Curious Response to Complaint

[HouCuseChickie]

So, I submitted an email the other week to Disney voicing my complaints with regard to our most recent trip...in 500 or so characters or less. I was expecting a canned reply. I recall a post on here a while back that the canned reply is the usual manner of dealing with complaints. In fact, the only other time I complained about anything to WDW...I too received a canned response (really bad dinner @ CRT).

Well, today I received a telephone call from someone with Disney wanting to talk to be about my complaints (hotel issues and a slew of ride breakdowns). It wasn't a good time to talk (I was at Target trying to check out), but I asked that she call back mid-morning on Monday.

Has anyone else been called about a complaint they've submitted to Disney and can share their experiences? i.e. was it just a more in depth account of the issues? Was anything else requested? I'm not looking for anything out of this...I've already vowed to not return until our girls are both at least 48" (which may take some time since my 6 yr old is the size of an avg 4 yr old ). I'm just wanting to make sure I don't squander a good opportunity to let my voice be heard.

Any thoughts?

 

[Uncle Lupe]

I do not have any insight to this but I would organize my thoughts. So you can elaborate on your problems that you could not do in a short email. That way you are ready when they call and do not sound like a typical rambling fool. Let us know what they tell you or if they shower you with gifts.

 

[copcarguyp71]

Yes, we received a call back. It was pretty much the equivalent of a canned response. "Oh we are so sorry that you had a bad experience, we are passing your concerns on to our quality assurance team and they will be discussing this in the future. Thanks for your concerns we hope to welcome you home real soon, have a magical day" was pretty much the total discussion on their end reading off a script.

I cannot guarantee you will receive the same brush off but do not be surprised if you do. Whatever you say they will tell you they are noting that for further discussion.

 

[GeorgiaPinesRJB]

Never had a phone call from Disney, since I have never launched a complaint with them. I have had one of my Senators call me back on a letter I wrote on impending legislation...

 

[HouCuseChickie]

Thankfully, I can use a couple of my recent TripAdvisor reviews to keep me on target, but good to know I'm probably just on track to receive the spoken version of the written canned reply.

 

[copcarguyp71]

Thankfully, I can use a couple of my recent TripAdvisor reviews to keep me on target, but good to know I'm probably just on track to receive the spoken version of the written canned reply.

I have to say that I HOPE I am wrong and that you experience something more interactive, informative and reassuring. At least that would show improvement which is what in my heart I am hoping for very soon from park management. Keep us posted on Monday please

 

[Goofyernmost]

I've only sent one e-mail complaint in all the years that I have been going to Disney. That one was in reference to how I felt about the introduction of Fastpass. It had just started up and I felt, as I do today, that in spite of it's obvious charm to those that can use them, that there were underlying problems that would surface later, etc.

They called me back a number of times before I was actually there to answer the phone (caller ID, didn't know who it was at the time...didn't mention Disney). They finally were able to reach me after at least three calls, maybe four. I was on the phone with them for almost an hour. They asked me all kinds of question, like did I understand how it worked? I did! And specifically why I felt the way I did, you know, why I felt it was not such a good thing. If I had any suggestions on how, short of eliminating it, they could make it better. I gave them a couple of suggestions. They thanked me and, probably told me to have a magical day, and there it ended.

I was impressed at least by the effort that was made to follow up on one lowly persons thoughts. It obviously didn't help much because to this point my suggestions weren't implemented and now they appear to be on the verge of making it worse. I guess it doesn't really matter because they will continue to get my business until it gets to the point where more of my time is spent frustrated then having fun. When that happens, I will see no need to spend my money to be miserable. I can stay home and be that..for free!

 

[kane47]

I have had an experience with a follow up phone call. I spoke with a gentlemen named Jason who was as excited to speak with me as most people are getting a root canal. He gave me the same caned word for word response as you normally receive in an email. I when I asked him a follow up question to my complaint he was exceptional rude and told me that my concerns where not being perused because in his opinion they were not in line with Disney policies. This completely boggled my mind and ask to speak with a supervisor to file a complaint about his service. Of course, no one was available. He told that someone who contact me back. No one ever did. When I called back a couple of days later, the employee number he gave me for filing a complaint was a fake! This was the last time I filed a complaint over the phone. Disney should be embarrassed that this is what their customer service has become. Now I only file complaints when they arise in person or over email so I have a paper trail of the problem.

 

[HouCuseChickie]

I have to say that I HOPE I am wrong and that you experience something more interactive, informative and reassuring. At least that would show improvement which is what in my heart I am hoping for very soon from park management. Keep us posted on Monday please

I hope so too. I will definitely post after I speak with them.

I've only sent one e-mail complaint in all the years that I have been going to Disney. That one was in reference to how I felt about the introduction of Fastpass. It had just started up and I felt, as I do today, that in spite of it's obvious charm to those that can use them, that there were underlying problems that would surface later, etc.

