Fer f sake, who do they employ in call centres these days?
mutter mutter mutter......
Background: My wife is abroad, with my mobile telephone. We purchased a land-phone that could 'do' sms texts thinking that we could communicate with no problem....
Since she arrived I've received text messages at routine intervals...The last few suggested she was not receiving mine....
Stage 1...
Local land-line service....
Me: I'm having a problem with your ***** service, I can receive, but it seems not transmit to a mobile telephone that is located abroad...
Operator: I'm sorry, I cannot help you on this line, I can provide you with the correct call number....
Me: Ok, thankyou....
New number given....New number rung....
Recorded message: This help desk is only available between 8am and 8pm, mon-fri.....
Gahhhhhhh
Ok....
Mobile Phone service provider....
5 minutes for security checks, and explaining situation....
Operator: erm now are you using her mobile? i will need her mobile number ?
Me: She is using my mobile telephone, the number we confirmed earlier.
Operator: ermmm, right the actual roaming facility is active on the mobile in ****** there shouldn't be any reason that she is not receiving text messages, just let me have a look ......
right if she in ****** we have roaming agreements with 2 networks, vodaphone or it might be saying on her phone either vodaphone or maybe saying ......., now this is the same name for vodaphone, if she is getting service ******* she will not get text messages, not receive them while she is there, so in order to resolve it she needs to resolve the network, switch the network sorry, ill explain now.....
right, erm , like i said the network she is on doesnt support receiving text messages so she need to switch network to different one, ill explain how ..... on her phone she need to go into main menu...
Me (interjecting quickly): You forget the reason I am calling, I cannot contact her......
Operator: ... right erm like i said she needs to change her settings, if they dont have a service we can give instructions to you....
Me (interjecting again a little more forcefully) : and how do those instructions get to my wife?
Operator: the only thing i can suggest is ring her from uk, now the instructions are normally given when customers go abroad, normally before to make sure phone is working, in this case erm we dont have any facilities so we can not ring her, only you can do that
Me: and from what do you suggest?
Operator: the thing is erm she would be in service, she should be able to receive but if not in service she cant, she should be able to receive calls, it supports receiving calls but not text messages that what it looks like,
runs quickly from room leaving computer chattering to itself whilst I slowly cry into my porridge with the cats offering sympathy by climbing all over me...................
Geoff
(blubbering away in the background)