Rant!

Why the hell are there so many unemployed people in the UK while call centres are filled with machines that cannot do the job??? Is the state of our economy really THAT bad that it is cheaper to lose business by running automated systems than retain and even GROW business by allowing customers to speak to a HUMAN!?

I may have entered rant mode.

3 issues to deal with today: 

• Contact HMRC about this debt they think I owe so I can speak to someone. Do I owe it? Why? If I do, how can I pay?
• Contact Travelodge about the booking I made for my Brother-in-laws wedding. I need an extra night booking, and I cannot access my account on line, oh and you keep sending me emails I cannot actually READ
• Pay the last instalment on our summer holiday with Hoseasons

HMRC have had me on hold for 20min at a time on 4 occasions so now I want to go to my local office and speak to a human. Try to call the local office and book  slot. 2.5mins listening to an automated voice reel off a dozen or so numbers for services I don't need, then cut me off. Premium rate call too! I've written to them in the past with my questions about this supposed debt, and complaints about the phone service, no reply. I'm going to turn up at the office this afternoon, babe in arms (right after his jabs too so he'll likely be screaming).

Traveloge...... oh my! There are few words to describe this! I know they are a budget hotel but still... I while ago I booked us all in for a night and paid for it. After talking to the rest of the family I figured it would be best if we booked 2 nights instead (either side of the wedding). I tried to log in to see if I could amend or at least ADD to my booking. I cannot log in. Request a new password and this unreadable email arrives. It's in HTML format which I don't want and cant view on my emails. I have to copy and paste the content into notepad, save it as a HTML file and open it from that. Not that it makes any difference because I STILL cannot get into my account even when I have changed my password!!!! No number to ring. No direct email, only a set of questions to chose from. None apply. There's a LiveChat option, but again you have to check a load of questions first and then it wouldn't let me do LiveChat because my query doesn't apply! Very stroppy complaint sent, bet I get no answer!

Hoseasons, well they actually seem ok so far. I still had to do in online, and my payment wont show for up to 48hours (Why???) but for now it SEEMS to have gone smoothly. I would have been much happier speaking to a person and being told there and then that my payment had gone through.

But the point is, these companies should be helping the economy by ditching these rubbish automated systems and employing REAL people! Even if it's only minimum wage. People NEED work! I've had near 40 applicants for a cleaning job that's just 4hrs a WEEK on minimum wage. Folk are there, looking for work, and in the meantime companies are "saving money" using machines instead of people, and taxes go up and up and up to keep the unemployed from starving!