Thursday, January 11, 2007

Give me someone I can cuss!

Ever had a run-in with an automated phone answering service and no matter what option you chose you could not reach a live, human being?

That happens with my bank often. Here are some of the things I hate most about an automated phone system.

1. Automatically puts you on hold

2. The need to punch in a long string of numbers

3.Your call may be monitored or recorded

4. "We're sorry to keep you waiting" message that always sounds like your call is being answered.

5. Speech recognition technology....I'm southern and apparently these robots don't understand southern. "I'm sorry...could you repeat that?" or "I'm sorry I didn't understand that" coming for a robot makes me want to cuss

6. You are never given the option to speak to a live person...even if you punch the 0 key til your finger bleeds...which makes you want to cuss even more

That's what I hate most...an automated system never gives me someone live I can cuss!




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1 comment:

Anonymous said...

This is from a year ago, so some may be out of date....

OK, Here's how to skip the answering menu and speak to a human being.

The IVR Cheat Sheet™ by Paul English



us finance

phone

steps to find a human
America First

800-999-3961

0 or say "member services"
American Express

800-528-4800

0 repeatedly
American Funds

800-421-0180

Press 0.
AMSouth Bank

800-267-6884

When the recording starts, press 111-0000. This is seven digits, like a phone number.
Bank of America

800-529-8804

Press 555 at each prompt.
Bank of America

800 900 9000

To get to human directly at any BOA #, press *0.
Bank One

877-226-5663

00
Capital One

800-903-3637

0,0,0
Charles Schwab

800-435-9050

3, 0
Chase

800-CHASE24

5 pause 1 4
Chase Credit Card

800-945-2006

0
Chrysler Financial

800-700-0738

Select language, then press 00
Citi AAdvantage

888-766-2484

Ignore prompts and wait for a human.
CitiCard

800-967-8500

0,0,0,0,0
CitiFinancial

800-643-5607

0,0,0,0,0
CitiMortgage

800-283-7918

###
Citizens Bank

800-922-9999

0,0,0
Coutrywide Loans

800-669-5864

*0 repeatedly
Decision One Mortgage

888-264-3663

Don't press any keys when prompted; they transfer you
Diner's Club

800-729-5309

2
Discover

800-347-2683

****
e*Trade

800-786-2575

#### (4 pound signs)
Equifax

800-997-2493


Experian

888-397-3742


Exxon Mobil Card

800-344-4355

000 ignoring message
Fidelity

800-544-6666

ignore prompt for social security number, just enter ###
Fidelity NetBenefits

800-581-5800

1,#################
GE Finance CareCredit

866-893-7864

1, 6, 5, 0, 0
GM MasterCard

800-947-1000

Press "0" at each prompt.
Honda Financial Services

800-445-1358

Press 0 at each prompt regardless of the message.
HSBC

800-477-6000

1, 3, 0
ING

800-464-3473

Direct to human.
MasterCard

800-MC-ASSIST

000 on each menu
MBNA

800-421-2110

00 when menu starts
Mellon Investor

800-649-3593

Wait through initial recording finishes, select nothing--wait--you will be connected to a live customer service rep
MetLife Bank

866-226-5638

Press # after each menu.
PayPal

402-935-7733

Say "agent."
Paypal Buyer Credit

866-571-3012

Be silent and at the end of the options press 6.
PNC Bank

888-762-2265

Press * till it says "transfering to customer support;" takes about 3 *s.
Privacy Guard

800-734-0199

Say "agent" or "no" or any word at each prompt.
Sovereign Bank

877-SOV-BANK

1 english; 1 personal; 3 then social#; passcode, #; then 0 (1-3x)
SunTrust

800-786-8787

Press # after each menu.
TD Waterhouse

800-934-4448

Press # after opening prompt, then do it again after prompt to be transferred to rep.
TIAA-CREF

