 5:59 PM
Dear Account Owner,
We are currently upgrading our Webmail account data base, for this you cannot be allowed to send or to receive new email until you revalidate your email account. Kindly click here https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/viewformformkey=dHZ6dFluMUdkeElzWXd2aXdQMDg1dGc6MQ
Webmail Administrator Unit."
Here's her beef about Singnet: "I received an email on my Yahoo account asking me to verify my account by clicking an URL.
"The email came from a Singnet address. I know about such scams but thought I should inform Singnet as I also have a Singnet address.
"At the Singnet website, I clicked "contact us" which led me to a short form. Typed my name, IC number, tel and email. For "type of feedback", none of those offered fitted mine and I chose comments, suggestions etc. And I typed my story about the hacking email into the feedback box.
"The short form expanded and I had to type in a whole lot of other personal info and the form expanded further. Finally, I thought that was it, but a box popped up and asked for my ADSL number. What the heck is that?!!
"Surely with my email address, Singnet can check the ADSL number (whatever that is). If this is a way of discouraging feedback it sure works! If the ever-expanding form is to help Singnet divert the query or complaint to the different departments, it is nonsense!
"Why make the customer -- who is already taking the trouble to send the feedback -- do the work? Why can't Singnet read the feedback and forward it to whoever? NOT good enough, Singnet!
"If they are still interested, the email I received is: Webmail Administrator
Thursday, June 21, 2012
Albert met a salesman with a 'darkened face'
Shoppers Albert Wee and his wife are pretty upset by the way they were treated by a salesman at Toy Outpost Singapore in Plaza Singapura.
The couple were shopping at the mall on June 16. His wife had bought two iPhone earpieces for $10.
Albert said there were a few colours to choose from but his wife chose two without noticing there was a pink one as well.
Later, when she realised she had missed picking the pink one, she asked the salesman whether she could have it changed.
Albert said he "showed a face" (obviously a sour one) and ignored her request.
To test whether the salesman would behave in the same manner again, Albert went to another display box which had the same earpieces on sale and had more colours.
He said: "I asked for one in blue and the other pink. 'World class
service' was again rendered. The salesman also ignored me and again showed his darkened face.
"As such services were being shown, we decided to leave but not
before informing Livia (another sales staff) about what had happened."
Minutes later, a dissatisfied Albert went back to the shop as he wanted to confront the salesman to ask for his name as he thought he should complain to the management about the rotten service.
Albert said this was how the dialogue went between the two of them:
Salesman: “What you want my name for?"
Albert: “Cause I want to let your management know of your excellent service."
Salesman: “My name is confidential, cannot give you."
Albert: "Are you afraid of me complaining to your management?"
Salesman: “No, I’m not."
By the way, Toy Outpost Singapore is a consignment shop concept. It rents out lockers to anyone to sell their products.
The couple were shopping at the mall on June 16. His wife had bought two iPhone earpieces for $10.
Albert said there were a few colours to choose from but his wife chose two without noticing there was a pink one as well.
Later, when she realised she had missed picking the pink one, she asked the salesman whether she could have it changed.
Albert said he "showed a face" (obviously a sour one) and ignored her request.
To test whether the salesman would behave in the same manner again, Albert went to another display box which had the same earpieces on sale and had more colours.
He said: "I asked for one in blue and the other pink. 'World class
service' was again rendered. The salesman also ignored me and again showed his darkened face.
"As such services were being shown, we decided to leave but not
before informing Livia (another sales staff) about what had happened."
Minutes later, a dissatisfied Albert went back to the shop as he wanted to confront the salesman to ask for his name as he thought he should complain to the management about the rotten service.
Albert said this was how the dialogue went between the two of them:
Salesman: “What you want my name for?"
Albert: “Cause I want to let your management know of your excellent service."
Salesman: “My name is confidential, cannot give you."
Albert: "Are you afraid of me complaining to your management?"
Salesman: “No, I’m not."
By the way, Toy Outpost Singapore is a consignment shop concept. It rents out lockers to anyone to sell their products.
Thursday, June 7, 2012
UOB's inflexibility over credit card payment annoys Shionge
For blogger Shionge, her unhappiness with UOB started when she received a new UOB Visa card to replace the one that was expiring soon.
She says: "I took it along with me to Hong Kong and started using it for my first transaction in Macau Hard Rock Hotel. It didn't go through.
"Luckily, a friend used her Visa to pay for me."
Shionge says she found it strange that the UOB Visa transaction could not go through. So she tried another outlet --- G2000 -- and again it failed to be cleared.
"For a moment I thought the card was faulty and I was embarrassed that it had been rejected twice," Shionge says.
"I returned to Singapore and told the bank about this, and it was then that I was told by the Customer Service Officer that for a new replacement card, I must inform them before I leave the country so that they could 'activate' it for overseas transactions."
