Cancelling an AOL account

[Buck Armstrong]

Originally posted by: wasssup

Originally posted by: TallBill

Originally posted by: chambersc

Originally posted by: altonb1
BUMP! because this guy made The Drudge Report

it's unfortunate that the CSR lost his job when he was doing what his company instructed him to do.

They instruct him with methods to keep an account, but that gay was an exceptional prick. I'd probably be an asshole too if I worked for AOL.

I had an extremely difficult time cancelling my father's AOL account a few years ago as well. I don't blame the CSR, and like TallBill said it's messed up that they fired him. He was just following THEIR policies, and that's what the problem is, not the CSR (probably).

I don't buy that. I personally would quit my job if my boss tried to make me behave that way. I'm not a salesman, and I fvcking HATE when someone tries to pull that scripted slick-willy bullsh*t on me. The instant I hear that slimy crap, I immediately start calling them "worm" and "weasel", insult them and their company, and threaten to buy my car or whatever somewhere else.

I've had to talk to these AOL pricks 3 times, and each time it was because somebody less computer-savvy begged for help. The first time it was a girlfriend, then my mom, and then my boss, and I got the same pathetic display each and every time. The first time was in the mid-90s, so this has been their standard practice for at least a decade. The last time I just told them look, I've been through this before, your Jedi mind tricks don't work on me, etc., while they tried to yell over me for half an hour.

 

[morkus64]

i had a similar experience cancelling my mom's AOL account... bastards took about 20 minutes.

 

[LukFilm]

I've cancelled my account in 5 minutes before - just say you are going on a missionary trip to Africa with no access to a phone at all and then they'll skip all the rest of the questions and cancel you in a jiffy. Make sure to sound sincere so they believe it.

 

[morkus64]

Originally posted by: LukFilm
I've cancelled my account in 5 minutes before - just say you are going on a missionary trip to Africa with no access to a phone at all and then they'll skip all the rest of the questions and cancel you in a jiffy. Make sure to sound sincere so they believe it.

lol... that's a great idea

 

[BigJ]

Originally posted by: chambersc

Originally posted by: Sqube
I had to call back twice before they would really cancel my account.

The second time, I asked for a confirmation number, the first and last name of the CSR that I was speaking to, and said that I would go as high up the ladder as I could, referencing the CSR and the confirmation number to everyone I spoke to.

Never saw another AOL charge again. And it was for my parents, so don't give me any grief!

i work for an inbound call center (an answering service for doctors, attrnys, hospitals and such) and if someone asks for my name i just say "no." i cant speak for them but when someone says "let me speak to your supervisor" or "whats your name" i say "no" and then usually hang up...rofl you and your sense of entitelment to my personal information.

If I was a caller, I'd make sure to document the date and time and once I visited the office, I'd make sure to speak with a supervisor.

It's one thing not giving your name out, but it's well within their rights to want to speak with a supervisor, and probably outlined in your SOP and training.

 

[chambersc]

Originally posted by: BigJ

Originally posted by: chambersc

Originally posted by: Sqube
I had to call back twice before they would really cancel my account.

The second time, I asked for a confirmation number, the first and last name of the CSR that I was speaking to, and said that I would go as high up the ladder as I could, referencing the CSR and the confirmation number to everyone I spoke to.

Never saw another AOL charge again. And it was for my parents, so don't give me any grief!

i work for an inbound call center (an answering service for doctors, attrnys, hospitals and such) and if someone asks for my name i just say "no." i cant speak for them but when someone says "let me speak to your supervisor" or "whats your name" i say "no" and then usually hang up...rofl you and your sense of entitelment to my personal information.

If I was a caller, I'd make sure to document the date and time and once I visited the office, I'd make sure to speak with a supervisor.

It's one thing not giving your name out, but it's well within their rights to want to speak with a supervisor, and probably outlined in your SOP and training.

why would you assume it's withing your rights? I've since left the place due to disagreeable business practices and happen to have their "SOP" sitting right next to me, (nothing related to the answering service part) would you like me to photocopy it and email it to you?

 

[BigJ]

Originally posted by: chambersc

Originally posted by: BigJ

Originally posted by: chambersc

Originally posted by: Sqube
I had to call back twice before they would really cancel my account.

The second time, I asked for a confirmation number, the first and last name of the CSR that I was speaking to, and said that I would go as high up the ladder as I could, referencing the CSR and the confirmation number to everyone I spoke to.

Never saw another AOL charge again. And it was for my parents, so don't give me any grief!

i work for an inbound call center (an answering service for doctors, attrnys, hospitals and such) and if someone asks for my name i just say "no." i cant speak for them but when someone says "let me speak to your supervisor" or "whats your name" i say "no" and then usually hang up...rofl you and your sense of entitelment to my personal information.

