HP Adds, Then Retracts, Fifteen Minute Minimum Wait Time for Phone Support ⇥ theregister.com

Paul Kunert, the Register:

To reaffirm the changes, HP says in the staff memo: “The wait time for each customer is set to 15 minutes – notice the expected wait time is mentioned only in the beginning of the call.” The message will be read out three times during the wait time, after the initial reading.

The reason for the change? Getting people to figure it out themselves using online support. As HP put it: “Encouraging more digital adoption by nudging customers to go online to self-solve,” and “taking decisive short-term action to generate warranty cost efficiencies.”

I had wondered whether Humane was looking forward to this kind of corporate culture. Then I remembered it gave people who spent a thousand dollars on a product not even one year old ten days’ notice all their data would be deleted and it would turn into a fridge magnet.

Kunert, the Register:

Now HP has abandoned the policy, and in a statement issued today, said:

“We’re always looking for ways to improve our customer service experience. This support offering was intended to provide more digital options with the goal of reducing time to resolve inquiries.

“We have found that many of our customers were not aware of the digital support options we provide. Based on initial feedback, we know the importance of speaking to live customer service agents in a timely fashion is paramount. As a result, we will continue to prioritize timely access to live phone support to ensure we are delivering an exceptional customer experience.”

Oh, well, never mind then. It turns out your call really is important to them.

This is one of those things that will age me, but I truly miss the days when I could assume ready and capable post-purchase support. Good luck finding the phone number for HWCONA or NUBBYO.