Tata Sky Services declining by the day !

Tata Sky' s subscription charges have increased as they have added new channels to their packages but in that process their services have really declined and we are thoroughly disappointed ! 

Their website reflects error every time one makes online payment and even after the payment transaction is successful it does not get reflected in the My Tata Sky account leading to deactivation of services. This has happened a lot lately and because of the inefficiency of their Backend team and lack of responsibility of the seniors, the customers suffer even after making timely payment.

The above happened again on the 5th of July 2016 at around 11am. After successful online payment , once again the transaction did not reflect in the Tata Sky account. On complaining about it immediately, I was informed that they would solve the problem in 20 minutes which they did not. Then later I was told on calling them that the problem would be resolved by the afternoon and then they extended the time to 24 hours and eventually 48 hours.

 On the 6th my Tata Sky account was deactivated despite their assuring me earlier on that this would not occur till the case is pending. Anyway I managed to make them agree to restore the services till the proposed time of complaint resolution. During this time I have had to call them several times which has been so inconvenient and irritating. Since last month I have had to spend a lot on calling them on the due date of payment as I face this problem every time on their website. After completion of the duration of 48 hours time limit, I am now informed this morning that the case is still pending and will only be addressed till the 9th. 

On complaining to them that I would address this case on social media, I suddenly receive a call from their backend team at last informing me that they are not able to reflect the paid amount in my Tata Sky account and so they will now reverse that money back to my bank account but it may take ten days or more. They could have informed the same earlier instead of misleading me and making me wait all this while. 

I requested Priyanka from the backend team to do this on a priority basis considering how long I have waited and so that I could go ahead with a fresh transaction. And I also requested that till the time the money is not reversed, they should not deactivate my services again and I should not be forced to pay again till then. Such a thing had happened once with Costa Coffee but they were efficient enough to reverse the money immediately to my bank account. Another alternative I have offered them is that if they want me to pay again before the previous amount is reversed to my account, they should send me a written confirmation stating that they would reverse that amount within the said duration of time. But Priyanka rudely declined to co-operate on the matter or offer another suitable alternative. Instead she just cut the conversation and  tried to terminate our conversation abruptly. 

All this while all the Tata Sky representatives ( about 6-7 names can be provided ) had confirmed that the online payment transaction was successful though it has not reflected on my bank account as yet which according to my Bank and Tata Sky may be due to the technical error of Tata Sky server as their system accepted my payment but was not able to reflect  the same in my Tata Sky Account. Whatever the reason, I seek clarity so that this case is resolved immediately so that I could go ahead and pay again to avoid more harassment from Tata Sky who are threatening to deactivate my services again. But Tata Sky representatives refuse to let me talk to their seniors even though they promised me many times that their seniors would call me regarding the case. I need answers and accurate confirmation of the status of my case and I am willing to co-operate but their backend team is making matters worse by their lack of efficiency and lack of professionalism. I demand a written confirmation that Rs.514 would be refunded and a written request to make a fresh payment.

I did not expect such bad attitude from Tata Sky representatives when Tata is known for it's good services. I intend to escalate the matter. Having worked with Tatas I expect better services than what their amateur employees are offering now.

Nathu's Sweets not fresh sweets anymore !

Over the years, the quality and the taste of the sweets sold at Nathu's have declined considerably . And their lack of professional customer service is contributing in the decline of their services in a big way.

Just day before yesterday, we bought a couple of sweets ( mithai ) from there in the evening and we were so disappointed with the taste and the packaging. The sweets did not seem to be fresh and the gulag jamuns ( kala jamuns ) were sour...On complaining about the same, we were met with a very careless approach. According to their representative it is natural for any sweets made of dairy products to get spoilt easily in summers but we had served those sweets the same evening to our guests.

Well at least this was not the answer we were looking for . We had left the sweets as soon as we tasted one or two of them. We had hoped that they would get those mithais tested. And they should not sell some sweets in summers if according to the person concerned these sweets get easily spoilt or they should use good quality ingredients. They could go in for seasonal sweets if they can't handle the making of some certain mithais in summers.

Customers must complain whenever they find that they are given stale sweets as then only will these famous shops take such matters seriously and be forced to address it effectively.

In summers they have to be all the more careful in not selling stale sweets and focus on their proper storage as well.  Hygiene of the containers and people handling these sweets should also be taken into account.Now Haldiram is better in that respect though there too the hygiene can be questioned and I would be elaborating on that later in another article solely on Haldiram Sweets which involved my complaining about the matter. Talking about this subject, this has become quite a problem at many restaurants and cafes recently where the staff behind the counters are not wearing gloves to handle the eatables and using their hands to either squash a ' aloo tikki' or passing eatables to the customers soon after doing something really unhygienic before the customer.