Her question to the officer was: Why didn't the bank inform her about this in the first place??
Shionge's annoyance did not end there. While she was on the line with the officer, she requested for a short extension of the due date for next month's payment as she was going to be away again in mid-June till early July. This was to avoid the late payment penalty.
She says UOB's due date usually falls on the 3rd or 4th day of the month but she will only be back in Singapore on July 6.
Shionge says her request was rejected by the officer without any consideration.
"I told the bank officer that I am making known to them that I will be travelling and by rejecting me outright, they are merely discouraging customers from carrying their UOB credit cards overseas," she says.
Shionge thinks that the bank's accounting system can be more flexible. "Afterall, I have been a loyal customer and pay my bills promptly," she adds.
Maybe the moral of the story is: Loyalty does not pay!
She says: "I took it along with me to Hong Kong and started using it for my first transaction in Macau Hard Rock Hotel. It didn't go through.
"Luckily, a friend used her Visa to pay for me."
Shionge says she found it strange that the UOB Visa transaction could not go through. So she tried another outlet --- G2000 -- and again it failed to be cleared.
"For a moment I thought the card was faulty and I was embarrassed that it had been rejected twice," Shionge says.
"I returned to Singapore and told the bank about this, and it was then that I was told by the Customer Service Officer that for a new replacement card, I must inform them before I leave the country so that they could 'activate' it for overseas transactions."
Her question to the officer was: Why didn't the bank inform her about this in the first place??
Shionge's annoyance did not end there. While she was on the line with the officer, she requested for a short extension of the due date for next month's payment as she was going to be away again in mid-June till early July. This was to avoid the late payment penalty.
She says UOB's due date usually falls on the 3rd or 4th day of the month but she will only be back in Singapore on July 6.
Shionge says her request was rejected by the officer without any consideration.
"I told the bank officer that I am making known to them that I will be travelling and by rejecting me outright, they are merely discouraging customers from carrying their UOB credit cards overseas," she says.
Shionge thinks that the bank's accounting system can be more flexible. "Afterall, I have been a loyal customer and pay my bills promptly," she adds.
Maybe the moral of the story is: Loyalty does not pay!
Saturday, June 2, 2012
SingPost apologises for 'lost' parcel but Betty is not happy
In an email to her yesterday, SingPost said: “After analyzing the issue and conducting several internal reviews, we have also extended the search in our Post Offices. Despite extensive search conducted, we are unable to locate the item.
“We will officially declare item as lost by 05/06/2012 and Taiwan Post office will be notified. Investigation reports will be forwarded to them for their reviews on the compensation claims payable to the sender. This is as the sender would have the prior right of claims to the item.”
Betty is obviously not happy with its reply. She says: “I have placed a $5,000 deposit on the items (sent) and (is) likely to lose it, so who do I go to for my compensation? ‘’
The deposit to her Taiwan supplier was for “crystal and jadeite samples sent over for us to view and show our customers”.
She says: “No business people will just send things over without some sort of payment first. The agreement was that once we have seen the items and want to buy, then we go from there either sending the supplier more cash or return the items to get the deposit back.
“Hence if the parcel is lost, I won’t be able to get my money back and, to be honest, I believe the items are worth more than that.
“I am so very displeased with Singpost. It is irresponsible and takes no accountability for items under its charge. If this is the case, isn’t SingPost encouraging its staff to mishandle items as they don’t have to account for them?
“I am sure my supplier in Taiwan will not take this quietly as well.”
Thursday, May 31, 2012
Registered parcel missing and SingPost cannot tell what's happened
Ms Betty Ong is totally frustrated with the service she is getting from SingPost over a "lost" parcel that had arrived from Taiwan for her.
So she decided to google to find a way "to make a complaint to SingPost that will produce results" and stumbled upon my blog.
She says: "I am at the end of my patience and tolerance right now and considering taking them to the small claims tribunal."
Her problem started when her supplier in Taiwan sent her a registered parcel which arrived in Singapore on May 12.
She says: "As we have been tracking its movement, we made it a point to have people home between May 13 and 18. But we were shocked to see a failed delivery note on Track and Trace on May 15 when there were two people home that day and no card was left behind to collect or redirect the item.
"A call was made to SingPost that afternoon to ask for redelivery but my nephew made the mistake of telling the manager on duty that it contain something important.
"We were told that they will call back the next day. However, no one rang and when we rang back we were put on hold for two hours at a time.
"This happened repeatedly over two days. I emailed customer service to make enquiry and wastold to be patient. Finally, I received an email on May 21 telling me that the parcel has been missing since May 17 and nothing can be done.
"My sister went down to Singpost HQ on May 22 to speak to someone of authority and was asked to give Singpost 24 hours to find the item and to give a reply.
