Please Hold While We Make You Craz(ier)

I hate when mornings start like this!

Just checking my online banking when I come across an error. Not my error, but an error on my health insurance company's bank. My premium was $898. I wrote a check for $898. When the check went through my bank, it was for $298. Wha? How? Huh?

Luckily Yaya works for my bank, so I give her a buzz and she says she'll find out what's going on on their end, but to call the insurance company. I dig out the paperwork from my bill and call the 800 number. The game begins... press 1, say "customer service" and the dreaded please hold all our representatives are busy. So I hold. K needs a diaper change, kids are hungry, cereal falls on the floor, K starts crying, I sit and wait.

Twenty minutes later a chipper CSR takes my call. I explain what's going on, twice because she doesn't 'get it,' and then she says, "can I put you on hold while I investigate?" What if I said NO, you can't i've been smelling my daughter's poop for 20 minutes already, seriously I don't have time for this kind of waiting right now?! Well, I don't. But, I still have this issue to resolve, so "sure" is the answer she gets..and I said it really cranky-like.

I need to change K. I put the phone on speaker and listen to the 45th statement of thank you for holding, we'll be with you shortly and I'm ready to shove the phone into the dirty diaper. Then out of nowhere...CLICK. CLACK. CLICK. The line disconnects. NOOOOOOOOOOOOO! I quickly redial the 800 number and go through the whole damn process again.

We care about your call, please stay on the line for the next available representative. I kid you not, 25 minutes later I'm ready to snap. The house is falling to pieces around me. You all know what kids do when you're on the phone, they wig out.

I can't wait on the phone any longer. I just can't. I've already gone to the restroom, changed my clothes, changed a stinky diaper, ate breakfast and was ready to strap the damn phone in a Baby Bjorn so I would have use of my two hands!!!

I hung up the phone. Not any sooner did it start ringing. Please let it be that same twit that put me on hold so we could take care of this crap.

Better, it was Yaya! The insurance company's bank was at fault, we have proof. In my online banking, snapshots of the checks are shown and clearly my check is written for the correct amount. Thank goodness. The last thing I need today is cancellation of my health insurance.

Bonus though, I don't have to call them back, who has that kind of time?!

36 supporters in group:

  1. Anonymous said...

    I really don't like calling on those customer service hotlines. It really drives me crazy when I wait for 30 minutes just to hear an agent's voice.

    It's great that the issue has been resolved. At least it saved you up all the trouble to have another 20 minutes of chaos 'round the house. :)

  2. Anonymous said...

    oh for the love of martha! That stuff is so annoying!!!

  3. Bahama Shores Mama said...

    Ooohhh, I feel for you. I hate those automated phone systems and I am ALWAYS cranky by the time I get a real live person.

    Glad you don't have to call them back!

  4. Anonymous said...

    Omigosh, I get annoyed just READING about that! I was once on-hold/transferred around the entire Cingular customer service building. It took them TWO HOURS to tell me that my phone was 'probably broken' and I needed to buy a new one :|

    Glad to hear the error was corrected!!

    BTW - TOTAL conspiracy that all children poop the second their Mom picks up the phone!

  5. Alice said...

    I'm glad that all worked out for you even though you were on the phone forever!

    My evil arch-enemy Comcast likes to put me on hold forever, but to thwart them I mash the buttons that make it look like I want to 'add service' and then they pick up immediately. Ha ha.

  6. Heather Dugan Creative / Footsteps said...

    Chalk it up as a win...

  7. Anonymous said...

    Sadly, I have encountered the same thing many times. I always get disconneted! Hope it all works out. Maybe someone with a brain cell will take care of it.

  8. Ali said...

    I hate making those calls! I once told a internet CSR to stop snapping at me because I didn't know where the DSL filter was!

  9. Tammy said...

    OMG..I HATE that...that has happened to me before..being left on hold forever and then they hang up..ugh! Yea, and what's up with the kids going crazy as soon as you put the phone to your ear? Happens all the time! Glad you got it worked out without having to call again!

  10. Tracey said...

    Similar thing happened to me..I now have a portable phone so I can stay on hold as long as they want and still get stuff done.

  11. Anonymous said...

    ACK! Not the dreaded insurance agency call;those are always a nightmare.

    Thankfully Yaya came through for you. Best case scenario maybe you'll end up saving $600 for your trouble???

  12. ** said...

    Happy endings are my favorite kind!

  13. Tenakim said...

    honest to God, my stomach was tied in knots reading that phone call! I've had that happen too many times! So glad it was their screw up!

  14. Sarah McBride said...

    ugh I HATE calling insurance or mortgage or anything like that. If my call was important they would have someone on the phone with me right away.

    and forget trying to cancel anything. They deliberately keep you on hold just to make you so mad you hang up before you can cancel anything.
    good luck!

  15. A Crafty Mom said...

    That sucks Jen, what a horrible start to a morning!! I've totally been there, *always* with our cable company. It's unreal, and like you said, the kids go ape shit when you're on the phone for some reason . . . it's beyond annoying. I should hire day care for once a week to watch the maniacs while I make those important phone calls!

  16. flickrlovr said...

