Mar 31, 2005 01:03 PM
2275 Views
(Updated Mar 31, 2005 01:03 PM)
Is reliance good or bad ?? Why do you care?
This review is prompted partly by the fact that I am jobless, and partly by the fact that yesterday evening a guy sitting next to me on the bus was asking me whether sms and calls from reliance phones are going to other gsm service providers. The question is really straight forward, but wat intrigued me was that the same question was being asked 2 years back when reliance launched.
For the record, I have reliance for 2 years now, I have experienced no probs with sending/recieving calls/sms from non-reliance phones for the past one year. Past one week there have been problems with BSNL to reliance connectivity, but I dont care much for that coz given the fraudulent nature of reliance as a company and its size I'm sure it will resolve the problem with BSNL in its own unique way. See, i'm not an investor in reliance, im only a user, and as far as I am concerned I dont care how they make their money as long as I get my moneys worth.
I have been making 5 to 6 std calls everyday on an average for the past 2 years, each for 20 -25 minutes or even more. I send around 2500 sms per month. I roam around in India like anyone else. At the end of it I have a bill of around 3k. I have free sms. I am happy. I dont see anyone who shouldnt be. Now all my local calls to reliance numbers are free ( talk all day and nite) if I pay 75 bucks per month. Isnt that something?
And to top it all.. check out the customer service. Ofcourse as in any big sized money making competitive and growing company there are a lots instances of bad service. I went around from one rel web world to another checking which ones are the most decent. Some are totally crap as in they dont know their business, some have a really bad attitude. Till about a month back I was in Chennai.
There is their webworld in Adayar and if you are in chennai and have been going elsewhere I suggest you stop going anywhere else with your problems. I lost my mobile this year ,2005, on new years day. The basic LG model. I went to this webworld. He said I needed an FIR to disconnect. But on some insistence he did disconnect the phone without the FIR, but said I would need the FIR to get a replacement handset for 1500 rs. Now I do the rounds of the police station for a copy of the FIR for about 2 months. Still no FIR.
Inbetween I used GSM; which I realised was still fleecing ppl. Now I desparately needed my reliance back. So I go to this webworld and tell those guys I cant seem to get any FIR copy.
Now, those guys in the webworld get pissed. Not with me (thats the best part) but with the police guys. ''How can they refuse an FIR copy for so long''. ''How can they treat a customer like this''. Meanwhile I am watching their indignation in surprise. I am thinking, these guys really care whether I get a replacement handset.
Then it happens. It is 9 pm in the nite. Its already closing time. One of the webworld guys asks me to come with him. I sit behind him on his bike and where does he take me?? straight to the police station. He goes there. Argues with the inspector and in 10 minutes I have the FIR copy in my hand.
I go back and can't thank him enough. Now imagine one of those pretty looking GSM service guys doing this for you. I have my replacement handset at 9.30 pm and my new connection with my old number in another couple of hours.
Now, if this is not exemplary customer service, then what is? BTW, I will still crib about reliance charging for missed calls and charging for incoming roaming. But what the hell.. its not all about money.