If I was a caller, I'd make sure to document the date and time and once I visited the office, I'd make sure to speak with a supervisor.

It's one thing not giving your name out, but it's well within their rights to want to speak with a supervisor, and probably outlined in your SOP and training.

you assume it is. I've since left the place due to disagreeable business practices and happen to have their "SOP" sitting right next to me, (nothing related to the answering service part) would you like me to photocopy it and email it to you?

Do whatever you want.

Plain and simple, you were a ****** call center OP if you did what you said you did.

And before you go spouting off about having to deal with assholes calling up all day, and me not knowing what it's like, I worked in Phones for the #2 retailer in the nation, in their #1 store in the nation. So I know all about how many calls you can get and how bad people can be.

And just because it's not in SOP doesn't mean it's not outlined in training, what is reasonably expected of a call center operator, or what the company wants pal.

 

[chambersc]

Originally posted by: BigJ

Originally posted by: chambersc

Originally posted by: BigJ

Originally posted by: chambersc

Originally posted by: Sqube
I had to call back twice before they would really cancel my account.

The second time, I asked for a confirmation number, the first and last name of the CSR that I was speaking to, and said that I would go as high up the ladder as I could, referencing the CSR and the confirmation number to everyone I spoke to.

Never saw another AOL charge again. And it was for my parents, so don't give me any grief!

i work for an inbound call center (an answering service for doctors, attrnys, hospitals and such) and if someone asks for my name i just say "no." i cant speak for them but when someone says "let me speak to your supervisor" or "whats your name" i say "no" and then usually hang up...rofl you and your sense of entitelment to my personal information.

If I was a caller, I'd make sure to document the date and time and once I visited the office, I'd make sure to speak with a supervisor.

It's one thing not giving your name out, but it's well within their rights to want to speak with a supervisor, and probably outlined in your SOP and training.

you assume it is. I've since left the place due to disagreeable business practices and happen to have their "SOP" sitting right next to me, (nothing related to the answering service part) would you like me to photocopy it and email it to you?

Do whatever you want.

Plain and simple, you were a ****** call center OP if you did what you said you did.

And before you go spouting off about having to deal with assholes calling up all day, and me not knowing what it's like, I worked in Phones for the #2 retailer in the nation, in their #1 store in the nation. So I know all about how many calls you can get and how bad people can be.

And just because it's not in SOP doesn't mean it's not outlined in training, what is reasonably expected of a call center operator, or what the company wants pal.

Absolutely wrong on both assumptions. First, I don't assume people are "assholes" no matter how much they yell or are irritated. Second, no, it wasn't outlined in my "training." First off, as an answering service, I don't work for any one of the hundreds of companies I answered for. Think of the call forward/no answer feature...it would automatically go to us. Like I said we operated for docs/lawyers/some businesses. It was never "outlined" that I was obligated to give out any information (I would tell you the name of our business if you were lucky...let alone our address, city, state, or even zip code).

 

[BigJ]

Originally posted by: chambersc

Originally posted by: BigJ
And just because it's not in SOP doesn't mean it's not outlined in training, what is reasonably expected of a call center operator, or what the company wants pal.

Absolutely wrong on both assumptions. First, I don't assume people are "assholes" no matter how much they yell or are irritated. Second, no, it wasn't outlined in my "training." First off, as an answering service, I don't work for any one of the hundreds of companies I answered for. Think of the call forward/no answer feature...it would automatically go to us. Like I said we operated for docs/lawyers/some businesses. It was never "outlined" that I was obligated to give out any information (I would tell you the name of our business if you were lucky...let alone our address, city, state, or even zip code).

You say both assumptions, I see three assumptions and an or.

First, you make an irrelevant point about me calling a person an asshole because they were rude on the phone to me. Simply put, if a person is rude, obnoxious, impatient, or abusive on the phone with me, then during that conversation they were an asshole. It doesn't mean they shouldn't breed, that they fail at life, or have any implications other than that during the conversation with me, they were an asshole. Why I have to explain this to you and you weren't able to take the comment for what it was, I don't know.

First off again, yes you do. You may not be employed by the companies you answer calls for, but you better believe that you answering those calls not only reflects on you, but your company, and the company you answer the calls for. As a result of your attitude on the phones, the call center company could've lost the contracts for any number of offices, which would mean your job is on the line.

For you not to give them any information about the company is just ridiculous. When a person asks any employee who they work for/under/etc, it is correctly assumed that they should respond with the appropriate information. If you don't want to respond with that or any information at all, or if you're not trained to deal with the situation, it should be given to some sort of manager.

