Do Your Emails Just Generate Calls to Process First Agents?

I recently received a strange Email from my Bank regarding my credit card. The kind of Email you love to receive because you have no idea what it means and now you’re going to have to pick up the phone and make a call. I hate waiting in queue so I’m not much different from most of our Customers.

The email also had a lovely added twist for my confusion.  In essence it said  (not exact wording):  “Surprise!  we’ve moved your old card stuff to a new card.”  So now I’m wondering, Identity theft?  Lost card?  I quickly checked and still had my card, so one fear off the list.

Before calling, I went to my online account to see what my information said.  Sure enough, there is a new credit card number and recent purchases from the old card are there. But wait..for security reasons, there are only the last 4 digits of the new card visible.

What is the new number? Why do I have this number? What does it all mean?  I feel trapped in one of those old Sunday Night Mystery movies without Columbo to help me. 

The fun continues when I call the 800 service line and reach one of most non-empathetic Agents I’ve ever had the pleasure of speaking with.  I explained the email I received and my concerns.  The first thing she does is begin her Process steps.  As you may know from my other posts, my mantra is “Empathy first, process second.” Needless to say and yet I must say it, my Moment of Truth is not a good one at this point.

The Agent asks me to verify the new account number I’m calling about.  I tell her that I only know the last 4 numbers. She says, “Since you said you were online, your number will appear to the left of your account”. Now we have a problem.  She doesn’t know that other accounts have the entire number visible but the credit cards only show the last 4 numbers. She may love her processes but she obviously needs training on the online screens. Another Moment of Truth…wrong information given.

I explained again that I could not see the number and repeated that I was not only calling to find out what it was, but also why I no longer had my old account.  She finally told me after more probing that while it appeared that my account had not been compromised, a percentage of customers who had shopped at (blank) store, as I had, had issues with their cards so accounts were closed and then reopened with new numbers.  I asked her when this had happened.  She replied that she didn’t know.

I had to ask every question I could think of because she did not offer any further information.  Finally, she told me that I would receive a new card in 7 to 10 days. Yet another Moment of Truth downhill slide for me.

“What?  First you people (yes, I love that standard angry customer phrase too!) move me to a new credit card number and now you can’t expedite the card for me?”  She replied that it was already in Process (she really did love her process) and I would just have to wait.  She could give me the new number over the phone due to the waiting time but not the security code on it. She added that she could do nothing else to help.

No apology.  No empathy. No interest in me.

“Why yes…I’d like to take your customer survey at the end of the call.”

It all started with an email….