Team-BHP - Is Airtel Nationalised?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Samurai (Post 3162767)

Well, I could get the sim cut from a mobile shop. So I got out again and visited 2-3 mobile shops. None were willing to cut the sim, it was as if I was asking for an illegal act. So I got home again, still very agitated.

Just bad Karma i guess, bangalore you just walk into any of the shop and pay them 20 bucks for chop chop. I have never seen them or experienced them deny it. Just about a month back i got this done in a shop in Koramangala.

As far as security thing goes, i think they are using this as an excuse to update their Know your customer thingie also. Apart from what Steeroid is trying to say. For a person sitting in counter it doesn't matter you are the owner of the sim or not, if he has to replace it (even if the sim is genuine or you as a person is genuine) their standard operating procedure with regard to security standards says take identity proof to cover any future liability, then they would. Is it logical, may not be 100% but there are many not so logical things which companies perform to ensure their interests are covered at all times.

We face the same issue with our corporate cards all the time, for activating anything and everything they require request in letter head. :Frustrati

The issue is not one of government or private enterprise. The issue is about the redressal mechanism. In any PSU or government body, the mechanism for redressal of consumer complaints is mentioned in their citizen's charter. For example, if things go wrong with your BSNL connection, there is proper hierarchy mentioned. If one is not happy with 1 or 2 follow-ups, a simple letter addressed to the top man (in this case, the Principal General Manager) is enough to have your complaint resolved within 48 hours. It does not even have to be a letter. Even an email does.

In any private organisation, no one knows who to escalate the complaint to. Heck, they won't even guide you to the right person if you walk into their office. They keep making you run around knowing that after a point you will give up.

The thing is, as consumers, we understand that not every complaint or issue or service request can be resolved as per pre-defined time or process. There will be deviations. What is unforgivable, however, is not to define an escalation framework or give the impression to the consumer that the company does not care.

I really don't see the point of running through the same lost SIM process for wanting a different sim-size. Do we have wrong-doers who refuse to do nasty things unless they can get your SIM to fit a micro-sim enabled device?

"I won't steal your money unless I can do it with my iPhone/Android/Windows Phone:D?"

Not to mention, providing address proof for a corporate connection is a nightmare, as the billing address is often the office address (and operators don't usually ask for address proof when issuing corporate connections initially), and there's pretty much nothing you can furnish that's acceptable (your badge with the address on the back is not valid for address proof). I went through this myself last month when I had to get a new SIM for my S3. Whether it's company-wide policy or just the guy at one particular counter being pedantic, I don't know.:Frustrati

I finally managed to convince them to issue a SIM against my home address proof, as that's also on record with them.

Here is my ongoing experience -

I moved from Hyderabad to Delhi about 1.5 months back. Requested disconnection of Airtel Postpaid as I already had one for Delhi. It was cut off promptly. I was informed that the security amount will be refunded via cheque after deducting any outstanding amount and they would get back to me in a few days with the details.

Some 7 days later, I get an email asking me to confirm the mailing address where they will be sending the refund cheque. As expected, it was the same as my earlier billing address - Hyd. I was out of Hyderabad by this time. I apprised them of the same and asked to send it to my permanent address - Del. I thought it won't be a problem since at the time of getting this connection, they had insisted on a permanent address proof and I had provided a passport copy. My mistake, I assumed it was still in their records.

Here on, my ordeal started. Everytime I reply to them to send it to the Delhi address, they send me the 'template' for address change. I have tried a lot to make them 'understand' the situation - that I am not simply changing my billing address! But all in vain.

I started with customer care, also dealt with their nodal contact and now finally waiting for their appellate authority to revert.

Since the amount in question is not much, this is not infuriating me but rather providing me some comic relief. Anyway, I am not letting it go, lets see where it ends. :)

Why is it so hard for them to 'understand' the problem and then try to solve it? Why do they 'have' to fit it into some preexisting scenario!

I got an Airtel Fixed Line broadband around a month and a half back. When it works it's great. But I have been having frequent problems in the last few weeks - Once in every 2-3 days for a few hours, the connection is unusably slow. And today, since the last 30 minutes, the internet access is gone. I have logged a complaint once every 2-3 days for the last 2-3 days. The problem usually gets resolved in a few hours.

But I am very disappointed. Is it always like this?

I have 3 internet connections - Airtel fixed line broadband (15GB plan), Airtel 3G Datacard (1GB plan) & also a Vodafone 3G phone (1GB plan) to which I can tether my laptop. If not for the 2 backups, I would have got rid of the broadband connection by now.

Couple weeks back I wanted to replace my wife's sim with a microsim. I had previously cut it myself last year, hadn't done a good job with that one. Knowing the stupidocracy involved, I didn't want to go unprepared this time. So I asked my office accountant (whose primary job is to deal with bureaucracy) to prepare the documents needed for the swap.

He talks to local airtel office and tells me that the process has changed. You can just email the local airtel office from the registered email address requesting a new sim, and then walk up the office and pick up the new sim. No other documentation required. This is a corporate connection.