 

[TerryMathews]

Originally posted by: chamberscFirst off, as an answering service, I don't work for any one of the hundreds of companies I answered for.

Wrong. Just because a company doesn't pay you directly doesn't mean you work for them. They paid you (via contract) for the services you performed. You worked for all of them.

 

[chambersc]

Originally posted by: BigJ

Originally posted by: chambersc

Originally posted by: BigJ
And just because it's not in SOP doesn't mean it's not outlined in training, what is reasonably expected of a call center operator, or what the company wants pal.

Absolutely wrong on both assumptions. First, I don't assume people are "assholes" no matter how much they yell or are irritated. Second, no, it wasn't outlined in my "training." First off, as an answering service, I don't work for any one of the hundreds of companies I answered for. Think of the call forward/no answer feature...it would automatically go to us. Like I said we operated for docs/lawyers/some businesses. It was never "outlined" that I was obligated to give out any information (I would tell you the name of our business if you were lucky...let alone our address, city, state, or even zip code).

You say both assumptions, I see three assumptions and an or.

First, you make an irrelevant point about me calling a person an asshole because they were rude on the phone to me. Simply put, if a person is rude, obnoxious, impatient, or abusive on the phone with me, then during that conversation they were an asshole. It doesn't mean they shouldn't breed, that they fail at life, or have any implications other than that during the conversation with me, they were an asshole. Why I have to explain this to you and you weren't able to take the comment for what it was, I don't know.

First off again, yes you do. You may not be employed by the companies you answer calls for, but you better believe that you answering those calls not only reflects on you, but your company, and the company you answer the calls for. As a result of your attitude on the phones, the call center company could've lost the contracts for any number of offices, which would mean your job is on the line.

For you not to give them any information about the company is just ridiculous. When a person asks any employee who they work for/under/etc, it is correctly assumed that they should respond with the appropriate information. If you don't want to respond with that or any information at all, or if you're not trained to deal with the situation, it should be given to some sort of manager.

I concede the latter point -- you (both) are right that essentially I work(ed) for all of the companies.

About your last point, why am I obligated to forgo that information? Under what statutorial obligation am I bound to comply with? Morals? Anything else? If I'm not directly instructed to do so, why am I to assume that I should volunteer the information? I'm not physically compelled to give up the information and I make a judgement to proceed on with other calls.

 

[Raduque]

This isn't just AOL. When I canceled my earthlink dialup after I moved and got cable a couple weeks ago, the guy tried like hell to retain me, and even offered to port my earthlink account to the RR account. We were both very polite to each other though, not a couple of of a-holes like the guys in the MP3, and my account got canceled without any hassle, just some wasted time.

 

[PremiumG]

keyword: "cancel" doesn't work anymore?

 

[BigJ]

Originally posted by: chambersc

Originally posted by: BigJ

Originally posted by: chambersc

Originally posted by: BigJ
And just because it's not in SOP doesn't mean it's not outlined in training, what is reasonably expected of a call center operator, or what the company wants pal.

Absolutely wrong on both assumptions. First, I don't assume people are "assholes" no matter how much they yell or are irritated. Second, no, it wasn't outlined in my "training." First off, as an answering service, I don't work for any one of the hundreds of companies I answered for. Think of the call forward/no answer feature...it would automatically go to us. Like I said we operated for docs/lawyers/some businesses. It was never "outlined" that I was obligated to give out any information (I would tell you the name of our business if you were lucky...let alone our address, city, state, or even zip code).

You say both assumptions, I see three assumptions and an or.

First, you make an irrelevant point about me calling a person an asshole because they were rude on the phone to me. Simply put, if a person is rude, obnoxious, impatient, or abusive on the phone with me, then during that conversation they were an asshole. It doesn't mean they shouldn't breed, that they fail at life, or have any implications other than that during the conversation with me, they were an asshole. Why I have to explain this to you and you weren't able to take the comment for what it was, I don't know.

First off again, yes you do. You may not be employed by the companies you answer calls for, but you better believe that you answering those calls not only reflects on you, but your company, and the company you answer the calls for. As a result of your attitude on the phones, the call center company could've lost the contracts for any number of offices, which would mean your job is on the line.

For you not to give them any information about the company is just ridiculous. When a person asks any employee who they work for/under/etc, it is correctly assumed that they should respond with the appropriate information. If you don't want to respond with that or any information at all, or if you're not trained to deal with the situation, it should be given to some sort of manager.

I concede the latter point -- you (both) are right that essentially I work(ed) for all of the companies.

