Are you Pxxxed off with speaking to foreigners on the phone?

[Highlander]

Snowtop - I am sure members would benefit from your experience and would want to know what company (with a UK customer service) you were dealing with.

If we can all avoid the company you had a problem with, it would demonstrate the power of this Forum

[snowtop]

I just a cut and pasted an email to me and decided to stick it on the forum.
Doing this kind of thing always brings out some good idea or suggestion in reference to the subject that many of the members, (including me) would not have thought of.

I have had however, had someone of Indian/Pakistani or similar type of accent on the other end of the phone and not been able to understand them and asked for an English speaking person.  All I have had in response is that they were speaking English or someone came with a marginally better accent.
Could have been coming from somewhere like Bradford I suppose.

[Scunner]

It takes less than one minute to have your call re-directed to the United Kingdom . Tonight when I got redirected to a UK rep, I asked again to make sure - and yes, she was from NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE . 

This happened to me - after around 20 minutes I told the girl that I couldn't understand a word she was saying due to her strange accent. I then asked if she'd transfer me back to the bloke in India.

[Menthol]

My Dad thinks anyone he speaks to should all 'come from just down t' road'.

His pet hate, whilst speaking to a call centre, is talking to someone with a Scottish accent. As he puts it, 'They talk so fast and mumble, like someone's trying to nick the haggis they've stuffed in their mouths'.

Not one for racism and stereo-typing, me dear ol' Pa.  :

[stoop]

I got connected to a BT rep in India or somewhere similar on Friday. After sending me to the UK I ended up back with her. I told her I was busy at work but she just carried on reading her script. I hung up in the end.

One reason why I've moved to Sky Talk - or I will have when BT sort it out at their end!

[Jacqui Harvey]

My Dad thinks anyone he speaks to should all 'come from just down t' road'.

His pet hate, whilst speaking to a call centre, is talking to someone with a Scottish accent. As he puts it, 'They talk so fast and mumble, like someone's trying to nick the haggis they've stuffed in their mouths'.

Not one for racism and stereo-typing, me dear ol' Pa.  :     

I think you need to tell your Dad that like England where their are lots of accents, it's the same in Scotland, each area has a different accent, so, in Edinburgh or Inverness they have beautiful clear accents and as a lot of folk say these places are where you hear the best English spoken, very clear and precise.  As someone who lives in Scotland I would think that looking at the Scottish view, perhaps a Scottish person would say they hate speaking to English people on the phone because they sound like they have a mouth full of jellied eels.     

[Menthol]

Jacqui, I've given up trying to tell my Dad anything.

[suehugh]

I spoke to an American call centre this morning making a strong complaint and demanding a refund.
She said she could not understand me ! (According to the scammers website re this company, it's one of their standard repostes )
Damned colonys.
And me speaking perfect Mancunian.

In terms of accents, it's generally Scottish accents on the telephone or radio phone ins  I have to listen very carefully to .

[Colwyn]

I've given up trying to tell my Dad anything.

I'll forward this to my daughters. Won't do any good though I reckon.

[Jacqui Harvey]

I have no problem with any Scottish accent, as as said there is not just one Scottish Accent, just like there is no one English accent.  I think that if this thread was speaking about India's Pakistanis or any similar Muslim country and someone said they could not understand them because they had a mouth full of nan bread etc., it would be though of as being racist.  However, people in Scotland, being lovely people would take it in good part, but me being English/Irish and living in Scotland I get a little frayed at the edges. I remember when my daughter went to Uni in England and the English students made fun of her Scottish Accent and she was very upset about it.