    My heart rate goes up and my face turns ugly just reading about that. UGH. Thank God Yaya saved the day. I friggin' hate calling big companies for all those reasons. It always goes the same way: Step 1) They keep you on hold for 20 hours. Step 2) Some overworked employee in India picks up the phone and you either can't understand their accent or they don't understand yours. Step 3) They hang up on you, or you hang up on them out of sheer frustration after they put you on hold for the 12 millionth time.

    Phew. I get tired just thinking about it.

  17. Anonymous said...

    I hate that kind of crap so I feel for you. Like we all have time to sit there and wait...and wait...and wait.

    Especially love it when they hang up on you. UGH.

  18. Anonymous said...

    AHH Customer Service, that is one thing I can't stand to listen too Please hold, the next CSR will be with you shortly. Yeah Right!!!
    Glad it worked out for you and you didn't have to talk to them after all.;)

  19. Toni said...

    That drives me crazy!!!!

    Thank goodness you didn't have to call back.

  20. Lisa said...

    I had a similar experience last week with the phone company. I was hung up on TWICE and the whole ordeal took 1 hour & 45 minutes - exactly how long my girls napped that day. That, and the rep had the audacity to complain to me that he was missing his lunch break because of me. Are you freaking kidding???

  21. Kristen Andrews said...

    I hate those kind of things! They are such time wasters and the best is when a recording tells you the wait time! Glad it got resolved. This happens w/ our health insurance all the time somehow they say our service wasn't covered and after 50 million phone calls they admit they made a mistake!

  22. Ann Harrison said...

    Now, I've been told by someone "in the know" that if you keep punching the 0 (zero) over and over again, a real live person comes on the phone.
    I've tried it once with Comcast and it worked. Maybe luck. Who knows.
    (Just for future referrence.)

  23. Anonymous said...

    I also hate it when you use your chin to hold the phone and YOU cause it to hang up! There is nothing worse than having no one to blame but yourself! GRRRRR.

  24. Insane Mama said...

    what a pain...
    Doesn't the world understand we are busy, At least you didn't lose the insurance. Once when we were living in Texas in the summer, I just forgot to pay the utility bill and the air was out, it was horrible

  25. Anonymous said...

    Ohhh I was cringing while reading your story. I just stick the hold music on speaker and when someone finally comes on the line, I pick Lincoln up, and take him to his room, put him in his crib and shut the door. I'm going to jail for that...

  26. Rach (Mommy Learns to Blog) said...

    What a pain in the ass! As if we have nothing better to do! I'm glad to hear that your health insurance isn't in danger of being cancelled, but still . . .

    One thing I've started to do is when I finally get a live person on the phone, I give them my phone number "just in case we should get disconnected". Interestingly enough, since I've started doing that, I haven't had any issues. Hmmm, maybe it's all one big conspiracy!

  27. The Buntens said...

    Oh, bummer getting disconnected after being on hold for so long! I HATE that.

    Glad it all worked out. Life's little aggrevations. not fun.

  28. Rebecca said...

    Urgh I hate it when that happens.....holding on forever then getting disconnected - ijits.

    I had to laugh about the kids going crazy when you are on the phone, mine do more than wig out they get uber naughty and do everything they are not meant to! lol

    Glad your mum got it sorted for you though! :)

  29. Ann(ie) said...

    I work for a Health Insurance Company (please still be my friend) and that's why I give out my direct line all the damn time b/c people have other things to do with their lives. I called my hubby's insurance company the other day and the stupid thing was voice activated so I kept saying 'check on a claim' and they kept saying 'I'm sorry, we cannot understand your request'. How about bite me, do you undertand that request???

  30. Marla said...

    i've lived this many times over, in fact I think it is why I put so much off - my favorite version is when the person on the other end is half way around the world and they don't understand you any more than you understand them.

  31. Sue Wilkey said...

    LOL- my kids are always so shocked when they hear me talking back to the recording ("we care about your call."..) and I'm screaming "no you DON'T you lying scumbags!"


    p.s. downloaded "you're gonna miss this - love it, bawled my eyes out.

  32. Anonymous said...

    Sounds about right. They must take a course on annoying customers. You get so angry on hold then they say "No need to be upset!" AHHHHH!

  33. Tara R. said...

    I think businesses do that whole put you on hold and hanging up thing just to weed you out - figuring that if you are annoyed enough, you'll give up. Glad to hear you're getting this straighten out.

  34. Pam said...

    csr who know NOTHING
    being on hold hours
    health insurance companies
    yeah, those are just a few things that are on my dislike list lol

  35. John Deere Mom said...

    I feel your pain. Glad you didn't have to call them back. When I was talking to "Diana" and "Bob" in India about my computer the kids were yelling, crying, pulling on my leg, then they got eerily quiet. While I was taking the cover off the computer and sweating nervously, the kids were dumping an ENTIRE bag of uncooked rice on the floor. That's when Daddy walked in. Let's just say the "rice hit the fan."

  36. Big P said...

    One question...who is your Agent? Have them deal with it and fix the situation. Just a suggestion....

    And yes, I do read your blog.

    Great music!

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