"This has dragged on from then to now and we still have no answer as the matter has been passed from one person to the next. We don't know what has happened to the parcel and what sort of action SingPost has taken.
"How can we get someone up the top in Singpost to take notice of what is happening?
"How can something like this happen when we have been assured by Mr Marcus and Ms Kathleen, two officers who were supposed to look into the matter, that all registered parcels are scanned and coded and also the delivery couriers are also coded and hence they would know the movement of the parcel?"
Betty's sister has in the meantime lodged a police report.
So she decided to google to find a way "to make a complaint to SingPost that will produce results" and stumbled upon my blog.
She says: "I am at the end of my patience and tolerance right now and considering taking them to the small claims tribunal."
Her problem started when her supplier in Taiwan sent her a registered parcel which arrived in Singapore on May 12.
She says: "As we have been tracking its movement, we made it a point to have people home between May 13 and 18. But we were shocked to see a failed delivery note on Track and Trace on May 15 when there were two people home that day and no card was left behind to collect or redirect the item.
"A call was made to SingPost that afternoon to ask for redelivery but my nephew made the mistake of telling the manager on duty that it contain something important.
"We were told that they will call back the next day. However, no one rang and when we rang back we were put on hold for two hours at a time.
"This happened repeatedly over two days. I emailed customer service to make enquiry and wastold to be patient. Finally, I received an email on May 21 telling me that the parcel has been missing since May 17 and nothing can be done.
"My sister went down to Singpost HQ on May 22 to speak to someone of authority and was asked to give Singpost 24 hours to find the item and to give a reply.
"This has dragged on from then to now and we still have no answer as the matter has been passed from one person to the next. We don't know what has happened to the parcel and what sort of action SingPost has taken.
"How can we get someone up the top in Singpost to take notice of what is happening?
"How can something like this happen when we have been assured by Mr Marcus and Ms Kathleen, two officers who were supposed to look into the matter, that all registered parcels are scanned and coded and also the delivery couriers are also coded and hence they would know the movement of the parcel?"
Betty's sister has in the meantime lodged a police report.
Saturday, May 12, 2012
Jessica Ho of Kinokuniya shows what good service is all about
My friend and neighbour, Leonard McCully, was a little peeved earlier in the week when his friendly nature failed to elicit a response from an unsmiling cashier despite him wishing her "good morning" a number of times.
But that bad experience was forgotten a couple of days later when he was served by Ms Jessica Ho at Kinokuniya's main store in Takashimaya.
"This lady has restored my faith in humanity," he says.
Leonard was so impressed with Ms Ho's service that he wrote to the bookstore's management to relate to them what she had done.
"I am writing to record the caring service provided by one of your sales staff , Ms Jessica Ho, at your Kinokuniya main store this afternoon, 11th May," his email says.
"I am recovering from a long illness, needing to use a walking stick to support a bad back. I had several books in hand when I asked Ms Ho for directions to the bookshelves containing books on cars.
"Noticing my impediment, she very kindly insisted she first park the books I had selected with the cashier, then accompany me to the correct bookshelf.
"At the bookshelf, she then insisted that I accept her offer of a chair to allow me to browse the books at my leisure and in comfort. I gratefully accepted as my back was just about "killing" me! What a relief.
"I then spent another 30 minutes browsing and picked up a couple more books.
"Ms Ho is such a great credit to your organisation. She made my afternoon shopping for books such a pleasant experience, that I will most definitely return.
"Please note Ms Ho's exemplary service. I believe it would not be out of place to place it in her record of employment with Kinokuniya."
Well, Ms Ho certainly deserves a bouquet for her outstanding service.
But that bad experience was forgotten a couple of days later when he was served by Ms Jessica Ho at Kinokuniya's main store in Takashimaya.
"This lady has restored my faith in humanity," he says.
Leonard was so impressed with Ms Ho's service that he wrote to the bookstore's management to relate to them what she had done.
"I am writing to record the caring service provided by one of your sales staff , Ms Jessica Ho, at your Kinokuniya main store this afternoon, 11th May," his email says.
"I am recovering from a long illness, needing to use a walking stick to support a bad back. I had several books in hand when I asked Ms Ho for directions to the bookshelves containing books on cars.
"Noticing my impediment, she very kindly insisted she first park the books I had selected with the cashier, then accompany me to the correct bookshelf.
"At the bookshelf, she then insisted that I accept her offer of a chair to allow me to browse the books at my leisure and in comfort. I gratefully accepted as my back was just about "killing" me! What a relief.
"I then spent another 30 minutes browsing and picked up a couple more books.
"Ms Ho is such a great credit to your organisation. She made my afternoon shopping for books such a pleasant experience, that I will most definitely return.
"Please note Ms Ho's exemplary service. I believe it would not be out of place to place it in her record of employment with Kinokuniya."
Well, Ms Ho certainly deserves a bouquet for her outstanding service.
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