Crap Customer Services from Several Companies

Annoyances with BT Shop and T-Mobile.

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Where to start? T-mobile...

Over the last few days I have been sending e-mails back and forth with T-Mobile UK Customer Services and their Complaints Department regarding their "image compression" on Web'n'walk.

Despite the many e-mails trying to explain myself to someone that is completely illiterate when it comes to web design, I got the following crap back before sending a complaint to their supposed CEO's e-mail address:

I can confirm that I have tired on a Windows 7, Linux and a vista machine all using manual dial up connections, each was able to view the web pages fully.

We do not artificially increase the size of our web pages, as it is of no benifit to T-Mobile.

I am sorry to hear that you feel the Modem software is causing so many issues for yourself. If you would like further information regarding how the Modems relay the T-Mobile signal to your laptop, you can contact the manufacturer on the details below.

How many times do I have to say SOURCE CODE?!?! The pages do not display correctly. Javascript and Cascading Style Sheets are being included in pages inline instead of linked. Their bmi.js completely breaks image data URIs by converting them to absolute URLs breaking every single one of their customers web browsing experiences (and adding unnecessary lag by increasing the number of web requests trying to get images that have NEVER exists nor EVER been linked to).

Because their code goes before everything else on the page, I can't even code a crude way to override it before it converts data URIs to non-existent image sources. Fast-ish customer service/complaint team responses, shame the guy couldn't understand my problem is NOT with the modem software (not even related to it since the same issue occurs when tethering a mobile.

BT Shop

Next day delivery? I highly doubt it, and the extra money I paid to get a Kodak Zi8 tomorrow (7th April) after finally purchasing one after months of putting it off doesn't look like it's going to happen.

I told the checkout my home address and home phone number, as well as the DELIVERY address and DELIVERY contact number. Address verification? You'll be in touch within 2 hours? As if.

You'll answer my enquiry within 12 working hours after the start of business tomorrow? 7+12 = 19... You mean you might not even get back to me until the day AFTER I'm supposed to receive what I paid for?

Am I going to ******* have to deal with a refund back to my paypal account and then wait WEEKS to get a refund back to my account because of your incompetence? Probably not, and the fact that Play.com and Amazon.co.uk have not only accepted my delivery address but also SHIPPED my products is really pissing me off.

So... my tripod, microphone stand, audio cabling, and SD Card are all probably going to arrive before you even ship my order. Want proof of who I am? GOOGLE ME! Type watfordjc in Google and look, there I am.

In fact, I even linked my Google profile to watfordjc.com so that it is not impossible for someone to know my Gmail e-mail address by knowing my website and vice-versa. Hover over my hacker guardian button at the bottom of the page and you've got my home address CERTIFIED by Comodo.

Not good enough? Do a bloody WHOIS on watfordjc.com! There's my home address, and what do ya know... my Gmail e-mail address too!

Still not good enough? Okey dokey, replace http:// with https:// and you'll see the yellow padlock. Take a look at Comodo's requirements for SSL certificates and you'll see they won't have issued it without a passport and copies of phone bills and bank statements.

If that ain't bloody good enough, here... verify the source code of this page. It is signed with my GPG key for my Gmail e-mail address. Further to that, my GPG key is listed in the PGP key server as belonging to me.

All my e-mails from my Googlemail account are not only signed by my S/MIME certificate from Comodo, but also signed with my GPG key and have the following footer directing to this website:

- -----FINGERPRINT FOR MASTER SIGNING KEY 9DE6BB74-----
AE04 BA84 CDC9 6DD4 F2B3  D1EB 4EEB 0C68 9DE6 BB74
(available from http://watfordjc.com/gpg_keys/9DE6BB74.asc)

BT, not only was it a pain working for Client Logic on behalf of you for broadband technical support, but it is a pain buying stuff from you as well and something I will not repeat. I now know I should have paid a tenner less and got it from Play or Amazon, but I guess the falsely advertised availability of next day delivery (as well as the lies about contacting me within 2 hours after saying you needed to confirm my address) were to entice me to spend more than I would have elsewhere.

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T-Mobile Follow-up

I e-mailed the CEO of T-Mobile UK after I wrote this post, and have since received a response.

He says he is getting the Mobile Broadband Team to look into the issues I've raised and to update me on the progress they make towards fixing the problems.