800-842-2252

Press 00 at each prompt.
Transunion

800-888-4213


US Bank

800-872-2657

0000
USAA

800-531-2265

Say "representative" at every opportunity.
Visa

800-847-2911

000 (ignore prompts saying that it's an invalid entry)
Wachovia

800-922-4684

0, 0
Wal Mart Credit Card

866-888-3868

0
Washington Mutual

800-756-8000

At any time after the announcement(s) press 0,0.
Washington Mutual

800-788-7000

Press 0 at each prompt regardless of the message.
Wells Fargo

800-869-3557

0,0,0 or when asked for account number say "I don't know"
Western Union

800-325-6000

* then ##
us government

phone

steps to find a human
Dept of Education Loans

800-848-0979

Say and do nothing at the prompt and you will be transfered to someone.
EDD

800-300-5616

When you hear "welcome", press 1, then press 4 and 0 at the next two prompts.
Federal Trade Commission

877-382-4357

At each prompt, press 4, 5, 0.
FEMA

800-621-FEMA

Select language (1 for English), Don't choose any option, just hold for human; or press 00
INS/Citizenship

800-375-5283

Select language, then press 2, 6, 2, 4 at the prompts, press 0.
Medicare

800-MEDICARE

RE; info for part "D" Medicare Prescription Drug Plans- When recording begins say "Agent" 5+ times.
Medicare

800-633-4227

Say "agent" or press 0.
Social Security

800-772-1213

Press 00.
US Dept. of Transportation

800-832-5660

Press 000.
USPS

800-275-8777

Press 3 at each prompt. Press 2 at the next recording.
Veterans Affairs

800-827-1000

Press 1,0.
us insurance

phone

steps to find a human
Aetna

800-537-9384

2, then say "operator" (check this)
Aetna

800-680-3566

* then 0 anytime
AIG

877-638-4244

Direct to human.
Blue Cross FEP

800-451-7602

Wait for prompt, then press 0, 3 to reach a CS rep.
CIGNA

800-516-2898

REGARDING A BILL
Cigna

800-849-9000

##
Delta Dental

888-335-8227

00000, wait through message, select language, 4, 0.
GEICO

800-841-3000

Wait for prompt then 6, 1, 5; Or dail 800-555-2752
Medco

800-251-7690

0000, enter member id or say "i don't have a member id."
Medicare

800-633-4227

After the opening prompt say "agent".
Principal Life

800-247-4695

1 for english, 2, then 0 several times.
Prudential Financial

800-778-2255

Say "Customer Service Representative" several times after intro.
United Health Care

866-844-4864

000000,0,0
USAA

800-531-6095

000 then #; or # initially to dial the extension of a specific representative
us pharmacy

phone

steps to find a human
Caremark

800-262-7890

0
CVS

local store

Press 6 to connect to store manager.
drugstore.com

800-378-4786

2, 5
Eckerd

800-325-3737

0 for pharmacy, 8* for manager
Express Scripts - TriCare

866-363-8667

0, listen announcement, 0,0.
MEDCO

800-987-5269

Say "representative" after each message (3x).
Rite Aid

local store

Press 3 to speak to the pharmacy
Walgreens

local store

0 for a pharmacy employee
Walgreens Mail Order

800-635-3070

0,00
us products

phone

steps to find a human
Bose

800-444-2673

Direct to human.
Entertainment Weekly Mag

866-228-1183

Say "Agent" then "yes" when asked "Do you want to speak to a C.S. rep."
GE Appliance

800-626-2005

000
GE Consumer Products

800-720-2094

Select type the of product from menu and you'll get a human.
Kodak

800-235-6325

*7 or *28
Kodak Gallery (Ofoto)

