Reasons from one company why they only provide 1890 numbers for their customers
This link came up in a Google Alert recently. It shows two reasons why Imagine WiMax won’t provide their customers with a geographical alternative for their 1890 customer care numbers.
Their first response to a customer query was:
The reason we have an 1890 number is because this number is charged at a flat rate for everyone in the country. So no matter where in Ireland you are calling from or what call package you have, it is a flat rate price. We feel this is the fairest option for everyone. Thanks.
When further pressed, they then came up with this plainly ridiculous excuse:
Hi Kevin, in the past we have used free phone and geo numbers as our main contact numbers however it leads to a lot of prank and irrelevant calls, basically people dial the number just because its free and block the lines for genuine calls. So the reason we and all other Telecoms provider don’t use geo numbers is to ensure the calls we receive are relevant and can be dealt with effectively.
And they then have the cheek to say “hope this helps”. Yeah, you hope it helps that it costs your customers more money than necessary to call you up. Nice!
I have an all inclusive package which allows me to use the internet and make calls in Ireland and the UK. I don’t have to pay to call any number but I am charged if it’s an 1890 and other such numbers. Personally, I feel companies that do not give you normal numbers do it for a reason. Not sure what the reason is but it’s not to save the customer money regardless of it being a flat rate.