AOL sucks, real friggin' bad

AOL's been getting quite the little storm the past few days over a HORRIBLE customer service call, in which a caller was simply trying to cancel his account, but the CS representative simply would not oblige the request.  You can listen to the call here.

The caller cited the fact that he never used AOL, and didn't even have the software installed to use it, but the argumentative rep continually badgered him, arguing that his records, in fact, showed that the account was being used, and even went as far as asking if this guy's father was there, because, he apparently was the primary user when it was still in use, although he was not the owner of the account.

Here's AOL's response to the incident:

At AOL, we have zero-tolerance for customer care incidents like this -- which is deeply regrettable and also absolutely inexcusable. The employee in question violated our customer service guidelines and practices, and everything that AOL believes to be important in customer care -- chief among them being respect for the member, and swiftly honoring their requests. This matter was dealt with immediately and appropriately, and the employee cited here is no longer with the Company.

The response sounds good on the surface, but unfortunately, it's a BOLDFACE LIE.  I also had the joy of canceling an account with AOL.  I signed up for a free month, entirely out of curiosity as to what exactly had become of my old internet partner-in-crime way back in the days of dial-up.  Of course, I never had any intention of keeping it.

This guy got off in 5 minutes.  I got off in over 20.  I said from the beginning that I had absolutely no interest in keeping the service, and even explained to him that I had no interest even when I got it.  He continually tried to sell me on their anti-virus software, which I explained over and over that I had no need for, considering I am very happy with my current service.  He put me on hold 3 times, for god knows why, other than making it as difficult as possible for me to cancel.

What ties these two calls together is the obvious fact that both representatives were at least loosely going off an AOL script.  This is not a story of two rogue representatives, badgering and angering customers into hopefully keeping their account active, it's a company policy.  Honestly, does anyone really believe that these guys could give two shits whether or not you keep the service, unless they were getting paid extra to keep your business, no matter what the method.

AOL should have been more honest and upfront with their policies, and work harder to change them.  Maybe Calacanis needs to take over the Customer Service department, too.  If AOL wants to have a prayer of staying alive in these days of the rebirth of the consumer, then they better quit now, or expect more and more retribution until their bad policy infests the entirety of their business ventures.

(Via Boing Boing)

And some other stories about AOL policy...
NY Attorney General Prods AOL Cancellation Policies
complaints.com
AOL Settles Cancellation Policy Dispute
What Part of 'Cancel' Don't You Understand?