800-360-9098

Say "customer service representative" repeatedly.
Konica Minolta

800-285-6422

0
Panasonic

800-211-7262

0,0,0
Playstation

800-345-7669

0
Sonos

800-680-2345

1 sales; 2 support
Sony

800-222-7669

When prompted, say "Agent."
Sports Illustrated

800-284-8800

0,0,0,0 (ignore "invalid entry" messages)
Time Magazine

866-731-5401

0,0,0,0 (ignore "invalid entry" messages)
XM Radio

800-967-2346

0
us retail

phone

steps to find a human
Advance Auto Parts

800-314-4243

Press 0 when the automated message begins.
Amazon Visa

888-247-4080

Press 0 twice. Ignore invalid account message.
Amazon.com

800-201-7575

Wait though the first menu for an agent.
Apple Stores

local store

press 5 as soon as you hear the automated menu
Banana Republic

888-277-8953

0
Barnes & Noble

local store

Press 1 or 0 during greeting.
Barnes & Noble.com

800-843-2665

Direct to human.
Best Buy

888-237-8289

Listen to intro, then press 1,2,0,0
Best Buy Card

800-365-0292

00* then press 8
Blair

800-458-2000

Direct to human.
Buy.com

949-389-2000

Dail 0 and direct to rep
Cabela's

800-237-4444

Direct to human.
Circuit City Visa

888-363-8001

Press 0 a lot.
CompUSA

local

0
eBay

800-322-9266

0,0
Gap Credit Card

800-887-1198

000
Home Depot

local store

Direct to human.
Home Depot

800-793-3768

# 2-3 times
Home Shopping Net

800-284-3100

0
Ikea

800-434-4532

Press 0 many times quickly!
JC Penney

800-222-6161

Press 0 twice, ignoring error message.
K-Mart

local store

0
Kohl's Credit

800 564-5740

After providing account info, press 0 three times
LL Bean

800-441-5713

Direct to human
Lowe's

800-445-6937

Press 0 as the recording kicks in to get to the Operator
NetFlix

888-638-3549

0
Old Navy

800-653-6289

0
Overstock.com

800-843-2446

At the main menu, 0 three to four times to bypass the menu
Petco

local store

3
QVC

800-367-9444

0
Radio Shack

800-843-7422

0,0
RadioShack

local store

Direct to human.
Rent-A-Center

800-422-8186

1
Safeway

local store

As soon as voice prompt starts type 1200 to get human
Sears

800-4-MY-HOME

Be silent to be put in queue for human.
Sears Delivery

800-732-7747

*122
Sears Repairs

800-469-4663

Repeat "Help" everytime the IVR tries to give options.
Sharper Image

800-344-9919

Direct to human.
Staples

800-333-3330

Just wait through intro and you will be connected to a representative.
Staples

local store

0
Stop & Shop

local number

0
Target

local store

0 during greeting.
The Company Store

800-285-3696

0
Tiger Direct

888-999-7300

0
Toys "R" Us

local store

0
Wal-Mart

800-925-6278

1 for directory
us shipping

phone

steps to find a human
DHL

800-225-5345

Press 1, press 5, press 0, enter your phone number.
FedEx

888-463-3339

At message say "Rep"; or press 0
Union Pacific

800-877-5123

Press # sign during main menu options.
UPS

800-742-5877

0,0
us technology

phone

steps to find a human
Apple

800-275-2273

000; if virtual rep answers, say "operator"
Apple Tech Support

800-275-2273

0,,0,,0 Wait for IVR response before pressing 0 each time.
Compaq

800-652-6672

When asked what product say "I don't know", then "person", ignore message and human will answer (may gave to hold)
Dell

888-560-8324

00, 0, 0, 0
Earthlink

888-earthlink

1 find a dialin number; 2 billing; 3 sales; 4 support
Epson

800-922-8911

yes
Fujitsu PC Support

800-385-4878

0, 0
Gateway

800-846-2301

Press nothing and wait through message.
Geek Squad

800-433-5778

0,0,0,0,0,0
Godaddy

480-505-8877

4, #, select 1 for new customer 2 existing customer, #again
HP

800-474-6836

Say "agent".
HP

888-560-8324

00
IBM

800-IBM-4YOU

You go into a hold queue immediately
kodak

800-235-6325

Press # after intro message.
lockheed martin

800-435-7063

Press *7 after intro.
Microsoft

800-936-5700

Always 0. This is true for just about any MS number.
QuickBooks

888-729-1996

1 purchase; 2 billing; 3 registration; 4 tech support or 0 to human
Symantec

800-441-7234

00
Zone Labs, Inc.

877-966-5221

Press 2 for direct to human 24/7
us telco

phone

steps to find a human
Alltel Cellular

800-255-8351

Press # four times.
AOL

800-827-6364

Press 0 repeatedly, ignoring all messages.
AT&T

800-222-0300

Press # four times, then press 1 if for current phone, 2 to enter other number, else 3.
AT&T Wireless

