Three year old left screaming when customer service goes wrong

My youngest ended up screaming after a worker on the trains nearly rammed us with her trolley.

After a hectic two days braving the train journey to Manchester with five children between two mums, being asked for ID (despite my age), playing super mum to ensure the youngest didn't miss any of the fabulous Peppa Pig Live show despite needing the toilet and playing 'avoid the laptop' on the train home to ensure the children weren't exposed to any inappropriate content from fellow travellers; we were on the last stretch.  Home was in sight.  Our station was only ten minutes away.

But of course, the excitement hadn't finished.  Just as I am beginning to think about gathering our 'stuff' together, the food trolley enters the carriage.  My youngest was still sat on my knee, angled outwards to avoid the screen of the laptop of our fellow traveller, and her feet were obviously in the aisle. She then started to get down off my knee (she wanted to go around the table to her sister) just as the lady pulling the trolley entered our carriage.

Trolleys with tardis-like proportions, managing to hold any snack you can imagine.  They are only just slim enough to fit down the corridor between the seats.

The lady responsible for the trolley was pulling it behind her incredibly quickly. 

The lady didn't slow, she didn't appear to be taking any notice of anything other than pulling that trolley down the carriage as fast as possible.  I don't even think she saw my daughter, who isn't quite one metre tall yet, stood in the middle of the aisle in front of her. 

I hoisted my daughter back up onto my knee as fast as I could and swung her legs in under the table.  The lady and her trolley were bearing down on us and my foot was still angled outwards into the aisle.  I had to quickly pull it inwards, not realising that the motion of moving my leg in also raised my knee, squeezing my daughters legs between my knee and the table top.

The lady and the trolley sped past, oblivious.  My daughter on the other hand; my daughter who is a strong, brave girl and who rarely cries even if she's fallen off her bike, opened her mouth wide and howled!

I spent the next five minutes trying to console her.  Just as she calmed down, we were pulling into our stop and my friend and I had to move fast to gather her and the other four children (all five years old or less) together, not forgetting any belongings, to get off the train.

There was no time to find the trolley lady.  No chance to complain.  No chance to say; hey!  Look where you are going!

I went to the station manager's office and tried to raise a complaint there.  Funnily enough it wasn't theirs to deal with.  I received the usual answer "it's not our responsibility.  The catering is subcontracted.  But if you take a leaflet you could write in."

I was livid.  Hiring subcontractors for part of your service does not absolve you of responsibility.  Telling me to 'write in' is not what customer service is all about.

Charging down a busy aisle without giving warning, or watching out for potential obstructions is NOT good customer service.

And of course, I still blamed myself.  Because it's my responsibility to look out for her.

What do you think?  Is it too much to ask for people to look where they are going - particularly when there are young children around?

Tesco Express chooses bureaucratic nonsense over common sense

 
I was refused service in Tesco Express last Tuesday.  Was I causing trouble? No. I was attempting to purchase a bottle of Rose to take away on a half term jaunt to Manchester.  My friend already had a bottle of white with her, but I am a massive Rose fan at the moment, so I wanted to take one with me.

The lady serving on the tills asked me for ID.  It's a good job I wasn't drinking anything at the time with the spluttering I did. 

"Sorry?" I said, thinking I had misheard.
"Do you have any photo ID?" she repeated.

"Er, no. I don't tend to carry my driving license about." I said, rummaging through my purse, yet knowing it was futile. 

"I can't serve you if you haven't" she said.
I laughed, half still thinking it was a joke. "But I am " (cupping my hand furtively round my mouth and whispering) "37!".

" Sorry" she says. "But now I've asked you I can't serve you unless you have photo ID.

"Seriously?" I said  (I know.  I was so stunned I couldn't even speak properly.)


So I returned to the car, which my friend had already began to pull out of its space, thinking I'd jump in and off we'd go.  The car containing all five of the children my friend and I were taking on our trip.
"They won't serve me" I said incredulously. She laughed, thinking I was joking.
"What?"
"They won't serve me because I don't have ID"

She laughed a little too hard frankly (wink)
"Do you want me to get it?" she said.
"Er"  I felt fairly ridiculous at this stage.  "Yes please!"


She reversed the car back into its space, got out, took the money off me and strode into the store.  I could see her through the window.  She went to the till and had a discussion with the lady on the till.


Then she returned to the car.  Without the wine.

"What happened?" I said.
"They refused me too." she said.
"Why?" 
"Because they think I'll give it to you!"

Now I was somewhat buoyed up by this little adventure.  And feeling very smug about my newly found youthful good looks I told my husband the story on my return home.

"Oh yes" he said, "I've read about this.  I heard that they refused a pensioner too, even though she showed her pension book".

Thanks for the vote of confidence love!  So it's not quite my youthful good looks after all.  It turns out that some stores have gone ID crazy.  They have told their staff to 'always' ask, and to refuse service if photo ID isn't presented.  Check out the story about the pensioner (93 years old) here.  Yes I know the source of the story isn't particularly known for its honest journalism, but still, I am proof that this craziness exists.

I thought about it a lot.  I considered that yes, it was possible that some kids might be sophisticated enough to pop on some stage makeup and make themselves up 'older' to buy alcohol.  But surely, if that is your worry, you set up a serious of quick and easy questions that only those over age would know.  For example; where does Marty live?* Or where are Salt n Pepper?**  Or who should Molly Ringwald have got together with in the first place in Pretty in Pink?***  That at least gives you more data to decide if you really want to go the route of asking for that ID.  Answers below, and if you knew them you are closer to 40 than you'd like to admit!

Always asking for ID assumes you have employees with no common sense at all.  At Tesco Express.  Hmmm?  What do you think?

Tesco Customer Services information here.

Answers
* Hill Valley.  
** Here.
*** Ducky.  (Gives a whole new perspective on "Two and a Half Men")

If you want to find out what happened next on the train trip to Manchester (2 mums and 5 children!) click here.
And for our adventures once we got to Manchester, click here.
And for the censorship we had to consider on the train back, click here!