The idea of complaining about the above is not to get a fresh box of sweets for free but to inform them that Nathus should be more careful as their customers could fall ill because of stale sweets. We would particularly go for the 'ladoos' there but we may have to think twice now.

Department Manager can make all the difference in enhancing customer service

After long I experienced very good customer service at Shopper's Stop a few months back and it is all due to their Dept. Manager Mr. Kalrha. I would be writing about the details about his exceptionally good customer service in the coming days which created the most favourable impression on me a few months back and ever since then I have been meaning to write about it.

The growth of a pleasant interaction between the customer and the store depends a lot upon how the customer and the store are willing to co-operate with each other along the way where sometimes the customer understands the store and other times the store. Sometimes the  customer has to give in to understanding the store's limitations and policies...And sometimes the store has to have a flexible approach towards customers. Most importantly a Manager has to be able to differentiate between a genuine and a false complaint.

His action that I would be talking about in the coming days definitely demonstrated his sensitivity to the customers. I appreciate his recognising the fact that the complaint was genuine and taking the appropriate action accordingly in all fairness. Honestly does pay and gets rewarded ! What is important is to make honest complaints and sooner or later someone sees that and helps you out.

SITICable's " lack of connection " with customers

People please do not waste your time in posting your complaints on SITICable social media page  as they will never be effectively resolved as SITICable refuses to take any responsibility in taking any action against their employees or Local operators for the way they harass the customers through bad attitudes and bad customer service.

Many in our neighbourhood have been disappointed with their services and have turned to Tata Sky.
The person assigned to collect payments from our neighbourhood was very rude and insulting. He always resented our decision to pay by cheque instead of cash. We wanted to continue their services but he made sure our channels were blocked before deactivating the  services completely when we escalated the matter and insisted on demanding for a change of person for collection of cheques or a drop box. 

Over the months I had complained about it on their website and FB page. I got a call from from SITI Cable but according to their representative they cannot take any action against their operators or provide us with the contact details to get in touch directly. So then who is responsible and whom do we complain to ? Instead of being helpful and co-operative, the male representative  was defensive and aggressive. They ought to be selective about choosing their operators or at least have some control over them. Instead they are letting their operators create their own rules, terms & conditions as well as modes of payment. They should encourage their operators to have an interactive approach with consumers in handling of complaints or information regarding cable connection services. Their operators are the face of their company and so all the more they should keep them under strict vigilance. Online payments should be allowed as well in Noida as that will make it more convenient for the customers to make payments.

Better than posting complaints , share your bad experiences regarding their services on social media. Tata Sky services is much better and after the first connection, their Multi connection works out cheaper. It was my mistake to expect SITI Cable to intervene in my issue against the services provided by their operator and investigate the matter. Their attitude on the matter regarding harassment by their operator's payment collector and deactivation of our account without warning and despite our payment is very disappointing. They seem to be clearly siding with the Operator as they have given them full freedom to treat customers any way they want even at the stake of tarnishing the name of SITI Cable. The same can happen to you too. So do not choose SITI Cable. As it is their connection and signal is bad and one does not get good picture quality.

As a Consumers Rights Blogger, it is my duty to inform consumers about the deficiencies of SITI Cable.

Bon Bon Pastry Shop definitely losing it's touch & taste now

We have been Bon Bon's loyal customers and so all the more I was very disappointed to see the declining customer service, quality and attitude. Customers gave the right to receive a pleasant experience while buying something from a shop. Customers are entitled to good service. I noticed that they are not getting good reviews anymore because of their lack of interest in maintaining their original quality and service. We like the chicken patties, chocolate triangles and eclairs there but lately the lady behind the counter is just not keen on packing the patties in the boxes bearing their label. The other day I had bought about five patties and even then they were not given to me in a box.

 Many a times we buy stuff from there as gifts for others and not having the confectionery packed in their boxes and that too separate boxes can make others feel that we have shopped from a roadside vendor rather than a reputed shop like Bon Bon. I even told the lady concerned that their name sells and all the more I would prefer that everything irrespective of the quantity is given to me in their boxes instead of blank brown paper bags. After all presentation and packaging matter and that is why one goes to a shop like theirs.

As for the all time favourite eclairs, the cream does not seem to be that fresh anymore and the quality of breadsticks is deteriorating. Some time back we were told that we could not buy just a packet of breadsticks and instead we had to place a big order for them and which we did. But again the breadsticks were not packed properly and they did not seem to be fresh.