About your last point, why am I obligated to forgo that information? Under what statutorial obligation am I bound to comply with? Morals? Anything else? If I'm not directly instructed to do so, why am I to assume that I should volunteer the information? I'm not physically compelled to give up the information and I make a judgement to proceed on with other calls.

Conflict of interest, lack of authority, and customer service.

You are in no position to make a decision as to how to proceed when a problem arises between you and a caller. You are not delegated any authority by your company to deal with problems you created as a result of your work when a customer has an issue with you and your performance on the job. All your their to do is to answer calls. When you take that decision into your own hands, there is a serious conflict of interest due to the fact that you'd rather make the problem simply go away then solving the problem to the customer's satisfcation. It is extremely poor customer service to refuse to help a customer solve a problem that has been elevated above your position.

 

[Goosemaster]

Originally posted by: TallBill

Originally posted by: chambersc

Originally posted by: altonb1
BUMP! because this guy made The Drudge Report

it's unfortunate that the CSR lost his job when he was doing what his company instructed him to do.

They instruct him with methods to keep an account, but that gay was an exceptional prick. I'd probably be an asshole too if I worked for AOL.

They simply fired him in an attempt to remove any doubt that he was following SOP's

 

[Bryophyte]

Originally posted by: Syringer

Originally posted by: Brainonska511

Originally posted by: FishTaco
The CSR must get some kind of bonus for every customer they retain.

I think they do. Within the last year, Elliot Spitzer went after AOL because of the extreme difficulty they gave customers who wanted to cancel accounts, of course AOL has not changed very much since that happened.

When I worked at Homestead.com a couple summers ago in phone support, there was a period where we'd get $10 if someone who had a "grandfather" account, that is..an account from 3 years before or earlier, called in and to canceland we were able to retain them by convincing them what a great deal they were getting for being around so long. I rarely bothered at all unless our CEO was listening on, then I'd make a half-assed effort at it..but I would hear some of the other CSR's try to retain them and I would definitely have been really annoyed if I were the customer trying to cancel an account.

It's really annoying ot have a service where you just cancel something online. We were told if someone asked why we didn't have that option it was because of "security" reasons..whatever that meant.

Otherwise though they were a great company to work for.

That explains a lot. I had a free Homestead account a few years ago and when they started charging a little bit (like $20/year) I kept it for the first year because I didn't have the time to mess with registering a domain and setting up a new site. The next year, they tripled (or more) the charges and made it VERY hard to cancel. Wouldn't let me do it online, gave me all sorts of grief over the phone, phoned me up once or twice afterwards, and charged me for it anyway (think I may have had to contest it with my credit card company.) They kept trying to convince me that it was a "really really good deal because it was so expensive to do it on your own" (bullsh!t) and that it wasn't unfair to go from a free service to upwards of a hundred bucks over two years.

 

[j00fek]

still classic to listen to

 

[djheater]

I cancelled two accounts very quickly and painlessly by telling the CSR's I was moving out of the country.

Having worked within an environment where conversations are scripted I am aware that they're are just doing the job and giving them a line like that allows them to function outside the script and really help you.

 

[Gravity]

I call shens. It sounds like a couple of college kids conducting a scripted spoof. SHENS!!!

 

[newbiepcuser]

Originally posted by: Gravity
I call shens. It sounds like a couple of college kids conducting a scripted spoof. SHENS!!!

wrong Sherlock, Interview Vincent Ferrai (former AOL customer)

 

[GeneValgene]

LOL...this made CNN!!

video link

 

[RichardE]

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/13447232/

To put this claim to the test, CNBC reporter Matt Lefkowitz called again. Here is a rough transcript:

CNBC: I want to cancel my AOL account.

He was promptly disconnected.

He tried again.

CNBC: I need to cancel my AOL account. I never really use it. ... Well, if I can cancel it anytime, why can't I cancel it now? Can I just cancel my account?

It took him 45 minutes to finally get his account canceled.

 

[dmcowen674]

Originally posted by: GeneValgene
LOL...this made CNN!!

video link

It's making the rounds today as well.

Headline News even said it was their sister Company.

These Shenigans have been going on for quite a few years now.

The last few Americans finally getting around to cancelling are finally starting to get pissed off enough.

 

[jlbenedict]

Here is an update on this issue:

This week the AOL Retention Manual was revealed to the Consumerist site July 18th..

89 freaking pages long.. no wonder it takes so long to cancel!!!

http://cache.consumerist.com/assets/resources/consumerist.comaolmanual.pdf

 

[ultimatebob]

It's amazing what's missing from that manual... Like when to give up and just let the person cancel their damn account. No wonder that guy had so many problems trying to close out his account.