Our fridge broke two weeks ago. So we ordered a new one from Sainsbury's and waited for it to be delivered.
After a whole heap of inconvenience we got a slot for it to be delivered on Monday morning last week. When it arrived there was a big old dent in the door so back it went.
Of course we were straight on the phone to arrange another delivery. Being without a fridge is no fun.
More hassle ensued. One delivery date was cancelled at the last minute and then finally this morning another fridge arrived. This time with an even bigger dent!
By this time we had agreed to cut our losses and so I called up and cancelled the order. And here is the punchline...
I mentioned that waiting in for two deliveries of damaged goods and spending what felt like hours on the phone to the call centre had been quite an inconvenience for us. I wondered how Sainsbury's planned to compensate is for that. Quickly I was told that compensation could not be discussed for cancelled orders. If I wanted to be paid for my wasted time I had to risk wasting some more! To be honest they would have been better off telling me they didn't do compensation out flat. That way at least I wouldn't feel like my inconvenience was being held ransom.
Companies do this sort of crazy stuff all the time. I know the logic that leads there. I've been in meetings when it comes out. 'Well if we're going to give compensation we should at least make the sale' Next time you hear that kind of thinking stand up and be counted. If you screw up, fix it. If it can't be fixed do what you can to save that customer relationship. Sainsbury's lost a customer forever today and judging by the way it happened I'm pretty sure I'm not the only one.
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