I hope they are able revive their old time hospitality and quality instead of taking it for granted that customers will keep returning to them because of their reasonably priced goodies. I have always liked Bon Bon because of their prices and quality in the past but because of the recent attitude of the lady there I may be inclined to change my opinion. As it is I find myself going more to other shops now.

Save Water- each drop counts !

Save Water and don't waste it ! Every thought in this direction counts and every drop counts. Every drop can save a life ! There is scarcity of water everywhere and we hear of droughts all the time all around the world in the news. Soon there will be wars over water ! We may not be able to do much in providing water for all but we can definitely do our bit by contributing in saving water and in turn saving lives. We can start from our homes. The shortage of water is a very serious issue and we need to save water all the more now than ever because everybody is entitled to have water !

Having access to water and that too clean water if possible is a human right. Not many are doing anything about it and what we don't realise  is that tomorrow we too may not have access to water at all. We could face drought as well. So many people have to walk such a distance just to get water and I was informed about this by many children from neighbouring villages when I visited Jaisalmer, Rajasthan. Many children even requested me to give them empty bottles so that they could use them to store water. Such is the condition of people who are denied water not only in certain villages but certain cities too. Their thirst is reflected on their faces...

Everybody has a Right Not to be Thirsty ! Everybody had a Right to get water !  And we must keep that in mind and educate people not to waste water so that in the process we could share water with all.  As said earlier, It is our right not only to have water but get clean water !

Some days back we bought a RO Water Purifier and from Day one my mother was concerned about the amount of water that is wasted in the process of purifying the water for drinking purpose. An enormous quantity of water just drips from a pipe during the water purification process and it is so heartbreaking to see that when one considers how that amount of water could be so useful to so many who are denied water. Of course we worked out a way to end this kind of wastage of water . We store that quantity of  so-called wasted water that the Purifier leaves in big vessels and use it to clean utensils or mop floors. Actually that water could be used for so many other purposes instead of just throwing it away. In a world that is now facing water crisis this is the least we can do.

But my concern is that why the companies selling these Water Purifies are not doing anything at all in finding ways to save that water by using certain techniques to recycle the water wasted by the machine at the time of purification. Maybe they could design the RO Water Purifiers in such a way that the wasted water could be emptied or released simultaneously in another container with a tap to recycle it or something. Many responsible citizens have found ways to store that water wasted by the RO Water Purifiers in big containers to use it for cleaning utensils or washing clothes. One of my friends shared a post concerning the same on FB today and that  reminded me to share what I meant to write for long regarding how we are combatting the wastage of water by these Water Purifiers.

I feel that gigantic water purifying plants should be set up everywhere in the country to provide pure drinking water for people and at the same time recycle the large amount of water released during the process of purification of water for various other purposes. This way nobody would need to buy individual RO water purifiers which result in immense wastage of water in households. As it is , this will ensure in real saving of water as well as providing clean water for drinking purposes for everybody. The mistakes of some are depriving others of having water and that is not fair. And some who may have access to water are just not getting clean water . Some are just not getting water safe enough for drinking. Strict measures need to be implemented to tackle not only water shortages in every way possible but also provide clean water.

Each step towards saving water can contribute in dealing with the long-term possibilities of a water crisis in the not affected areas as well. Many countries have already found sophisticated ways of dealing with water shortages as well as water  problems by recycling wasted water and advising people to save water at their homes by doing the same.

As I always spread the word around that water is a necessity and we must not waste it at any cost or soon it will just become a luxury accorded to a few who can afford it. It is our right not only to get water but get clean water ! Save Water as well as collectively do something somehow to get pure drinking water for everyone ! All deserve water and that too clean water. 

Know your Rights as Customers in dealing with Telecommunications Companies

Nice to have so many people from India, U.K and so many other countries come forward to support my petition against the Dishonest Business Tones of Vodafone...

For some this may be sheer wastage of time but for some such things matter ! Any telecommunications company could target you next and One has to stand up against such harassment as One to start with and then collectively as One  ! 

Vodafone may never respond positively ! Vodafone may never act responsibly ! But we as customers still still need to spread the word around about their dishonesty to create an awareness amongst others who may become their next victims. Customers must know their Rights ! Customers must be aware of how to deal with the unpleasant behaviour of any Telecommunications Company for that matter !

Just the other day a Vodafone customer I know was being bullied into paying for the 4G SIM card which is supposed to be delivered free at your residence on putting a request for it through their customer service number. Fortunately I intervened and talked to the Manager and as luck would have it that day the Manager agreed with me and ensured free delivery of the 4 G card. So it is important to know what you are entitled to and how...Know your Rights as Customers ! 

Thankful to All of you who supported my petition ! Started with one and now there are 32 supporters...Means a lot ! Please spread the word around !