They called me back a number of times before I was actually there to answer the phone (caller ID, didn't know who it was at the time...didn't mention Disney). They finally were able to reach me after at least three calls, maybe four. I was on the phone with them for almost an hour. They asked me all kinds of question, like did I understand how it worked? I did! And specifically why I felt the way I did, you know, why I felt it was not such a good thing. If I had any suggestions on how, short of eliminating it, they could make it better. I gave them a couple of suggestions. They thanked me and, probably told me to have a magical day, and there it ended.

I was impressed at least by the effort that was made to follow up on one lowly persons thoughts. It obviously didn't help much because to this point my suggestions weren't implemented and now they appear to be on the verge of making it worse. I guess it doesn't really matter because they will continue to get my business until it gets to the point where more of my time is spent frustrated then having fun. When that happens, I will see no need to spend my money to be miserable. I can stay home and be that..for free!

This is encouraging that they wanted to take the time to talk to you. Of course, like in your situation, I doubt there would be any changes as a result of our issues.

You also mention them continuing to get your business, which happens to be the one point I'm trying to tactfully work in. I am not seeking any compensation, freebies, or any other such perks/incentives for our inconveniences, but I'd like to see them actually work on correcting the issues I've noted since we won't be returning for at least a few years. DH went as far as to suggest we skip WDW altogether the next time we hit the Orlando area. While I don't know if I could do that, I might scale way back in our WDW time if I don't feel like enough of the issues have been rectified.

I'll post on Monday.

 

[Fantasmic]

Please tell them to make sure they get Splash back to its opening day glory!

 

[HouCuseChickie]

Please tell them to make sure they get Splash back to its opening day glory!

If given the chance, it will come up in my conversation. We rode it twice this past trip and it broke down both times. The first ride, some of the Laughing Place was actually working...but it was back to being quite broken on the second ride. The second time, we broke down so many times that the first time visitors sitting in front of us were a bit scared and had to ask if this was normal. My 6 year old even remarked that it broke down a lot the last time we visited. Just wrong.

 

[Fantasmic]

I think, we we last went in 2011 it was down at the start of every day we went to the Magic Kingdom... which was a lot!

 

[HouCuseChickie]

I have had an experience with a follow up phone call. I spoke with a gentlemen named Jason who was as excited to speak with me as most people are getting a root canal. He gave me the same caned word for word response as you normally receive in an email. I when I asked him a follow up question to my complaint he was exceptional rude and told me that my concerns where not being perused because in his opinion they were not in line with Disney policies. This completely boggled my mind and ask to speak with a supervisor to file a complaint about his service. Of course, no one was available. He told that someone who contact me back. No one ever did. When I called back a couple of days later, the employee number he gave me for filing a complaint was a fake! This was the last time I filed a complaint over the phone. Disney should be embarrassed that this is what their customer service has become. Now I only file complaints when they arise in person or over email so I have a paper trail of the problem.

I guess that's at least another pro of me starting this via the website...I have some of that paper trail. Still, I'd be furious if I got anyone on the phone like the rudeness you received. That's unacceptable for any business. Thankfully, the woman who called me seemed overly bubbly so hopefully, even if a canned reply, it won't be rude.

 

[HouCuseChickie]

I think, we we last went in 2011 it was down at the start of every day we went to the Magic Kingdom... which was a lot!

That's how Splash was when we hit MK in 2011. It's just so unfortunate that we all have come to expect things to be wrong with Splash. I was going to use that to segue into our breakdown issues if given the chance. i.e. you've got an E-ticket ride that is so prone to breakdowns and broken features that we all go into our trips expecting a subpar experience...if it's even open at all. Still, 9 ride breakdowns- including Splash- in one day at MK is beyond unacceptable IMO. OK...off my soap box...must get happy again for football.

 

[wedway71]

I had an amazing experience a few years back when I sent an email. I was heading down to WDW and saw some issues on Splash on a fan site(maybe here). I emailed Bob Iger, Meg Crofton, and Guest Service on my official company email. I too figured I would get a canned response BUT got a call from a Guest Service Manager who in fact pulled Duty Manager shifts for MK. I emailed her pics of what was on the fan site. She told me she was going to walk Splash with other leadership for that area and get back to me. She in fact did a few days after and said it looked really good and not one manager saw anything like what I sent her.

She asked me when I was going to WDW and I told her. She called me a day after I got back from vacation and asked how I thought Splash looked. I said it looked AWESOME and how I was a bit embarrassed that I emailed them in the first place. She was actually very laid back and pretty cool. She said as a manager for Disney, she is just as much in love with the parks and wants only the best for the parks. She gave me direct line in case I ever needed to contact them in the future.

