Unbelievable customer service.

[slowmotion]

We often hear about the bad...how about the excellent?

Three weeks ago, I wanted to buy some cycle maps of the Netherlands, so I logged onto a Dutch map supplier called dezwerver.nl. I had used them before. They have a huge range of maps and other travel-related stuff. Their website is in Dutch and you can only order online, so I picked up the phone and asked a charming Dutch lady how to fill in the form. Although it was nearly 5pm on a Friday afternoon, she did this with the utmost patience. Having listed the maps and my credit card details, I pressed the "Submit" button (or the Dutch equivalent), only to have the transaction rejected. Without a pause, the voice at the other end of the phone told me not to worry. They would ship the maps with a paper invoice, and when I got them, I could send them the money by electronic transfer.
I was a stranger in another country, and they trusted me. The maps turned up on the Wednesday, and the money was sent the same afternoon. Would any mail order company in the UK do that?

 

[Globalti]

She was a good judge of character and was probably one of the senior employees or the owner.

 

[rich p]

Good news stories don't fit the CycleChat zeitgeist Slomo. Get on message mate.

Nice story though!

 

[asterix]

We often hear about the bad...how about the excellent?

Three weeks ago, I wanted to buy some cycle maps of the Netherlands, so I logged onto a Dutch map supplier called dezwerver.nl. I had used them before. They have a huge range of maps and other travel-related stuff. Their website is in Dutch and you can only order online, so I picked up the phone and asked a charming Dutch lady how to fill in the form. Although it was nearly 5pm on a Friday afternoon, she did this with the utmost patience. Having listed the maps and my credit card details, I pressed the "Submit" button (or the Dutch equivalent), only to have the transaction rejected. Without a pause, the voice at the other end of the phone told me not to worry. They would ship the maps with a paper invoice, and when I got them, I could send them the money by electronic transfer.
I was a stranger in another country, and they trusted me. The maps turned up on the Wednesday, and the money was sent the same afternoon. Would any mail order company in the UK do that?

When I worked in shipping, we had strict instructions not to let stuff go without getting the freight charge paid. We also had strict instructions not to upset any customers by incurring demurrage (a parking fine by 3rd parties for stuff left on the dock more than a few days).

So we ask our customers where's the freight payment, you'll get demurrage from tomorrow.. Often they tell us it's been sent so what do we do?
Quite often we had to decide to trust our customer, management didn't want to know, and I can't remember anyone getting it wrong.

Another customer used to fly over from Taiwan, walk into the office after the banks had shut and hand me £6000 or so in used notes (in the early eighties, so about £18k now) to cover his costs. I used to hide it under a floorboard at home till the bank opened, it seemed safer than the petty cash tin.

 

[Tcr4x4]

Most EU countries are better like this.

I once bought an electric drum kit worth £1400 from Germany. I was having trouble paying through their system so they said they'd contact me in a few days when it was sorted.

Anyway, 2 days later I get home and there are 2 massive boxes there containing the drum kit which I hadn't paid for!
I rang them up asking if they had sorted the payment out, and they told me not yet, and they'd contact me later in the week to take the details again.

A week went by and I hadn't heard anything and rang them again, trying to pay for the damn thing, but just didn't seem phased by it and told me not to worry, and they'd let me know in due course.

It took about 4 weeks before they actually asked me for payment!

 

[Tcr4x4]

Yes I paid them...It was 10 years ago.

 

[byegad]

Well of course you are British and so a terribly good chap and as trustworthy as the Bank of England don't y' know. Now if you'd been German the Dutch firm would have charged you twice and you'd still be waiting for delivery!

 

[slowmotion]

My question was directed at notsoslomonow. It was never in doubt that you had done the right thing.

How very dare you..

 

[Buzzinonbikes]

Good work. Use Google Chrome next time and translate the lot on the fly

 

[slowmotion]

Good work. Use Google Chrome next time and translate the lot on the fly

I think that I would rather stick with the delightful Dutch voice at the other end of the phone.

 

[400bhp]

musta been stoned

 

[vernon]

Woodrup Cycles lent me their prototype Chimera to test ride. I told them that I'd be back with it within the hour. They laughed and told me to keep it for the weekend. I asked them about leaving something as security. They took my phone number.

Within the aeromodelling and railway modelling worlds there are traders who ship their goods with an invoice. I've asked one or two of them about the wisdom of this and the answer has always been, "We've never been let down".

 

[slowmotion]

Woodrup Cycles lent me their prototype Chimera to test ride. I told them that I'd be back with it within the hour. They laughed and told me to keep it for the weekend. I asked them about leaving something as security. They took my phone number.

Within the aeromodelling and railway modelling worlds there are traders who ship their goods with an invoice. I've asked one or two of them about the wisdom of this and the answer has always been, "We've never been let down".

That's admirable. What really surprised me about deZwerver was that my credit card company had refused to complete the transaction, and the sellers still trusted me in another country.