800-888-7600

During prompts, press * then # twice.
BellSouth

877-678-2355

Press *0.
Cellular One

888-910-9191

Press 4.
Charter Communications

888-438-2478

Press 0 eight times.
Cingular

800-211-2445

Direct to human.
Comcast

800-266-2278

Press 000 or be silent and wait.
Cox Communications

877-247-2474

Press 4.
Headsets.com

800-432-3738

Direct to human.
MCI/Costco Calling Card

800-938-4949

Press 2 four times.
Metro PCS

888-863-8768

Press #43.
Motorola

800-331-6456

Press 0 twice.
Nextel

800-639-6111

Press 0 five times.
Qwest

800-244-1111

Say "Agent" 5 times.
RCN

800-746-4726

Press 5, then 3, then 1.
SBC

800-585-7928

Again, an (intelligent, this time) IVR wants YOUR phone number first.
SBC DSL Support

877-722-3755

Say "no" and enter your phone # (or "yes" if calling from same number on account), then press 0 repeatedly.
Simple Freedom

800-335-6401

Press 1, then 3, then 2.
Sprint

800-658-7564

Direct to human.
Sprint Broadband Direct

888-996-0001

Press 0 twice.
Sprint PCS

866-273-2163

Direct to human.
SunCom

800-786-7378

Press 0 four to five times during or after opening message.
T-Mobile

877-606-4801

Direct to human.
TracFone

800-867-7183

Press 1 for English, wait for next menu to start, then press 5, then 4.
U.S. Cellular

888-944-9400

Press 0.
Verizon 411 Directory Assistance

411

Press 0.
Verizon DSL

800-567-6789

Say "Agent" repeatedly.
Verizon Phone Repair

800-275-2355

Direct to human.
Verizon Wireless

800-922-0204

Press #00 or enter phone # then 0 then 4.
Virgin Mobile

888-322-1122

Press 2, then say: "English", "More Options", "Ask a Question", "Live Advisor", "Something Else", "I don't have one", then enter phone # or say "I don't have one."
Vonage Customer Care

888-250-1799

Direct to human.
us travel

phone

steps to find a human
American Airlines

800-433-7300

00, then say "agent"
Amtrak

800-872-7245

0 or say "agent"
Amtrak

877-444-4773

Direct to human.
Delta

800-221-1212

Say "agent" 3-4 times - every time it asks for a response from you.
E-Z Pass

888-288-6865

0,0,0,0 (ignoring "invalid response" messages)
Jet Blue

800-538-2583

0
Kayak.com

203-899-3120

0
Lufthansa

800-399-5838

Direct to human.
Mariott Rewards

800-321-7396

Enter rewards number and press 0 (or just press 0 if you don't have the #).
National Car Rental

800-227-7368

Direct to human.
Northwest

800-225-2525

*, 0,0 after initial greeting
Orbitz

888-656-4546

#,#,#,#,#
Southwest

800-435-9792

Direct to human. (may hold if busy time)
Travelocity

888-872-8356

#,#,#,#,#,#,#,#,#,# (ignoring "I'm sorry I did not understand" messages)
United

800-864-8331

Do nothing, wait for human.
United

800-864-8331

When you hear "let's get started" say "Agent" ... then "Domestic" or "International" as appropriate.
US Airways

800-428-4322

4, wait, 1
Walt Disney World

407-824-4521

Direct line to Magic Kingdom Guest Relations
us tv/satellite

phone

steps to find a human
Charter communications

866-499-8080

Select language, 0,0,0,0,0,0 (and then hold :(
comcast

800-945-2288

Ignore message and after 25 seconds, a human will answer.
Direct TV

800-347-3288

0 repeatedly
Sirius

888 539-7474

0
TiVo

877-367-8486

Say "Live Agent"
XM Radio

800-998-7900

Direct to human.
228 companies as of Tue, 03-Jan-2006 13:19 CST




I hope you find this useful.
Take Care,

-p

http://pauliecannoli.wordpress.com/

http://lastfreevoice.wordpress.com/