Quote Originally Posted by mickd1961 View Post
You’re missing the point.

I’m talking about conversation being closed down and you getting accused of aggressive or rude behaviour when you haven’t acted in that way at all.

I’m finding more and more of this attitude from people when they’re challenged about poor service by their company.
Sorry Mick, I do get what you mean but got carried away with my experiences from the other side of the fence!

I agree with both yourself and Boingy in that the advice given to staff (quite rightly) that they should not have to put up with abusive behaviour is then interpreted as a kind of Get out clause for them not to have to do their job or take accountaility. My pet view is that a lot of this is generational and try cannot deal with confrontation and don't like any firm of challenge.

To be fair, customer services can be tough but dealing with levels of confrontation is part of the job and they should be trained on how to deal with it. The customer is not always right but it is about "turning a negative into a positive". Most people get naturally upset over the issue they complain about and this comes out in their initial behaviour but show that you are listening, demonstrate empathy and show a desire to resolve and you soon win them over and they are appreciative of your help. There are always a few abusive and nasty customers that you tend to remember but they are the minority-it's just that the pandemic has sadly seen far more of these