So... she emailed the local airtel office, requesting a micro-sim, also adding that the accountant will pick it up same evening. By evening I had the micros-sim in my hand.:D

Have to say this is a major improvement over the former process.:thumbs up

Quote:

Originally Posted by Samurai (Post 3301083)

He talks to local airtel office and tells me that the process has changed. You can just email the local airtel office from the registered email address requesting a new sim, and then walk up the office and pick up the new sim. No other documentation required. This is a corporate connection.

They are even better. I had to replace my delhi SIM in chennai with a microsim (it was the older version). All I had to do was go there with my ID proof, and a photo and i had my sim in like 20 minutes. The sim was active in 12 hours, and SMSes restarted in like 36 hours.

But i was seriously impressed. I had expected lots of headaches and unnecessary declarations or flatout refusal. This was good.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Samurai (Post 3162767)

Me: Hi, I need to change my miniSIM to microSIM.
He: Sir, we need ID proof, address proof and 2 passport size photos.
Me: Huh? I am not applying for new connection. I just a sim swap.
He: We need these documents even for sim swap.

Well, that doesn't make sense. But when does bureaucracy make sense? Since there was a photo studio right in front, I got the photo taken and waited for 30 minutes. Then I got back in the Airtel office. But I was chased out again for the photocopies. I got back in Airtel office of the third time now.

Me: Hello, I have the photographs and the photocopies now.
He: Give me your number.
Me: xxxxxxxxxx
He: <checks on computer> Oh, this is a corporate number.
Me: So?
He: We need a letter from your company, on company letter head, with company seal.
Me: What? All I want is a sim swap. Why all this meaningless bureaucracy?
He: These are security requirements. We need company letter and seal.
Me: Oh, jump.... <I stormed out of the airtel office>

So, it was time to change my SIM from micro to nano.

I guess this is the time when I become a dangerous threat to society. :uncontrol So, everything needs to be re-verified to see I don't harm the society with my new nano SIM which does nothing different from the earlier micro SIM.

So I inquired the procedure involved in the sim swap over phone, and then walked to the local Airtel shop.

Me: Hi, want to change from micro SIM to nano SIM.
He: Sure, post or pre-paid?
Me: Post paid.
He: Tell me your number.
Me: xxx-xxx-xxxx
He: It is an organization/corporate number.
Me: Yes.
He: <turns to his boss> Is there a different procedure or organization connection?
Boss: No.
He: Ok, wait here.

He returned with a nano sim and asked me to send a specific SMS to 121 with the code on the nano sim. Once I received the ACK, he handed me the nano SIM. Payment? None.

No ID proof, no address proof, no letter from the company, no photographs, no payment. But a boat load of common sense. This only goes to prove that earlier sim-swap process was merely copied from the lost-sim process out of sheer laziness.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Samurai (Post 3163643)

But bureaucrats thinks differently. Here they are ignoring the fact that the customer is actually presenting an ID, a working sim. A sim that can do everything that a new sim can do, except fit into a phone with smaller sim holder. Ignoring this huge fact, lets them use an existing process. The process that is used for issuing a new sim in case of theft or damage. A case where old sim doesn't exist, a case where customer is not presenting a working sim as ID. By doing this, the bureaucrat doesn't have to create another process for this sim swap, he can reuse an existing process. In the mind of a bureaucrat, this is efficiency, he re-used a process. It sounds like a smart idea, isn't? What an idea sirjee!

But what about the customer, this is not efficient for him. He is treated like he lost or damaged the sim. Just because a bureaucrat was lazy to create a new process for sim-swap, now every customer who wants a smaller sim gets a run-around.

Now that they have created a separate procedure for sim-swap, all the nonsense goes away and customers are happy.:thumbs up

Quote:

Originally Posted by Samurai (Post 3687986)

.....

No ID proof, no address proof, no letter from the company, no photographs, no payment. But a boat load of common sense. This only goes to prove that earlier sim-swap process was merely copied from the lost-sim process out of sheer laziness.

Now that they have created a separate procedure for sim-swap, all the nonsense goes away and customers are happy.:thumbs up

Sadly Vodafone still thinks its a threat to swap a regular sim with another.

I own 3 numbers from vodafone and all part of a CUG. One is corporate, and 2 personal, of which the corporate and 1 personal number dates back to early 2000, and the 3rd sim more than a year. Two weeks back none of the phones could be reached nor outbound calls could be initiated, even though the signal strength showed 60-70%. When I walk down to the nearest vodafone shop, and complain on the same, they suggested that I change the SIM since they dont see any network disruption. So when I requested for the replacement sim, they wanted a copy of my Id and address proofs, and they also wanted to check the original!!

Its a different issue that the problem got resolved on its own, and when I checked with my office, they told me that this has been observed across multiple areas over the last couple of months. I am still using the same SIM, and dont seem to be a threat anylonger!! lol::uncontrol