 

[mousehockey37]

I have had an experience with a follow up phone call. I spoke with a gentlemen named Jason who was as excited to speak with me as most people are getting a root canal. He gave me the same caned word for word response as you normally receive in an email. I when I asked him a follow up question to my complaint he was exceptional rude and told me that my concerns where not being perused because in his opinion they were not in line with Disney policies. This completely boggled my mind and ask to speak with a supervisor to file a complaint about his service. Of course, no one was available. He told that someone who contact me back. No one ever did. When I called back a couple of days later, the employee number he gave me for filing a complaint was a fake! This was the last time I filed a complaint over the phone. Disney should be embarrassed that this is what their customer service has become. Now I only file complaints when they arise in person or over email so I have a paper trail of the problem.

From working in collections for a portion of my time, anyone that ever says that there is conveniently "no supervisor available" is full of crap. If there's no supervisor, they can't be on the phones. Sure, supers can be in meetings and such, but there's ALWAYS someone who can speak to you that is above the guy on the lowest level.

 

[mousehockey37]

So, I submitted an email the other week to Disney voicing my complaints with regard to our most recent trip...in 500 or so characters or less. I was expecting a canned reply. I recall a post on here a while back that the canned reply is the usual manner of dealing with complaints. In fact, the only other time I complained about anything to WDW...I too received a canned response (really bad dinner @ CRT).

Well, today I received a telephone call from someone with Disney wanting to talk to be about my complaints (hotel issues and a slew of ride breakdowns). It wasn't a good time to talk (I was at Target trying to check out), but I asked that she call back mid-morning on Monday.

Has anyone else been called about a complaint they've submitted to Disney and can share their experiences? i.e. was it just a more in depth account of the issues? Was anything else requested? I'm not looking for anything out of this...I've already vowed to not return until our girls are both at least 48" (which may take some time since my 6 yr old is the size of an avg 4 yr old ). I'm just wanting to make sure I don't squander a good opportunity to let my voice be heard.

Any thoughts?

What happened that caused you to submit an email? I've pieced some things together from your other posts, but for us to better help, could you share (again if I missed it) what you submitted so that we could offer suggestions?

 

[Goofyernmost]

From working in collections for a portion of my time, anyone that ever says that there is conveniently "no supervisor available" is full of crap. If there's no supervisor, they can't be on the phones. Sure, supers can be in meetings and such, but there's ALWAYS someone who can speak to you that is above the guy on the lowest level.

It depends on the policy of the company. I'm sure that the business doesn't shut down if a supervisor goes to the bathroom or to lunch. But, like I said, it depends on individual company policy. Just because the place where you work required it doesn't mean everyone does. Besides collections and customer service are two different animals. Yes, you get unhappy people in both, but the collections department gets the most grief.

 

[mousehockey37]

It depends on the policy of the company. I'm sure that the business doesn't shut down if a supervisor goes to the bathroom or to lunch. But, like I said, it depends on individual company policy. Just because the place where you work required it doesn't mean everyone does. Besides collections and customer service are two different animals. Yes, you get unhappy people in both, but the collections department gets the most grief.

Well, there's a bunch of supervisors in a collections department, especially for a substantial company. So 1 supervisor going to lunch, bathroom, etc, like I said, that won't interrupt things, but we did have times where if none of the supervisors were available, they shut down the jobs and we just kinda sat there and waited for one to come back. In any way though, with this being Disney, the people are there. The guy just didn't want to get in trouble, so he said no one was available and ended the call.

 

[HouCuseChickie]

What happened that caused you to submit an email? I've pieced some things together from your other posts, but for us to better help, could you share (again if I missed it) what you submitted so that we could offer suggestions?

Well, you can probably guess from these posts that breakdowns were one of our big issues. Not just Splash, but many rides. We had one day where around half of the rides we were riding or trying to ride broke down. The other big issue was lodging. Rude, grumpy, ignorant, aloof, abrupt, curt, etc. aren't words you normally associate with CMs at a WDW hotel. In hindsight, maybe we should have tried to change resorts, but anything too disruptive like that when traveling with young children usually does more harm than good. I at least have enough of the specifics documented about both issues should they ask.

I had an amazing experience a few years back when I sent an email. I was heading down to WDW and saw some issues on Splash on a fan site(maybe here). I emailed Bob Iger, Meg Crofton, and Guest Service on my official company email. I too figured I would get a canned response BUT got a call from a Guest Service Manager who in fact pulled Duty Manager shifts for MK. I emailed her pics of what was on the fan site. She told me she was going to walk Splash with other leadership for that area and get back to me. She in fact did a few days after and said it looked really good and not one manager saw anything like what I sent her.

She asked me when I was going to WDW and I told her. She called me a day after I got back from vacation and asked how I thought Splash looked. I said it looked AWESOME and how I was a bit embarrassed that I emailed them in the first place. She was actually very laid back and pretty cool. She said as a manager for Disney, she is just as much in love with the parks and wants only the best for the parks. She gave me direct line in case I ever needed to contact them in the future.

Well, hopefully I will get to speak to someone just as dedicated and passionate about everything. I guess maybe I could have taken pics of all of the frustrated people in the various breakdowns, but that probably would have made bad situations worse. So, hopefully they'll hear me out on the ride issues as well as our hotel concerns.