BT changes times for free calls

Many people that are with the communications giant BT have packages that allow them to make free evening calls so that they can get better value for money depending on when they tend to make most of their calls. Read more

Tags: BT Total Broadband, 6pm, announcement, call, bt, money, British Telecom, provider

Burglary levels set to rise

According to recent predictions the number of burglaries taking place across the UK is set to rise as a result of the economic downturn and reports show that burglary is set to become a growth industry in the current climate. Officials have said that during the last recession in the late 1980s and early 1990s the number of domestic burglaries increased by around a third, and figures suggest that by the end of this year the number of burglaries in the UK may have risen by 7 percent. Read more

Tags: growth, number, phone call, valuable items, christmas, call, comparison website

Whistleblower claims – “Employees at RBS being trained to lie”

According to an insider from the Royal Bank of Scotland employees at the bank are being trained to lie in order to stop customers from cancelling the Payment Protection Insurance on their credit cards. The whistleblower is apparently from the bank’s Customer Loyalty Team, and said that employees are trained to use a number of practices to stop customer from cancelling PPI on their credit cards. Read more

Tags: consumer, authority, ongoing investigation, cancel accounts, rbs, ppi, call

Apology from Lloyds over call centre problems

Lloyds TSB has made an apology over problem with their call centre number, where customers calling the 0845 number were left hanging on the line to listen to a recorded message for up to ten minutes whilst being informed by an automated message that their enquiry would be dealt with as soon as possible.

The calls cost consumers three pence per minute, and around half of the cost of the call goes to the bank, which means that Lloyds was raking in a tidy profit from all the people that were left hanging on the telephone.

Lloyds recently announced that it was looking into systems that would ensure that customers of the bank received a more efficient and faster service, which made this situation all the more embarrassing for the bank. Its Bombay call centre was closed last month, after the bank claimed that the automated system could handle most enquiries. The 0845 number would also enable customer to get the telephone number of their local branch according to Lloyds, which previously customers could not do.

However, according to staff agencies the bank has failed to ensure that there are adequate staffing levels to deal with the new system, and Lloyds TSB has been accused of misleading employees, media, and customer with its claims about the automated service. Angry customers have been left holding on and paying a small fortune each time they call, the bank – which made over three billion in profits last year – has been raking in a fortune from the calls, and staff have been left to deal with the changes with no additional resources.

Over two hundred staff members lost their jobs when the Bombay centre was closed, and Lloyds have claimed that the efficiency of the automated system meant that staff members could be reduced.

Tom Smith
25th April 2007

Tags: telephone, phone, recorded, call, bombay, cheap

Roadside Breakdown Car Insurance

Regardless of how carefully we take care of our car, just when we least need it the car will breakdown in the middle of nowhere. If you do not have roadside breakdown car insurance, be prepared to pay a heft repair bill and to be personally billed for all the ancillary costs. Read more

Tags: Vehicle insurance, registered address, car problems, roadside breakdown insurance, car insurance, call, roadside breakdown car, roadside breakdown car insurance policies